a member of an American Indian people who formerly inhabited the southern California coast from San Luis Obispo to Santa Monica Bay, as well as the Santa Barbara Islands and the interior westward to the San Joaquin Valley: noted for their sophisticated seacraft and rock paintings.
any of the Hokan languages of the Chumash, at least six in number, all now extinct.
literally: a fifth (part of the Torah)
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The book initially focuses on the Chumash people, on Southern California’s Channel Islands, who once fished from small boats made of bundled reeds.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
The island also contains many culturally significant sites for the Chumash people.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 10, 2026
Hammel-Sawyer is the great-great-great-granddaughter of Maria Ysidora del Refugio Solares, one of the most revered ancestors of the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians for her work in preserving its nearly lost Samala language.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 8, 2026
Tongva, Chumash and Cahuilla workers in California formed the backbone of rancho agriculture.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 30, 2025
Pastoria Creek and Alisos Creek were occupied by a northward extension of the Alliklik, and from Alisos Creek westward to Bitter Water Creek were found the Tokya group of the Chumash.
From The Aboriginal Population of the San Joaquin Valley, California by Sherburne F. Cook
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
