SKIP TO CONTENT

Indian

Indians

Definitions of Indian
  1. adjective
    of or relating to or characteristic of India or the East Indies or their peoples or languages or cultures
    “the Indian subcontinent”
    Indian saris”
  2. noun
    a native or inhabitant of India
    see moresee less
    types:
    show 24 types...
    hide 24 types...
    Assamese
    native or inhabitant of the state of Assam in northeastern India
    Dravidian
    a member of one of the aboriginal races of India (pushed south by Caucasians and now mixed with them)
    Gujarati, Gujerati
    a member of the people of Gujarat
    Kashmiri
    a member of the people of Kashmir
    Oriya
    a member of a people in India living in Orissa and neighboring areas
    Panjabi, Punjabi
    a member of the majority people of Punjab in northwestern India
    Mahratta, Maratha
    a member of a people of India living in Maharashtra
    Bohemian, Gipsy, Gypsy, Roma, Romani, Romany, Rommany
    a member of a people with dark skin and hair who speak Romany and who traditionally live by seasonal work and fortunetelling; they are believed to have originated in northern India but now are living on all continents (but mostly in Europe, North Africa, and North America)
    jawan
    (India) a private soldier or male constable
    Badaga
    a member of an agricultural people of southern India
    Gadaba
    a member of an agricultural people in southeastern India
    Gond
    a member of a formerly tribal people in south central India
    Canarese, Kanarese
    a member of a Kannada-speaking group of people living chiefly in Kanara in southern India
    Kolam
    a member of a formerly tribal people now living in south central India
    Kota, Kotar
    a member of the Dravidian people living in the Nilgiri Hills in southern India
    Kui
    a member of the Dravidian people living in southeastern India
    Malto
    a member of the Dravidian people living in northern Bengal in eastern India
    Savara
    a member of the Dravidian people living in southern India
    Tamil
    a member of the mixed Dravidian and Caucasian people of southern India and Sri Lanka
    Telugu
    a member of the people in southeastern India (Andhra Pradesh) who speak the Telugu language
    Toda
    a member of a pastoral people living in the Nilgiri Hills of southern India
    Tulu
    a member of a Dravidian people living on the southwestern coast of India
    gitana
    a Spanish female Gypsy
    gitano
    a Spanish male Gypsy
    type of:
    Asian, Asiatic
    a native or inhabitant of Asia
  3. adjective
    of or pertaining to American Indians or their culture or languages
    Indian arrowheads”
    synonyms: Amerind, Amerindic, Native American
  4. noun
    a member of the race of people living in America when Europeans arrived
    synonyms: American Indian, Red Indian
    see moresee less
    types:
    show 133 types...
    hide 133 types...
    Algonquian, Algonquin
    a member of any of the North American Indian groups speaking an Algonquian language and originally living in the subarctic regions of eastern Canada; many Algonquian tribes migrated south into the woodlands from the Mississippi River to the Atlantic coast
    Anasazi
    a Native American who lived in what is now southern Colorado and Utah and northern Arizona and New Mexico and who built cliff dwellings
    Athabascan, Athabaskan, Athapascan, Athapaskan
    a member of any of the North American Indian groups speaking an Athapaskan language and living in the subarctic regions of western Canada and central Alaska
    Maya, Mayan
    a member of an American Indian people of Yucatan and Belize and Guatemala who had a culture (which reached its peak between AD 300 and 900) characterized by outstanding architecture and pottery and astronomy
    Nahuatl
    a member of any of various Indian peoples of central Mexico
    Olmec
    a member of an early Mesoamerican civilization centered around Veracruz that flourished between 1300 and 400 BC
    Zapotec, Zapotecan
    a member of a large tribe of Mesoamericans living in southern Mexico whose civilization flourished around 300 to 900
    Buffalo Indian, Plains Indian
    a member of one of the tribes of American Indians who lived a nomadic life following the buffalo in the Great Plains of North America
    Chickasaw
    a member of the Muskhogean people formerly living in northern Mississippi
    Coeur d'Alene
    a member of an Amerindian people living in northern Idaho around Coeur d'Alene Lake
    Creek
    any member of the Creek Confederacy (especially the Muskogee) formerly living in Georgia and Alabama but now chiefly in Oklahoma
