West Indian
Britishadjective
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of or relating to the West Indies, its inhabitants, or their language or culture
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native to or derived from the West Indies
noun
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a native or inhabitant of the West Indies
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a person of West Indian descent
Usage
Using West Indian to refer to people of this ancestry living in Britain may cause offence. Possible alternatives are Black and Afro-Caribbean
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.
In “Malcolm X,” Lindo squared off with Denzel Washington’s protagonist as a Harlem hustler named West Indian Archie.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 3, 2026
"The batting was pretty decent," said West Indian captain Shai Hope.
From Barron's • Jan. 29, 2026
McQueen gave that reality anthropological scope in “Small Axe,” the 2020 series about his West Indian community’s experiences in ’70s London.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 31, 2024
One of the most highly decorated West Indian volunteers was navigator Philip Louis Ulric Cross, a native of Trinidad and Tobago who flew 80 missions over Germany and occupied Europe.
From Seattle Times • Jun. 3, 2024
The bar has four taps, but I know which ale West Indian Archie likes.
From "X: A Novel" by Ilyasah Shabazz
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.
