tipi
Americannoun
-
tipis
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Explanation
The traditional tent-like dwelling of the Plains Indians is called a tipi. Modern tipis are often made of canvas, with flaps at the top allowing smoke to escape. Tipis (also spelled teepee) were historically used by indigenous Americans who lived a nomadic lifestyle, since these dwellings could be easily taken down, carried to a new place, and reassembled. Traditionally, tipis were made with long wooden poles covered by animal skins. A tipi would keep families dry in the rain, cool in hot weather, and warm in the winter with the help of a fire. Tipi comes from the Lakota thípi, "dwelling."
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.
See Examples For:
A few minutes later he stops to show off a series of tipi rings — artifacts of Indigenous life that he’s promised local tribes he’ll protect.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 16, 2024
In May, Indian protesters erected a tipi on the pathway of a pipe being built from a nearby water source to the mine.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 6, 2023
Further along in Winthrop, Homestream Park sits on the Winthrop River with a meandering pathway past plants, a tipi and sculptures of people and horses.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 9, 2023
Dustin Denega built a tipi for shelter in warmer weather, and in colder weather he slept in a trailer in the camp.
From Salon ● Mar. 8, 2023
As it happened, the tipi was a real one.
From "In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse" by Joseph Marshall III
Strummerville overlooks a sea of tipis and is named in memory of Joe Strummer, The Clash's lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist, who died in 2002.
From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2025
Matt Reed, the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma’s tribal historic preservation officer, says that tiny footprint comes as a surprise to modern Pawnee, whose traditional tipis are big enough to fit whole families.
From Science Magazine ● Mar. 29, 2023
Two of those photos are of tipis, and another shows a person inside a tipi with a wa’paas basket, slivers of light seen through the tule mats that are part of the tipi.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 25, 2023
There he crossed the river to the busy trading post of Fort Pierre Chouteau, where 40 or 50 tipis of the Tetons were camped.
From Washington Times ● Jan. 11, 2015
Large lodges, evidently tipis, set up for special purposes by the Cheyenne, are mentioned by Grinnell.
From Villages of the Algonquian, Siouan, and Caddoan Tribes West of the Mississippi by David Ives Bushnell
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