    Haida
    a member of a seafaring group of North American Indians who lived on the Pacific coast of British Columbia and southwestern Alaska
    Hoka, Hokan
    a member of a North American Indian people speaking one of the Hokan languages
    Iroquois
    any member of the Native American peoples on land that later became New York State; the Iroquois League were allies of the British during the American Revolution
    Muskhogean, Muskogean
    a member of any of the peoples formerly living in southeastern United States and speaking Muskhogean languages
    Penutian
    a member of a North American Indian people speaking one of the Penutian languages
    Pueblo
    a member of any of about two dozen Native American peoples called `Pueblos' by the Spanish because they live in pueblos (villages built of adobe and rock)
    Salish
    a member of a group of North American Indians speaking a Salishan language and living on the northwest coast of North America
    Shoshone, Shoshoni
    a member of the North American Indian people (related to the Aztecs) of the southwestern United States
    Taracahitian
    a member of a group of peoples of Mexico
    Tlingit
    a member of a seafaring group of North American Indians living in southern Alaska
    Wakashan
    a member of one of the peoples in British Columbia and Washington who speak the Wakashan language
    Aleut, Aleutian
    a member of the people inhabiting the Aleutian Islands and southwestern Alaska
    Inuit
    a member of a people inhabiting the Arctic (northern Canada or Greenland or Alaska or eastern Siberia); the Algonquians called them Eskimo ('eaters of raw flesh') but they call themselves the Inuit ('the people')
    Paleo-American, Paleo-Amerind, Paleo-Indian
    a member of the Paleo-American peoples who were the earliest human inhabitants of North America and South America during the late Pleistocene epoch
    sannup
    a married male American Indian
    squaw
    an American Indian woman
    Abenaki, Abnaki
    a member of the Algonquian people of Maine and southern Quebec
    Achomawi
    a member of the Achomawi community of northeastern California
    Akwa'ala
    a member of the Akwa'ala community in Baja California
    Alabama
    a member of the Muskhogean people formerly living in what is now the state of Alabama
    Algonkian, Algonkin
    a member of a North American Indian people in the Ottawa river valley of Ontario and Quebec
    Atakapa, Attacapan
    a member of an Indian people formerly living along the Gulf Coast of Louisiana and Texas
    Aztec
    a member of the Nahuatl people who established an empire in Mexico that was overthrown by Cortes in 1519
    Toltec
    a member of the Nahuatl speaking people of central and southern Mexico
    Apache
    any member of Athapaskan tribes that migrated to the southwestern desert (from Arizona to Texas and south into Mexico); fought a losing battle from 1861 to 1886 with the United States and were resettled in Oklahoma
    Arapaho, Arapahoe
    a member of a tribe of Plains Indians formerly inhabiting eastern Colorado and Wyoming (now living in Oklahoma and Wyoming)
    Atsugewi
    a member of a North American Indian people of northern California
    Blackfoot
    a member of a warlike group of Algonquians living in the northwestern plains
    Caddo
    a group of Plains Indians formerly living in what is now North and South Dakota and Nebraska and Kansas and Arkansas and Louisiana and Oklahoma and Texas
    Cakchiquel
    a member of the Mayan people living in south central Guatemala
    Cayuga
    a member of an Iroquoian people formerly living around Cayuga Lake in New York State
    Cherokee
    a member of an Iroquoian people formerly living in the Appalachian Mountains but now chiefly in Oklahoma
    Cheyenne
    a member of a North American Indian people living on the western plains (now living in Oklahoma and Montana)
    Chimakum
    a member of the Salishan people living in northwestern Washington
    Chimariko
    a member of an extinct North American Indian people formerly living in California
    Chinook
    a member of an important North American Indian people who controlled the mouth of the Columbia river; they were organized into settlements rather than tribes
    Chipewyan
    a member of the Athapaskan people living in western Canada between Great Slave Lake and Hudson Bay
    Choctaw
    a member of the Muskhogean people formerly living in Alabama
    Cochimi
    a member of a North American Indian people living in central Baja California
