Zuni
Americannoun
plural
Zunis,plural
Zuni-
a member of a group of North American Indians inhabiting the largest of the Indian pueblos, in western New Mexico.
-
the language of the Zuni.
noun
-
a member of a North American Indian people of W New Mexico
-
the language of this people, a member of the Penutian phylum of languages
Other Word Forms
- Zunian adjective
- Zuñian adjective
Etymology
Origin of Zuni
An Americanism first recorded in 1830–35; earlier Zuñi, from Spanish (southwestern United States), from Acoma Keresan sɨ̂·ni (pronounced sθɨ̂·nyi ) or a cognate
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.
Denied entrance by the Zuni inhabitants, the starving Spaniards decided to attack.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 28, 2026
He joined a team digging for dinosaur fossils in the Zuni Basin in New Mexico.
From NewsForKids.net • Jun. 3, 2024
Zuni farmers in the southwestern United States made it through long stretches of extremely low rainfall between A.D.
From Salon • Feb. 26, 2024
Sanchez began thinking about the young people on the Zuni Reservation.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 3, 2024
He started singing again, this time it wasn’t a Laguna song; it sounded like a Jemez song or maybe one from Zuni.
From "Ceremony:" by Leslie Marmon Silko
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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.