Teachings From the Language Tree, part 3: Understanding Ojibwe Verb Classification Techniques for Language Learners
- zhaawano
- Sep 11
- 14 min read
Updated: Sep 17
Waagaabagaa-giizis/Waatebagaa-giizis (Leaves Turning Moon)/Mandaamin-giizis (Corn Moon)/Manoominike-giizis (Ricing Moon); September 12, 2025
In Anishinaabemowin, the language of the Ojibwe, gender differentiation is not based on a masculine/feminine contrast but rather distinguishes between two categories of animate. Most current Ojibwe linguists promote the idea of an inanimate word category, but this notion is rooted in Western thinking. Because this animate/inanimate grammar concept doesn't align with the traditional worldview of the Anishinaabeg peoples, we will not incorporate it into our lessons.
We believe that the introduction in the 1970s of College-funded teaching methods focused on English grammar and syntax has unnecessarily complicated the process of learning to speak the language as our ancestors did. Grammar is simply a tool employed by grammarians and language teachers to structure and categorize language. It is not an intrinsic part of the Ojibwe language. Although grammar can be helpful, it is not the ultimate approach for learning Anishinaabe dialects. Grammar cannot stand alone. Language precedes grammar and classifications. The Anishinaabemowin spoken by our ancestors consisted solely of sounds and words, without grammar.
This idea is illustrated in the image above, titled "The Grammar Dilemma." The tree in the background stands for the Ojibwe language. The goldfinches and the water drum signify the ancient phonetics (speech sounds) of the Ojibwe language, while the open book in the foreground symbolizes the foreign grammatical framework borrowed from the English language.
Anishinaabemowin was once a rich, verb and sound-based language with multiple layers of meaning. The power (knowledge) was inherent in the verbs and sounds. Colonization stripped us of the old language, leading to mental and cultural confusion, along with numerous behavioral issues. The path to healing and retracing where things went wrong is both lengthy and complex. This is why we believe it is vital to return to the original sounds of the language as they were spoken in the past.
Gego biigwa'igezidaa ezhibimaadiziwin neyaab gidaa biidoonaa gidinwewininaan. Maamawi wiiji'ididaa dazhiikamang gidinwewininaan [gay GO beeg wah ee gay zid DAA ay zhi bim MAAD dis see win nay YAAB gid AA bead doon AA gid in way win ih NAAN. MAA ma WEE wee gee ih dih TAA duzh eek ah mahng gid in way win ih NAAN]:
“Let's not break the circle of life; we need to bring it back, the Anishinaabe language. Let's work together revitalizing our language.”
Before beginning our lesson, let's take a critical look at the concept of animacy in Anishinaabemowin, the Ojibwe grammar.
First, lets ask ourselves, are animacy and animateness the same?
"Grammar is simply a tool employed by grammarians and language teachers to structure and categorize language. It is not an intrinsic part of the Ojibwe language. Although grammar can be helpful, it is not the ultimate approach for learning Anishinaabe dialects. Grammar cannot stand alone. Language precedes grammar and classifications. The Anishinaabemowin spoken by our ancestors consisted solely of sounds and words, without grammar."
There is an essential difference between animacy and animateness. Animacy is a conceptual and grammatical category, whereas animateness refers to the state of actual life. Yet, how should we understand the 'inanimate' characteristic that many modern Ojibwe educators and grammarians assign to certain verbs, nouns, and pronouns, even though the idea of inanimateness was traditionally unfamiliar to the Anishinaabeg before Europeans arrived on our lands?
Asking the question is to answer it.
Anishinaabemowin was traditionally an unwritten and dynamic language, characterized by a highly context-driven and flexible set of grammar rules—reflecting the fluidity of life itself. However, modern Ojibwe textbook instructors have become fixated on their own strict grammar rules, which most people follow without question. The Ojibwe grammarians of today are simply accommodating the grammar of English speakers. Consider how they distinctly separate animate from inanimate. This is a linguistic idea, an artificial dichotomy that mirrors a Western perspective, recognizing a state of inanimateness—meaning the absence of traits found in living beings, like life, consciousness, spirit, or movement. For the Anishinaabeg, everything in nature and life contains manidoo, or spirit. To them, inanimateness, let alone 'inanimacy,' did not exist. So why incorporate a non-Anishinaabe concept into the Anishinaabe language?
