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.
My 92-year-old West Indian father, a US Army veteran with Alzheimer’s-related dementia who once did half of the cooking, now observes quietly.
From Salon ● Jun. 15, 2026
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
But embattled captain Roston Chase said he had been told to "keep believing" by West Indian greats, including Viv Richards, Brian Lara and Richie Richardson who were at an awards ceremony in New Delhi.
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2025
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
Lily’s husband was West Indian, and they were members of the Communist Youth Movement.
From "The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother" by James McBride
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.
