a member of a tribe of the most easterly of the Iroquois Five Nations, formerly resident along the Mohawk River, New York.
the Iroquoian language of the Mohawk Indians.
a river flowing E from central New York to the Hudson. 148 miles (240 km) long.
Also called Mohawk haircut. (often lowercase) a hairstyle in which the head is shaved bare except for a strip of hair, usually with blunt, brushlike ends, down the center of the scalp from the forehead to the nape of the neck.
Military. a twin turboprop, two-seat U.S. Army aircraft fitted with cameras, radar, and infrared sensors and designed to monitor enemy operations.
a member of a North American Indian people formerly living along the Mohawk River; one of the Iroquois peoples
the language of this people, belonging to the Iroquoian family
skating a half turn from either edge of either skate to the corresponding edge of the other skate
Also called (in Britain and certain other countries): mohican. a punk hairstyle in which the head is shaved at the sides and the remaining strip of hair is worn stiffly erect and sometimes brightly coloured
C19: after Mohawk 1
A mohawk is a hairstyle created by shaving the hair on each side of the head, leaving a wide strip of longer hair down the middle. While mohawks are commonly associated with punk music fans in the 1980s, David Beckham and Mr. T have also sported this hair style. The mohawk has been around for centuries, worn by groups as varied as 600 BCE Scythian warriors and World War II American paratroopers. It's perhaps most famous for its popularity among fans of punk and hardcore music starting in the 1980s. While it's named for the Mohawk tribe of Native Americans, it more closely resembles the way the Pawnees traditionally styled their hair than the way the Mohawks did, with a square patch at the back of the head).
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The smallest members of the S&P 500 index now include Mohawk Industries, LKQ and Molina Healthcare.
From Barron's ● Dec. 1, 2025
Kiba, her 3.5-pound papillon with a purple Mohawk, pulled 556 pounds on rails.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 20, 2025
Noon: Motor east to Mohawk General Store After that, it’s about getting in my car and heading east.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2024
And it was Mohawk Native Americans, who have been celebrated in her past works, who worked on many of those projects, earning them the moniker “skywalkers” for their daring feats on steel beams.
From New York Times ● Apr. 27, 2024
“There’s that nest everyone’s so riled up about,” he said to Dan Martin, a Mohawk Indian whose balance and fearlessness on high girders made him one of the most valuable bridge workers.
From "Frightful's Mountain" by Jean Craighead George
In 1959, he had sported a mohawk to honor Native Americans.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 26, 2026
A friendly troll with a punky mohawk and red-capped mushrooms growing from its back moves the brothers up a mountain by cradling them in its supersize hands.
From New York Times ● Apr. 4, 2024
Osborne used to have a mohawk haircut and wear green tights in sixth grade.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2023
Vanessa had tucked her spiky blue mohawk beneath a wig of thick long hair.
From Slate ● Sep. 26, 2023
The kid had a curly mohawk and freckly light brown skin.
From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton
Among many poignant episodes, Mr. Ryrie follows John Ogilvie’s successful evangelizing among Mohawks in 1750s Virginia, a story laced with irony.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026
The Mohawks, like tribes in Michigan and other states, set up their own regulations.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 24, 2022
That force had recently been locked in a sometimes tense standoff with several Mohawks from Six Nations who were trying to halt a construction project on land deeded to them by Britain in 1784.
From New York Times ● Dec. 11, 2021
In New York City, Mohawks were famous for their death-defying construction work on skyscrapers and bridges.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 10, 2019
If they were all punk rockers with pink Mohawks and multiple piercings—maybe with one chess club geek thrown in—he could make that work.
From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove
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.