    Cocopa, Cocopah
    a member of a North American Indian people living around the mouth of the Colorado River
    Comanche
    a member of the Shoshonean people who formerly lived between Wyoming and the Mexican border but are now chiefly in Oklahoma
    Conoy
    a member of an Algonquian people formerly living in Maryland between Chesapeake Bay and the Potomac river; allies of the Nanticoke people
    Costanoan
    a member of a North American Indian people living in coastal California between Monterey and San Francisco Bay
    Cree
    a member of an Algonquian people living in central Canada
    Delaware
    a member of an Algonquian people formerly living in New Jersey and New York and parts of Delaware and Pennsylvania
    Diegueno
    a member of a North American Indian people of southern California
    Erie
    a member of an Iroquoian people formerly living on the south shore of Lake Erie in northern Ohio and northwest Pennsylvania and western New York
    Esselen
    a member of a North American Indian people living on the California coast near Monterey
    Fox
    a member of an Algonquian people formerly living west of Lake Michigan along the Fox River
    Halchidhoma
    a member of a North American Indian people of the Colorado river valley near the mouth of the Gila river; allied to the Maricopa
    Havasupai
    a member of a North American Indian people of Cataract Canyon in Arizona
    Hitchiti
    a member of the Muskhogean people formerly living in Georgia; a member of the Creek Confederacy
    Hopi
    a member of the Shoshonean people of northeastern Arizona
    Hupa
    a member of the Athapaskan people of the Trinity River valley in California
    Illinois
    a member of the Algonquian people formerly of Illinois and regions to the west
    Calapooya, Calapuya, Kalapooia, Kalapuya
    a member of the North American Indian people of Oregon
    Kamia
    a member of a North American Indian people of southeastern California and northwestern Mexico
    Karok
    a member of a North American Indian people of the Klamath river valley in northern California
    Kekchi
    a member of a Mayan people of north central Guatemala
    Kickapoo
    a member of the Algonquian people formerly inhabiting southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois
    Kiliwa, Kiliwi
    a member of a North American Indian people living in northern Baja California
    Kiowa
    a member of a Tanoan people living in the southwestern United States
    Koasati
    a member of the Muskhogean people formerly living in northern Alabama; a member of the Creek Confederacy
    Kusan
    a member of the North American Indian people of Oregon
    Kwakiutl
    a member of the Wakashan people living around Queen Charlotte Sound and on northern Vancouver Island
    Maidu
    a member of a North American Indian people living east of the Sacramento river in California
    Malecite
    a member of the Algonquian people of northeastern Maine and New Brunswick
    Mam
    a member of a Mayan people of southwestern Guatemala
    Maricopa
    a member of a North American Indian people of the Gila river valley in Arizona
    Massachuset, Massachusetts
    a member of the Algonquian people who formerly lived around Massachusetts Bay
    Mattole
    a member of the Athapaskan people living in northwestern California
    Menominee, Menomini
    a member of the federally recognized tribe of Algonquian people living on a reservation in central Wisconsin
    Miami
    a member of the extinct Algonquian people formerly living in northern Indiana and southern Michigan
    Micmac, Mikmaq
    a member of the Algonquian people inhabiting the Maritime Provinces of Canada
    Miwok
    a member of the North American Indian people living in the central Sierra Nevada in California
    Mohave, Mojave
    a member of the North American Indian people formerly living in the Colorado river valley in Arizona and Nevada and California
    Mohawk
    a member of the Iroquoian people formerly living along the Mohawk River in New York State
    Mahican, Mohican
    a member of the Algonquian people formerly living in the Hudson valley and eastward to the Housatonic
    Muskogee
    a member of the Muskhogean people formerly living in Georgia and eastern Alabama and constituting the core of the Creek Confederacy
    Nanticoke
    a member of the Algonquian people formerly of Maryland and eastern Delaware
    Navaho, Navajo
    a member of an Athapaskan people that migrated to Arizona and New Mexico and Utah
    Nootka
