Paiute
Americannoun
-
a member of a group of North American Indians of the Uto-Aztecan family dwelling in California, Nevada, Utah, and Arizona.
-
either of two mutually unintelligible Uto-Aztecan languages Northern Paiute and Southern Paiute.
noun
-
a member of either of two North American Indian peoples ( Northern Paiute and Southern Paiute ) of the Southwestern US, related to the Aztecs
-
the language of either of these peoples, belonging to the Shoshonean subfamily of the Uto-Aztecan family
Other Word Forms
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.
For the Southern Paiute and Western Shoshone, Eagle Mountain holds profound cultural significance — woven into their creation stories and Salt Songs, understood as a “passage to the sky.”
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 5, 2026
The Utu Utu Gwaitu Paiute are among a coalition that wants to pause the planned roundups for two years and ultimately secure land back to set aside a sanctuary for the horses to roam.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 7, 2025
The Paiute and Shoshone suffered after the arrival of settlers, including in 1863, when troops forced nearly 1,000 Native people to march out of the valley to Fort Tejon, about 175 miles away.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 15, 2024
It also was approved this week by the San Juan Southern Paiute and Hopi tribes.
From Seattle Times • May 24, 2024
Yahandika was variously reported by Fort Hall informants as referring to a district in Nevada; by others as applied to certain Oregon Northern Paiute.
From Shoshone-Bannock Subsistence and Society by Murphy, Robert F.
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.