Everything is alive; nothing lacks life. Describing something as inanimate using a fabricated grammar term is unacceptable. Grammar rules should reflect reality. Imposing artificial grammar rules on Anishinaabemowin diminishes a language full of vitality and spirit. It's akin to wearing ill-fitting shoes.
An esteemed Elder and old friend from Mikinaakwajiwing (Turtle Mountains reservation) once told me: "All my life, I have been singing the old spiritual songs. We regard the cosmos as being alive, even the morning star which is Venus, a planet, but it is regarded as a sister to mother earth. Not just a planet with no life. The Chippewa of the Turtle Mountains have an oral story that it came from mother earth and it went to the sky to be our morning star. So it is regarded as being alive because it shared our life here on earth. Certain spirits animated it by going there during the creation of the earth. It was given life by its inhabitants as spirits that went there in our creation stories." He continued by saying that he believes that "Ojibwe grammarians obtained inanimacy from the English language when they copied their grammar, thus contaminating the Ojibwe language. Inanimacy is a contamination, something that changes perspective of life. It is a contamination of nature making conflicts within the Ojibwa language. It is disregarding the Native perspective."
"Everything is alive; nothing lacks life. Describing something as inanimate using a fabricated grammar term is unacceptable. Grammar rules should reflect reality. Imposing artificial grammar rules on Ojibwemowin diminishes a language full of vitality and spirit. It's akin to wearing ill-fitting shoes."
When constructing a sentence and incorporating a word, such as a tree, plant, animal, human, ancestor, rock, stone pipe, soil, clouds, rainbow, wooden table, or a traditional story, one should consider: Does it belong to the bimaadizi beings, or might it be bimaadad, a category of entities representing a different type of 'living existence'? Understanding that the animateness of the subject, object, and pronoun(s) in the sentence must match the verb, it is crucial to know which class of animacy the word falls into.
This also implies that pronouns must always be grammatically consistent with the animateness of the noun they reference. For example, when an Ojibwe individual asks about someone's clan, one way to phrase the question is: 'Awenen gidoodem?' Or: 'Gidoodem awewen?' This literally means 'who (awenen) is your clan (gidoodem)?' Instead of using the interrogative pronoun "wegonen (what?),' the 'who' form is used. This is because the Ojibwe term for clan is categorized as bimaadizi (category 1 animate class). Since the animateness of a pronoun must match that of the noun it refers to, 'awenen' is chosen over 'wegonen.'
How does Anishinaabemowin, the Ojibwe language, differ from Indo-European languages such as English, German, French, Spanish, Russian, and Latin, as well as Asian languages like Japanese, which are all noun-based? In these languages, nouns are given a gender (masculine, feminine, or sometimes neuter), affecting the articles, adjectives, and pronouns linked to the noun.
Anishinaabemowin stands apart from the aforementioned languages due to its verb-centric nature. Most of its vocabulary is composed of doodamowi-ikidowinan (verbs), with actions serving as the foundation of its structure. This dynamic language uses prefixes and suffixes for doodamowi-ikidowin ayaanzinaagotood (verb conjugation), enabling it to convey complex ideas that would otherwise require full sentences in languages like English, classifying it as a polysynthetic language. In Ojibwe, verbs provide details not only about the subject (such as animacy, person, and number) but also about the object. The language includes various verb classes, distinguished by whether they are transitive or intransitive and whether they have cat. 1 animate ("bimaadizi") or cat. 2 animate ("bimaadad") subjects.
Let's take a closer look at nouns and how you can identify the class of animacy they belong to.
A key indicator for the category of animacy is how a noun is pluralized.
Bimaadizi nouns end with a "-k" or "-g" sound when plural. An example is the Ojibwe word for 'thunder,' 'animikii': ts plural form is animikiig. Another example is the Ojibwe word for 'tree,' 'mitig'; its plural form is 'mitigoog.' We use the abbreviation "AN(1)" to denote this type of animacy.
Bimaadad nouns, often mistakenly referred to as 'inanimate' by many grammarians, take an '-n' ending in the plural form. Mitig, which means tree, gets a bimaadad (cat. AN(2)) ending ('mitigoon') in case it means wood, a piece of wood, a stick, or a pole. The same goes for, for instance, 'aki,' which means earth or land; the plural form is 'akiin.' We use the abbreviation 'AN(2)' to represent this category of animacy.
To summarize:
How does the bimaadizi/bimaadad classification affect Ojibwe grammar?
The bimaadizi and bimaadad categories (AN(1) and AN(2), respectively) are fundamental to Ojibwe grammar, influencing verb conjugations and other grammatical patterns.
Verbs: The form of a verb must match the category of animacy of the subject and/or object of the action.
Pronouns: Demonstrative pronouns used for bimaadizi nouns, such as a'aw (that person/animate thing), differ from those used for bimaadad nouns.
Context: A fluent speaker may make a deliberate choice to use a word as either bimaadizi (A1) or bimaadad (A2) to emphasize a particular aspect, even for items that are usually categorized one way.
Cultural Nuance: The distinction is not always straightforward.
Objects with significant spiritual importance, like certain rocks, are often classified as bimaadizi (AN(1)).
A word can have different meanings depending on its animacy. As previously mentioned, mitig can mean "wood" (bimaadizi or bimaadad depending on the spiritual context), "tree" (bimaadizi), or "stick" (bimaadad). The plural form of a tree is mitigoog where the plural form of "stick" or "pole" is mitigoon. However, a stick, or a pole, when used in a ceremonial or dream context, can temporarily change from bimaadad (AN(1)) into bimaadizi (AN(2)). In that case, the plural form is mitigoog. Verbs and demonstrative pronouns that correspond with those words must grammatically correspond with them accordingly. A verb or demonstrative pronoun of the AN(1) class must correspond with a noun of the AN(1) class, where a verb or demonstrative pronoun of the AN(2) class must correspond with a noun of the AN(2) class. Waawaashkeshi (a deer) (AN(1)) is typically cooked with a VTAN(1) verb, but you cook wiiyaas (any kind of meat) (AN()2) with a VTAN(2) verb.
AN(1) = Animate type 1 (bimaadizi, 's/he is alive')
AN(2) = Animate type 2 (bimaadad, 'it is alive')
Mitigoog (trees) = AN(1) (actively alive)
Mitigoon (sticks and poles) = AN(2) (passively alive) -- unless they become 'actively alive' (used in a ceremonial context or observed in a dream or vision); in that case, they become grammatically 'mitigoog.'
As previously mentioned, some words are bimaadizi (lit.: s/he is alive), while others are bimaadad lit.: (it is alive). However, there is never a distinct separation or boundary between the two. Both types of aliveness can shift and transform into the other, based on the interaction between the spirit within objects and the observer or storyteller. Even narrating a story from the storyteller's viewpoint can alter the animacy of a verb.
The Ojibwe language categorizes verbs into roughly four types based on their transitivity (whether they take an object) and the animacy (animate of the 'active' A1 category or animate of the 'passive' A2 category) of their subjects and objects. The main thing to remember is that the conjugation of a verb should always match the object as well as the subject in a sentence.
The four main verb types are:
Bimaadizi doodamowi-ikidowin gaa'-bizingaming onaabanjigan ('A1 animate-verb-that listens to-the object')(BIDIBO)
In English: Verb transitive cat. 1 animate (VTRAN(1)) 'Verb with a transitive stem and cat. 1 animate object.' This means that the verb describes an action done by a cat.1 animate subject to a cat.1 animate object. For example, the BIDIBO/VTRAN(1) verb 'amwi' means 'eat him/her.' For instance: Nindamwaa awe zaasagokwaan, 'I eat that frybread.' (In this case, zaasagokwaan, frybread, belongs to the bimaadizi/AN(1) category).