    a member of the Wakashan people living on Vancouver Island and in the Cape Flattery region of northwestern Washington
    Chippewa, Ojibwa, Ojibway
    a member of an Algonquian people who lived west of Lake Superior
    Oneida
    a member of the Iroquoian people formerly living east of Lake Ontario
    Onondaga
    a member of the Iroquoian people formerly living between Lake Champlain and the Saint Lawrence River
    Ottawa
    a member of the Algonquian people of southern Ontario
    Paiute, Piute
    a member of either of two Shoshonean peoples (northern Paiute and southern Paiute) related to the Aztecs and living in the southwestern United States
    Pamlico
    a member of the Algonquian people formerly of the Pamlico river valley in North Carolina
    Passamaquody
    a member of the Algonquian people related to the Malecite and living in northeastern Maine and New Brunswick
    Patwin
    a member of the North American Indian people living in the Sacramento valley in California
    Penobscot
    a member of the Algonquian people belonging to the Abnaki confederacy and living in the Penobscot valley in northern Maine
    Pima
    a member of the North American Indian people living in southern Arizona and northern Mexico
    Pomo
    a member of an Indian people of northern California living along the Russian River valley and adjacent Pacific coast
    Potawatomi
    a member of the Algonquian people originally of Michigan and Wisconsin
    Powhatan
    a member of the Algonquian people who formerly lived in eastern Virginia
    Quiche
    a member of the Mayan people of south central Guatemala
    Sac, Sauk
    a member of the Algonquian people formerly living in Wisconsin in the Fox River valley and on the shores of Green Bay
    Seminole
    a member of the Muskhogean people who moved into Florida in the 18th century
    Seneca
    a member of the Iroquoian people formerly living in New York State south of Lake Ontario
    Sahaptin, Sahaptino, Shahaptian
    a member of a North American Indian people who lived in Oregon along the Columbia river and its tributaries in Washington and northern Idaho
    Shasta
    a member of the Indian people of northern California and southern Oregon
    Shawnee
    a member of the Algonquian people formerly living along the Tennessee river
    Siouan, Sioux
    a member of a group of North American Indian peoples who spoke a Siouan language and who ranged from Lake Michigan to the Rocky Mountains
    Skagit
    a member of the Salish people in northwestern Washington
    Takelma
    a member of a North American Indian people of southwestern Oregon
    Taos
    a member of the Pueblo people living in northern New Mexico
    Cahita
    a member of the Taracahitian people of central Mexico
    Tarahumara
    a member of the Taracahitian people of north central Mexico
    Tsimshian
    a member of a Penutian people who lived on rivers and a sound in British Columbia
    Tuscarora
    a member of an Iroquois people who formerly lived in North Carolina and then moved to New York State and joined the Iroquois
    Ute
    a member of the Shoshonean people of Utah and Colorado and New Mexico
    Wampanoag
    a member of the Algonquian people of Rhode Island and Massachusetts who greeted the Pilgrims
    Hualapai, Hualpai, Walapai
    a member of a North American people formerly living in the Colorado river valley in Arizona
    Wintun
    a member of a North American Indian people living in the Sacramento valley in California
    Yahi
    a member of an extinct North American Indian people who lived in northern California
    Yana
    a member of an extinct North American Indian people who lived in northern California
    Yavapai
    a member of a North American Indian people of central Arizona
    Yokuts
    a member of the North American Indian people of the San Joaquin Valley
    Yucatec, Yucateco
    a member of the Mayan people of the Yucatan peninsula in Mexico
    Yuma
    a member of the North American Indian people of Arizona and adjacent Mexico and California
    Zuni
    a member of the Pueblo people living in western New Mexico
    cliff dweller
    a member of the Anasazi people living in the southwestern United States who built rock or adobe dwellings on ledges in the sides of caves
    type of:
    Amerindian, Native American
    any member of the peoples living in North or South America before the Europeans arrived
  5. noun
    any of the languages spoken by Amerindians
    synonyms: American Indian, American-Indian language, Amerind, Amerindian language
    see moresee less
    types:
    show 113 types...
    hide 113 types...
    Algonquian, Algonquian language, Algonquin
    family of North American Indian languages spoken from Labrador to South Carolina and west to the Great Plains
    Atakapa, Atakapan, Attacapa, Attacapan
    a language spoken by the Atakapa of the Gulf Coast of Louisiana and Texas
    Athabascan, Athabaskan, Athapascan, Athapaskan, Athapaskan language
    a group of Amerindian languages (the name coined by an American anthropologist, Edward Sapir)
    Muskhogean, Muskhogean language, Muskogean, Muskogean language
    a family of North American Indian languages spoken in the southeastern United States
    Na-Dene
    a family of North American Indian languages
    Mosan
    a family of Amerindian languages spoken in Washington and British Columbia
    Caddo, Caddoan, Caddoan language
    a family of North American Indian languages spoken widely in the Midwest by the Caddo
    Iroquoian, Iroquoian language, Iroquois
    a family of North American Indian languages spoken by the Iroquois
    Kechua, Kechuan, Quechua, Quechuan, Quechuan language
    the language of the Quechua which was spoken by the Incas
    Maracan language, Maraco
    the language spoken by the Maraco
    Tupi-Guarani, Tupi-Guarani language
    a family of South American Indian languages
    Arawak, Arawakan
    a family of South American Indian languages spoken in northeastern South America
    Carib, Caribbean language
    the family of languages spoken by the Carib
    Uto-Aztecan, Uto-Aztecan language
    a family of American Indian languages
    Maya, Mayan, Mayan language
    a family of American Indian languages spoken by Maya
    Siouan, Siouan language
    a family of North American Indian languages spoken by the Sioux
    Tanoan, Tanoan language
    a family of North American Indian language spoken in southwestern United States
    Hoka, Hokan
    a family of Amerindian languages spoken in California
    Penutian
    a family of Amerindian language spoken in the great interior valley of California
    Abnaki
    the Algonquian language spoken by the Abnaki and Penobscot
    Algonkian, Algonkin
    the Algonquian language spoken by the Algonkian
    Arapaho, Arapahoe
    the Algonquian language spoken by the Arapaho
    Biloxi
    the Siouan language spoken by the Biloxi
    Blackfoot
    any of the Algonquian languages spoken by the Blackfoot
    Catawba
    the Siouan language spoken by the Catawba
    Cheyenne
    the Algonquian language spoken by the Cheyenne
    Chiwere
    the Siouan language spoken by the Iowa and Oto and Missouri
    Cree
    the Algonquian language spoken by the Cree
    Crow
    a Siouan language spoken by the Crow
    Dakota
    the Siouan language spoken by the Dakota
    Delaware
    the Algonquian language spoken by the Delaware
    Dhegiha
    a branch of the Siouan languages
    Fox
    the Algonquian language of the Fox
    Gros Ventre, Hidatsa
    a Siouan language spoken by the Hidatsa
    Hunkpapa
    a Siouan language spoken by the Hunkpapa
    Illinois
    the Algonquian language of the Illinois and Miami
    Haida
    the Na-Dene language of the Haida
    Kickapoo
    the Algonquian language of the Kickapoo
    Malecite, Maleseet
    the Algonquian language of the Malecite and Passamaquody
    Massachuset, Massachusetts
    the Algonquian language of the Massachuset
    Menominee, Menomini
    the Algonquian language spoken by the Menomini
    Micmac
    the Algonquian language of the Micmac
    Mahican, Mohican
    the Algonquian language spoken by the Mohican
    Nanticoke
    the Algonquian language spoken by the Nanticoke and Conoy
    Ofo
    a Siouan language spoken by the Ofo
    Ogalala, Oglala
    a Siouan language spoken by the Oglala
    Chippewa, Ojibwa, Ojibway
    the Algonquian language spoken by the Ojibwa
    Pamlico
    the Algonquian language of the Pamlico
    Potawatomi
    the Algonquian language spoken by the Potawatomi
    Powhatan
    the Algonquian language of the Powhatan
    Shawnee
    the Algonquian language spoken by the Shawnee
    Alabama
    the Muskhogean language of the Alabama
    Chickasaw
    the Muskhogean language of the Chickasaw
    Chahta, Choctaw
    the Muskhogean language of the Choctaw
    Hitchiti
    the Muskhogean language spoken by the Hitchiti
    Koasati
