Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. Offensive A Native American woman, especially a wife.
- n. Offensive Slang A woman or wife.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A female American Indian; an American Indian woman.
Wiktionary
- n. sometimes pejorative A woman, wife; especially a Native American woman.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. Considered offensive by some American indians. A female; a woman, especially a married woman; a wife; -- in the language of Indian tribes of the Algonquin family, correlative of sannup.
WordNet 3.0
- n. an American Indian woman
Etymologies
- From the Massachusett word squàws (“woman”). Cognate with Ojibwe ikwe ("woman"). (Wiktionary)
- Massachusett squa, younger woman. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Mountain Phil and his Klooch -- that being the name he called his squaw, which is also the Arapahoe name for wife -- were staying alone about ten miles further down the country from where we were located.”
Thirty-One Years on the Plains and in the Mountains, Or, the Last Voice from the Plains
“Jennine Jacob, a fashion blogger of Native American descent, who was upset by the use of the word "squaw.”
“Ives Goddard, now senior linguist emeritus at the Smithsonian's Department of Anthropology, has always disputed Harjo's translation, saying the word "squaw" derives "from an innocent term for woman.”
“I understand your and others' concern about the use of the word "squaw.”
“One wrote, "The word 'squaw' is racist, offensive, and insulting on so many levels that I can't believe anyone in the 21st century would use it....”
“From the midst of the crowd, thrust out by its own vividness, appeared the face of a wild-eyed squaw from the remote regions of the Upper Tana-naw; a strayed Sitkan from the coast stood side by side with a Stick from Lake Le Barge, and, beyond, a half-dozen French-Canadian voyageurs, grouped by themselves.”
“If my great brother, who has told us not to scalp this bee-hunter and her he calls his squaw, will tell us the name of his tribe, I shall be glad.”
“Mountain Phil and his Klooch ” that being the name he called his squaw, which is also the Arapahoe name for wife ” were staying alone about ten miles further down the country from where we were located.”
“He also explains the political and sexual controversy behind the much-abused word "squaw" -- which is a lot more complicated than you might think.”
“Every single day I was called a squaw or any other derogatory comment you can think of associated with being percieved as a North American Indian.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘squaw’.
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EN - xenophobic terms
Alle Menschen werden Brüder - sooner or later? Derogatory terms for anybody different.
abe, anchor baby, ann, ape, apple, asian nigger, aunt jemima , aunt jane, aunt mary, aunt sally, banana, beaner and 315 more...
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american
'cool' words or phrases with native american origins both phonetically or meanings translated into English ..
pow-wow, Rainbow Warriors, tomahawk, mohawk, Mohican, Sioux, Husky, Apache, moccasin, pecan, shaman, squaw and 4 more...
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Unwording
Outlawed words and books, like this.
samizdat, satanic verses, profanity, oriental, antilanguage, biddy, aviatrix, squaw, deaf-mute, border patrolman, cassandra, niggardly and 45 more...
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Lillyjames's Words
uncategorized words that I enjoy
replete, unabashed, dauntless, ubiquitous, fanged, blush, flush, murmur, mercurial, dishevelled, decrepit, raven and 146 more...
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Vocab++
Words as I learn them.
fetid, mezzanine, hiatus, austerity, subliminal, resplendent, implacable, impugn, debase, exiguous, cirque, holster and 2538 more...
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Squ-
All those fun words that begin with squ-. Be careful; this list is hard to read without some serious eye-crossage.
squid, squab, square, squeegee, squirt, squire, squib, squelch, squabble, squad, squally, squalled and 228 more...
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The Confidence Man
Words to remember from Melville's "The Confidence Man"
chevalier, hawk, unalloyed, ex-officio, scruple, pertinacity, epithet, gilt, bedizen, embrasure, escritoire, squaw and 278 more...
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Q-Tips
mmm... tasty
qat, maqui, quays, quite, qua, pique, quean, quits, aqua, qaids, queen, quods and 76 more...
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Inglourious Basterds (2009)
Words from 2009 'Inglourious Basterds' film.
guise, testify, trepidation, moniker, bestow, buffling, cunning, scamper, animosity, rodent, repulsive, dignity and 74 more...
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Ladies' Night
girl, lady, madame, miss, missy, woman, dame, mother, daughter, sister, aunt, grandmother and 50 more...
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"The Devil and Tom Walker"
intriguing words from Washington Irving's "The Devil and Tom Walker"
termagant, swarthy, dingy, begrimed, boding, repose, squaw, clapper-clawing, balk, emblem, askance, celibacy and 12 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for squaw.
dontcry This reminds me of a joke my grandmother told me many, many moons ago (seriously). The punch line was: "No. Squaw bury shortcake." Aug 17, 2010
bilby Maybe just an oversite. Aug 16, 2010
ivypluck I have tried to play the word squaw several times in Scrabble on Pogo the officially liscensed Scrabble sight and it is not accepted. Does anyone know why? Aug 16, 2010
bilby Squaw-berries?! Are they what squid eat when they go to watch Wimbledon? Dec 13, 2008
chained_bear Historical; used to describe an American Indian woman but like other such terms from the past, it's considered offensive today. Also used as a prefix for a number of plants/animals, e.g. squaw-berry, oldsquaw (former name for a type of duck), squaw-fish. Aug 26, 2008