Inuit

or In·nu·it

[ in-oo-it, -yoo- ]

noun

, plural In·u·its, (especially collectively) In·u·it

1. a member of a group of Indigenous peoples inhabiting northernmost North America from northern Alaska to eastern Canada and Greenland.
2. the language of the Inuit, a member of the Eskimo-Aleut family comprising a variety of dialects.

Inuit

/ ˈɪnjuːɪt /

noun

1. any of several Native peoples of N America or Greenland, as distinguished from those from Asia or the Aleutian Islands (who are still generally referred to as Eskimos); the preferred term for Eskimo in N America Compare Yupik
2. the language of these peoples; Inuktitut

Usage

See Eskimo

Sensitive Note

See Eskimo, Indian.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Inuit¹

First recorded in 1755–65; from Inuit: literally, “people,” plural of inuk “person”

Word History and Origins

Origin of Inuit¹

from Inuktitut inuit the people, pl of inuk a man

Example Sentences

"And mostly, thank you to the indiginous people, Inupiat and Inuit people of northern Alaska, they told us their stories, and allowed us to listen, and that was just a blessing."

From BBC

Inuit elders say their ancestors live on celestial bodies.

From Salon

At some point, First Nations and Inuit communities might have to change their traditional polar bear harvest just to preserve the bear population.

From New York Times

During the episode, Healy laughed alongside the hosts as they ridiculed the Nigerian and Dominican rapper Ice Spice, calling her "Inuit Spice Girl" and "Chubby Chinese Lady."

From Salon

An Inuit community in northern Canada has long sought Vatican’s assistance to get Rivoire extradited.

From Seattle Times