Inuit

American  

[in-oo-it, -yoo-] / ˈɪn u ɪt, -ju- /

Or Innuit

noun

• Inuits,
  plural
• Inuit
  plural

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.

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Inuit British  

/ 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

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Sensitive Note

See Eskimo, Indian.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• Inuit
  plural
• Inuits
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Inuit

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

Compare meaning

How does inuit compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• Eskimo vs. Inuit

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Inuit Inuits

No news regarding the coming fall season has made me happier than the return of this sunny, aspirational Indigenous comedy, set in a small town among the Inuit people in Nunavut, Canada’s northernmost territory.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026

The Inuit, or mixed Danish and Inuit, make up nearly 90% of the island's population of 56,000.

From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026

Fieldwork and logistics were supported by multiple organizations in Nunavut, with permits granted by territorial authorities and the Qikiqtani Inuit Association.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 24, 2026

But the film doubles as a fascinating study of humans’ engagement with their environment, exploring not-always-predictable differences between the approach of the local Inuit population—hunters by tradition—and nonindigenous people with particular ideas about conservation.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 10, 2026

And with the disappearance of the ice, the Siberians and the Inuit became sea people.

From "Ship Breaker" by Paolo Bacigalupi

As a proportion of males between the ages of 18 and 60, this equates to an estimated 2% of Chukchi, 1.4% of Russian Inuits, 1.32% of Koryaks and 0.8% of Khanty.

From BBC ● Feb. 19, 2026

He had brought smallpox with him, and the disease raced around the island, killing Inuits and Europeans alike.

From Science Magazine ● Sep. 26, 2023

On April 6, 1909, American explorers Robert E. Peary and Matthew A. Henson and four Inuits became the first men to reach the North Pole.

From Washington Times ● Apr. 6, 2021

This is the traditional homeland of the Nenets people: animist reindeer herders who have more in common with Inuits or Greenlanders than with any classically “European” or “Asian” peoples.

From Slate ● Feb. 13, 2017

The Inuits crossed to the King William Land side on the 17th.

From Schwatka's Search by William H. (William Henry) Gilder