wanigan
Americannoun
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a lumberjack's trunk.
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a lumber camp's supply chest.
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a small house on wheels or tractor treads, used as an office or shelter in temporary lumber camps.
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(especially in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest) a lean-to or other small addition built onto a house trailer, cabin, etc.
noun
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a lumberjack's chest or box
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a cabin, caboose or houseboat
Etymology
Origin of wanigan
First recorded in 1840–50; from Ojibwe wa·nikka·n “pit,” derivative of wa·nikke·- “to dig a hole in the ground” from unattested Proto-Algonquian wa·θehke·- (unattested wa·θ- “hole” + -ehke·- “make”)
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.
Even at the end of that time the wanigan, though dry of loose water, floated but sluggishly.
From The Riverman by Stewart Edward White
Sind us some oakum and pitch and we'll caulk yure wanigan for ye.
From The Riverman by Stewart Edward White
The wanigan for the rear crew was built.
From The Riverman by Stewart Edward White
By this time the wanigan had caught the stronger current at the bend and was gathering momentum.
From The Riverman by Stewart Edward White
This, after some difficulty, was made fast to the bow of the wanigan.
From The Riverman by Stewart Edward White
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.