    the Muskhogean language spoken by the Koasati
    Muskogee
    the Muskhogean language spoken by the Muskogee
    Santee
    the Siouan language spoken by the Santee
    Seminole
    the Muskhogean language of the Seminole
    Tlingit
    the Na-Dene language spoken by the Tlingit
    Tutelo
    the Siouan language spoken by the Tutelo
    Winnebago
    the Siouan language spoken by the Winnebago
    Chemakuan
    a group of Mosan languages spoken in Washington
    Salish, Salishan
    a family of Mosan language spoken in northwestern United States and western Canada
    Wakashan, Wakashan language
    a family of North American Indian languages of British Columbia and Washington
    Shoshonean, Shoshonean language, Shoshonian, Shoshonian language
    a subfamily of Uto-Aztecan languages spoken mainly in the southwestern United States
    Aricara, Arikara
    the Caddoan language spoken by the Arikara
    Pawnee
    the Caddoan language spoken by the Pawnee
    Wichita
    the Caddoan language spoken by the Wichita
    Cherokee
    the Iroquoian language spoken by the Cherokee
    Cayuga
    the Iroquoian language spoken by the Cayuga
    Mohawk
    the Iroquoian language spoken by the Mohawk
    Seneca
    the Iroquoian language spoken by the Seneca
    Oneida
    the Iroquoian language spoken by the Oneida
    Onondaga
    the Iroquoian language spoken by the Onondaga
    Tuscarora
    the Iroquoian language spoken by the Tuscarora
    Guarani
    the language spoken by the Guarani of Paraguay and Bolivia
    Tupi
    the language spoken by the Tupi of Brazil and Paraguay
    Pima
    the Uto-Aztecan language spoken by the Pima
    Aztecan
    the Uto-Aztecan language spoken by the Aztec
    Nahuatl
    the Uto-Aztecan language spoken by the Nahuatl
    Cahita
    the Uto-Aztecan language of the Cahita
    Tatahumara
    the Uto-Aztecan language of the Tatahumara
    Zapotec, Zapotecan
    the language of the Zapotec
    Apache
    the language of the Apache
    Navaho, Navajo
    the Athapaskan language spoken by the Navaho
    Hupa
    the Athapaskan language spoken by the Hupa
    Mattole
    the Athapaskan language spoken by the Mattole
    Chipewyan, Chippewaian, Chippewyan
    the language spoken by the Chipewyan
    Kiowa
    the Tanoan language spoken by the Kiowa
    Chimariko
    the Hokan language spoken by the Chimariko
    Esselen
    the Hokan language spoken by the Esselen
    Kulanapan
    a group of languages of the Hokan family
    Quoratean
    a group of languages of the Hokan family
    Shastan
    a group of languages of the Hokan family in California
    Yuman
    a group of language of the Hokan family in Arizona and California and Mexico
    Yanan
    a language group of the Hokan family
    Copehan
    a group of Penutian languages spoken to the west of the Sacramento river
    Costanoan
    a Penutian language spoken by the Costanoan
    Mariposan, Yokuts
    a Penutian language spoken by the Yokuts in the San Joaquin Valley
    Miwok, Moquelumnan
    a Penutian language spoken by the Miwok
    Maidu, Pujunan
    a Penutian language spoken by the Maidu
    Chinook, Chinookan
    a Penutian language spoken by the Chinook
    Kalapooian, Kalapuyan
    a Penutian language spoken by the Kalapuya
    Kusan
    a Penutian language spoken by the Kusan
    Sahaptin, Shahaptian
    a Penutian language spoken by the Shahaptian
    Takelma, Takilman
    a Penutian language spoken by the Takelma
    Tsimshian
    a Penutian language spoken by the Tsimshian
    Kekchi
    a Mayan language spoken by the Kekchi
    Mam
    a Mayan language spoken by the Mam
    Yucatec, Yucateco
    a Mayan language spoken by the Yucatec
    Quiche
    the Mayan language spoken by the Quiche
    Cakchiquel
    the Mayan language spoken by the Cakchiquel
    type of:
    natural language, tongue
    a human written or spoken language used by a community; opposed to e.g. a computer language
DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘Indian'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback
Word Family
EDITOR'S CHOICE

Look up Indian for the last time

Close your vocabulary gaps with personalized learning that focuses on teaching the words you need to know.

VocabTrainer - Vocabulary.com's Vocabulary Trainer