wigwam
/ˈwɪɡwɑːm/ noun, verb
Forms wigwams wigwamming wigwammed
- noun A dwelling having an arched framework overlaid with bark, hides, or mats, used by Native Americans in the northeastern United States.
- noun (possibly dated) Any more or less similar dwelling used by indigenous people in other parts of the world.
- verb (transitive) To dry (flax or straw) by standing it outside in the shape of a wigwam.
Etymology
Borrowed from Abenaki wigwôm (“house”) or Penobscot wigwom (“house”), from Proto-Algonquian *wi·kiwa·ʔmi (“house”). Doublet of wickiup.
Webster’s 1913
- noun An Indian cabin or hut, usually of a conical form, and made of a framework of poles covered with hides, bark, or mats; --called also tepee. [Sometimes written also weekwam.]
Etymology [From the Algonquin or Massachusetts Indian word wek, "his house," or "dwelling place;" with possessive and locative affixes, we-kou-om-ut, "in his (or their) house," contracted by the English to weekwam, and wigwam.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “wigwam”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details