Amish

American  

[ah-mish, am-ish] / ˈɑ mɪʃ, ˈæm ɪʃ /

adjective

1. of or relating to any of the strict Mennonite groups, chiefly in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and Canada, descended from the followers of Jakob Ammann, a Swiss Mennonite bishop of the 17th century.

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noun

1. the Amish people.

Amish British  

/ ˈɑːmɪʃ, ˈæ- /

adjective

1. of or relating to a US and Canadian Mennonite sect that traces its origin to Jakob Amman

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noun

1. the Amish people

Amish Cultural  

1. A group of Protestants who broke away from the Mennonites in the seventeenth century. The Amish live in close communities, farm for a living, and do without many modern conveniences, such as telephones, automobiles, and tractor-drawn plows.

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Discover More

Some of the Pennsylvania Dutch are Amish.

Etymology

Origin of Amish

1835–45, < German amisch, after Jakob Ammann; see -ish ¹

Compare meaning

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

• Amish vs. Mennonite

Example Sentences

They planted olive, fig and pomegranate trees in their garden and brought furniture back from the US from the Amish community in Pennsylvania: "That's something we cannot replace," he said.

From BBC • Apr. 23, 2026

Yoder, the court premised its decision to allow Amish parents to remove older children from school on expert testimony showing that the decision caused no harm “to the physical or mental health of the child.”

From Slate • Mar. 12, 2026

In Lancaster County: In “Witness,” a police detective played by Harrison Ford is forced to hide in an Amish community to protect a boy who witnesses a murder.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 16, 2026

Amish travelers have been using this route for decades, one of the men told me, on their way to and from doctors in Tijuana.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 9, 2025

The Amish, though they did not drive cars, used plenty of tractors, reapers, balers, and other machines, and bought their gas from Mr. Klein.

From "Z for Zachariah" by Robert C. O’Brien