Illinois

¹ American  

[il-uh-noi, -noiz] / ˌɪl əˈnɔɪ, -ˈnɔɪz /

noun

Illinois plural

1. a member of a confederacy of North American Indians of Algonquian stock, formerly occupying Illinois and adjoining regions westward.

2. the Algonquian language of the Illinois and Miami Indians.

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Illinois ² American  

[il-uh-noi, -noiz] / ˌɪl əˈnɔɪ, -ˈnɔɪz /

noun

1. a state in the central United States: a part of the Midwest. 56,400 sq. mi. (146,075 sq. km). Springfield. IL (for use with zip code), Ill.

2. a river flowing southwest from northeastern Illinois to the Mississippi River: connected by a canal with Lake Michigan. 273 miles (440 km) long.

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Illinois British  

/ ˌɪlɪˈnɔɪ /

noun

1. Abbreviation: Ill..   IL.  a state of the N central US, in the Midwest: consists of level prairie crossed by the Illinois and Kaskaskia Rivers; mainly agricultural. Capital: Springfield. Pop: 12 653 544 (2003 est). Area: 144 858 sq km (55 930 sq miles)

2. a river in Illinois, flowing SW to the Mississippi. Length: 439 km (273 miles)

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Illinois Cultural  

1. State in the north-central United States bordered on the north by Wisconsin, the east by Indiana, the south by Kentucky, and the west by Missouri and Iowa. Its capital is Springfield, and its largest city is Chicago.

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Pronunciation

The pronunciation of Illinois with a final , which occurs chiefly among less educated speakers, is least common in Illinois itself, increasing in frequency as distance from the state increases.

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Known as the “Land of Lincoln” because Abraham Lincoln began his political career there.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• Illinois
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Illinois

1715–25, < French, earlier Eriniouai, Ilinoués, etc., from an unidentified Algonquian language, apparently literally, “one who sounds normal” (i.e., “a person who speaks an Algonquian language”), equivalent to the (unattested) Proto-Algonquian elements elen- “ordinary” + -we “make sound”

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Illinois

I have a friend in Illinois who has given me power of attorney and named me the executor of her will.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026

To Ilana Redstone, a sociologist who specializes in political polarization at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, sociology’s troubles gained traction through the 1971 Supreme Court decision, Griggs vs.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 25, 2026

Romo went to Burlington High School, which is about 35 miles from Milwaukee, and played four seasons at Eastern Illinois before joining the Cowboys as an undrafted rookie in 2004.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026

Debating in 1858 to represent Illinois in the Senate, Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas continuously returned to the question of whether the declaration’s protections were exclusively meant for white people.

From Slate ● Jul. 24, 2026

Two Illinois delegates—both white—offered to march with Wells-Barnett in the African American section.

From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling