adj
Illinois
ih-luh-NOY
adj
1
Relating to the Illinois Confederacy, an alliance of Algonquian-speaking Native American peoples, or to their language and culture.
"The exhibit displayed Illinois pottery alongside artifacts from neighboring tribes."
noun
1
A member of the Illinois Confederacy.
"Historians study French colonial records to learn how the Illinois lived along the river valleys."
How to Use Illinois
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishRefers to a Native American confederacy and its people — not to be confused with the modern U.S. state, which merely borrowed the name.
Common mistake
Most people only know "Illinois" as the U.S. state; this older sense refers to the indigenous confederacy the state was named after.
Word Forms
Illinois plural
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The exhibit displayed _____ pottery alongside artifacts from neighboring tribes.
Etymology
From French Illinois, adapted from an Algonquian name (often traced to Miami ilenweewa, "he speaks the ordinary way"). The U.S. state took its name from the same source.