Lesson 14 of 18 · Unit 5: Dependent clauses, negated
Speaking With & About People
Words for the people around you — elders, grandmothers, choices and delight — in the course's own glosses.
By the end of this lesson you'll be introduced to
- The course's words for elders — with the meanings the course itself gives them
- Three grandmother words, taught as whole words
- Little words for choices, maybes and delight
- A documented offer, and how to answer it
No new grammar today — these two class days are about people, and the words are the lesson.
Words for elders
In the course's own words
Words for elders
NewThree documented terms. Read the glosses carefully — the descriptions in parentheses are the course's own, and they carry the meaning the instructor chose to give:
Akiwenzii
male elder (earth caretaker)
Gichi-aya'aa
elder (great being)
Mindimooye
female elder (one who holds things together)
The descriptions in parentheses are the course's own glosses, quoted exactly — the materials chose to explain each term this way, and this app adds nothing to them.
Try it
Which documented word does the course gloss “elder (great being)”?
Three grandmother words
Whole words
Three grandmother words
NewThe later class day records three words around one person:
Nookomis
my grandmother
Gookomis
your grandmother
Maamaanaan
grandmother
The notes record all three words with these meanings and do not explain how the third relates to the other two, or state any rule behind the my-/your- difference — so this course teaches them as three whole words.
Try it
You're speaking about your own grandmother. Which documented word does the course gloss that way?
Choices, maybes and delight
Small but mighty
Choices, maybes and delight
NewThree little words people drop into real talk:
Gemaa
or, either or
Maagizhaa
or, maybe
Maamakaaj
awesome
The two “or” words overlap but aren't twins — one offers alternatives, the other leans toward “maybe”. The quiz asks you to tell them apart in English, never to guess between them blind.
A documented offer
Answer for yourself
A documented offer
ReviewThis lesson's own quiz documents an offer — and its second word is the yes/no question marker you met back in the second lesson. The documented yes and no words answer it.
Your turn — no wrong answer
Gegoo na giwii-minikwen?
Do you want something to drink?
Answer honestly — every option is a documented reply.
All words from these class days
New- View entry →AkiwenziiNoun
male elder (earth caretaker)
- View entry →GemaaGrammar Word
or, either or
- View entry →Gibaakwa'igaazoowigamigNoun
jail
- View entry →Gichi-aya'aaNoun
elder (great being)
- View entry →MaagizhaaGrammar Word
or, maybe
- View entry →MaamakaajGrammar Word
awesome
- View entry →MindimooyeNoun
female elder (one who holds things together)
- View entry →GookomisNoun
your grandmother
- View entry →MaamaanaanNoun
grandmother
- View entry →NookomisNoun
my grandmother
Seen before
ReviewCheck your understanding
You don't need a perfect score — finishing is what completes the lesson.
Preparing your questions…
Finish this lesson
Work through the lesson's activities, then mark it complete. Your quiz score doesn't have to be perfect.
- Match an elder term to its gloss — not yet done
- Pick the grandmother word — not yet done
- Answer the documented offer — not yet done
- Finish Check your understanding — not yet done
Source
This lesson draws on two vocabulary days the source itself themes around people. The elder glosses are quoted exactly as the course wrote them, and nothing was added to them; where the materials leave a relationship unexplained, this page says so rather than filling it in. Every Ojibwe word on this page comes from the material cited above.
More from this stretch
This lesson covers several class days from the original course. The extra vocabulary and documented examples those days brought are here — try each example before its English shows.
Class day: November 18
New vocabulary this day (3)
Examples from this day
Aaniin apii gaa-gisinaag?
What does it say?
Aaniin apii waa-aanjigaadeg?
What does it say?
Aaniin apii waa-aditeg?
What does it say?
Aaniin apii waa-apiitak?
What does it say?
Aaniin apii waa-niizho-giizhigak?
What does it say?
Aaniin enitaagwak?
What does it say?
Aaniin ezhinaagwak agwajiing?
What does it say?
Aaniindi eteg?
What does it say?