Menominee

noun

Me·​nom·​i·​nee mə-ˈnä-mə-nē How to pronounce Menominee (audio)
variants or less commonly Menomini
1
plural Menominee or Menominees also Menomini or Menominis : a member of an Indigenous people of northeastern Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula
2
: the Algonquian language of the Menominee people

Examples of Menominee in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
For example, turnout on the Red Cliff Reservation increased by 28%, and turnout on the Menominee Reservation increased by 24%. Frank Vaisvilas, Journal Sentinel, 1 Nov. 2024 Thirteen horses from Allegan, Cass, Clare, Kalamazoo, Lapeer, Menominee, Osceola (2), St. Joseph, Tuscola, Van Buren (2) and Wexford counties, and one bird from Antrim County have tested positive for EEE. Dan Basso, Detroit Free Press, 30 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Ojibwa mano·mini· (manoominii), literally, "wild rice people," derivative of mano·min (manoomin) "wild rice"

Note: According to the Handbook of North American Indians, vol. 15, Northeast (Smithsonian Institution, 1978), p. 723, "the Menominee name for themselves, omɛ·ʔnomene·w is of obscure etymology but is clearly not derived from their word mano·meh 'wild rice'."

First Known Use

1722, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of Menominee was in 1722

Dictionary Entries Near Menominee

Cite this Entry

“Menominee.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Menominee. Accessed 8 Nov. 2024.

Geographical Definition

Menominee

geographical name

Me·​nom·​i·​nee mə-ˈnä-mə-nē How to pronounce Menominee (audio)
river 125 miles (201 kilometers) long in northeastern Wisconsin flowing southeast on the Michigan–Wisconsin border into Green Bay

More from Merriam-Webster on Menominee

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