Eskimo
Americannoun
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Eskimos,
plural
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Eskimo
plural
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Sometimes Offensive. a member of a group of Indigenous peoples of Greenland, northern Canada, Alaska, and northeastern Siberia.
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any of the languages of these peoples, divided into two branches: Inuit, spoken in Greenland, Canada, and northern Alaska, and Yupik, spoken in southern Alaska and Siberia.
adjective
noun
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a member of a group of peoples inhabiting N Canada, Greenland, Alaska, and E Siberia, having a material culture adapted to an extremely cold climate
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the language of these peoples
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a family of languages that includes Eskimo and Aleut
adjective
Sensitive Note
The name Inuit, by which the Native people of the Arctic from northern Alaska to western Greenland call themselves, has largely supplanted Eskimo in Canada and is used officially by the Canadian government. Canadians, as well as many Americans (especially Indigenous Alaskans), consider Eskimo derogatory, in part because the word was, erroneously, long thought to mean literally “eater of raw meat.” Inuit , properly a more specific term referring to speakers of the Inuit language, has come to be used in a wider sense to name all people traditionally called Eskimo, regardless of local self-designations. Anthropologically, the term Native American is sometimes used to include these peoples, as well as the Aleuts. However, the term Indian, still commonly used for a number of Indigenous people of the Americas, is not applied to the Inuit, Yupik, and Aleut of Arctic North America. Eskimo continues to be used in certain contexts, especially in historical and archaeological reference to these peoples as a cultural and linguistic group. However, broad use of Eskimo, as in marketing and branding, has largely been rejected, and products, sports teams, or companies that used the word in the past are finding new names.
Usage
Eskimo is considered by many to be offensive, and in North America the term Inuit is usually preferred. Inuit , however, can be accurately applied only to those Aboriginal peoples inhabiting parts of Northern Canada, Alaska, and Greenland (as distinguished from those in Asia or the Aleutian Islands)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of Eskimo
First recorded in 1575–85; from earlier Esqimawe(s), apparently via French (of 16th-century Basque fishermen), from Spanish esquimao(s), from Montagnais ( French spelling) aiachkimeou- a name for the Mi'kmaq, extended or transferred to the Labrador Eskimo among the eastern Montagnais; perhaps literally, “snowshoe-netter” (compare Ojibwe aškime· “to net snowshoes”); cf. husky 2
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Walt Disney made history in 1954 after winning four Oscars for four different projects – including best documentary for The Living Desert and best documentary short for The Alaskan Eskimo.
From BBC ● Mar. 13, 2026
It’s a traditional Ingalikmiut Eskimo village, whose residents live a subsistence lifestyle, hunting seal, polar bears and blue crab.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 6, 2023
Panda, a black poodle-mix breed, won the "princess in pink" award for her bright outfit and the prize of "green with envy" went to Ela, an American Eskimo dog, for her floral dress.
From Reuters ● Dec. 12, 2022
“Stillwater” gets its name from the north-central home to Oklahoma State University and the popular restaurant Eskimo Joe’s.
From New York Times ● Aug. 4, 2021
And it thinks, on this thundering night, That the hour of the wolf and the Eskimo is over.
From "Julie of the Wolves" by Jean Craighead George
Ebell wasn’t considered big enough for the NFL, but he led the Edmonton Eskimos of the CFL with 1,318 total yards in 2007 before a ruptured Achilles tendon ended his career a year later.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 24, 2025
Eskimo Pies became Edy’s Pies, and the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League announced a name change, too.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 23, 2021
“This guy could sell ice to Eskimos … I watch him sometimes and I’m just in total awe,” Mr. Griffin said.
From Washington Times ● Feb. 10, 2020
The Jaguars also need a quarterbacks coach after Scott Milanovich left to become head coach of the CFL’s Edmonton Eskimos.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 17, 2020
She was not there, but in a corner sat Russell, the young man who had been campaigning around the village, begging the Eskimos to vote “No” on requests for liquor licenses by the local restaurants.
From "Julie of the Wolves" by Jean Craighead George
Definitions 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.
