Navajo

noun

Na·​va·​jo ˈna-və-ˌhō How to pronounce Navajo (audio) ˈnä- How to pronounce Navajo (audio)
variants or less commonly Navaho
1
plural Navajo or Navajos also Navaho or Navahos : a member of an Indigenous people of northern New Mexico and Arizona and southern Utah
2
: the language of the Navajo people

Examples of Navajo in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Grey’s son, Loren Grey, restored his father’s original ending in the novel’s 1982 Pocket Books reprint, but the vanishing mythos remains intact, with the last of the tribe wistfully following Curtis’s Navajo into the temporal graveyard of the past. Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2025 In this podcast, Mariah discusses its historic and cultural significance and asks her grandmother, who was born and raised on the Navajo reservation, to cook up some frybread and share her memories. Steve Drummond, NPR, 9 Sep. 2025 The Navajo County Sheriff's Office announced that Johnson was located one mile north of his vehicle on August 30. Jenna Sundel, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025 Because of its desert climate, Arizona doesn't follow daylight saving time (with the exception of the Navajo Nation). Fernando Cervantes Jr, USA Today, 8 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for Navajo

Word History

Etymology

Spanish (Apache de) Navajó, literally, Apache of Navajó, from Navajó, area occupied by Navajos, probably from Tewa (Pueblo Indian language of northern New Mexico) navahu·, literally, arroyo with planted fields

First Known Use

1808, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of Navajo was in 1808

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Navajo.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Navajo. Accessed 12 Sep. 2025.

Kids Definition

Navajo

noun
Na·​va·​jo
variants also Navaho
plural Navajo or Navajos also Navaho or Navahos
: a member of an Indigenous people of northern New Mexico and Arizona

More from Merriam-Webster on Navajo

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