bimaadizi = Cat.1 animate (AN1)
doodamowi-ikidowin = verb (literally: make someone say something")
gaa'-bizingaming = that which listens to something
onaabanjigan = the selected object (in the sentence)Bimaadizi doodamowi-ikidowin gaa-bizindanzing onaabanjigan ('AN1 animate-verb-that does not listen to-an object')(BIDIGO)
In English: verb cat. 1 animate intransitive (VAN(1)IN) "Verb with an intransitive stem; a cat.1 animate subject and no object." For example.: the BIDIGO/VAN(1)IN verb "minikwe," s/he drinks.
bimaadizi = Cat.1 animate (AN1)
doodamowi-ikidowin = verb (literally: 'make someone say something')
gaa-bizindanzing = that which does not listen to something
onaabanjigan = an object ◈ Subtype of BIDIGO/VAI: BIDIBGO/VAN(1)IN + optional object: Bimaadizi doodamowi-ikidowin "intransitive" gaa'-bizingaming onaabanjigan ("A1 animate-verb-intransitive-that-does listen to-an object") (BIDIBGO). In English: verb cat.1 animate intransitive with an optional object (VAN(1)IN + o)
bimaadizi = Cat.1 animate (AN1)
doodamowi-ikidowin = verb (literally: 'make someone say something')
gaa'-bizingaming = that which listens to something
onaabanjigan = an object (in the sentence)Some bimaadizi (AN1) verbs can take an object, forming a VAN(1)IN+o construction. An example of a BIDIBGO/VAN(1)IN + object is the verb 'minikwen,' s/he drinks it. For instance: Niminikwen nibi zaaga'iganiing, 'I am drinking water from the lake.' Niminikwen ('I am drinking') is a verb of the bimaadizi (AN1) category used transitively.
adaawen = buy itBimaadad doodamowi-ikidowin gaa-bizindanzing onaabanjigan ('AN2 animate-verb-that does not listen to-an object') (BDDIGBO)
In English: verb cat. 2 animate intransitive (VAN(2)IN) 'Verb with an intransitive stem; a cat. 2 animate subject and no object.' An example of a BDDIGBO/VAN(2)IN verb is 'agasaa,' it is small. For instance: Agaasaa 'iw wiigwaamens, 'it is small, that little lodge.' (Wiigwaamens, meaning lodge, serves as the object in the sentence and belongs to the bimaadad/AN2 category. 'Iwe, meaning 'that,' is a demonstrative pronoun in the same category.)
bimaadad = Cat.2 animate (AN2)
doodamowi-ikidowin = verb (literally: 'make someone say something')
gaa-bizindanzing = that which does not listen to something
onaabanjigan = an object Bimaadad doodamowi-ikidowin gaa'-bizingaming onaabanjigan ('AN(2) animate-verb-that listens to-an object' (DIDIGO) In English: verb cat. 2 with a transitive stem and a cat. 2 animate object (VTRAN(2)). VTRAN(2) stands for Transitive Inanimate, meaning the verb describes an action done by a cat.1 animate subject to a cat.2 animate object. An example is the DIDIGO/VTRAN(2) verb waabandan ('see it'). For instance: niwaabandaan, 'I see it.'
bimaadad = Cat.2 animate (AN2)
doodamowi-ikidowin = verb (literally: 'make someone say something')
gaa'-bizingaming = that which listens to something
onaabanjigan = an object AN2 animate verbs are classified into 4 subgroups based on their suffixes, such as the /-am/ theme verbs which include words like waabandan ('see it''), the /-oon/ theme verbs which include words like aabajitoon ('to use it'), the /-i/ theme verbs which include words like miijin ('to eat it'), and the /-aam/ theme verbs which include words like ayaan ('to have it, buy it, take it, receive it').
NOTE: A theme suffix, whether /-am/, /-oon/, /-i/, or /-aam/, is added to the verb stem and is essential for creating specific inflected forms of the verb.verb | animate cat. 1 subject | transitive | animate cat. 2 object | -am stem | VTRAN(2)-1 | |
verb | animate cat. 1 subject | transitive | animate cat. 2 object | -oo stem | VTRAN(2)-2 | |
verb | animate cat. 1 subject | transitive | animate cat. 2 object | -i stem | VTRAN(2)-3 | |
verb | animate cat. 1 subject | transitive | animate cat. 2 object | -aam stem | VTRAN(2)-4 | |
abandan iniwe zaaga'iganan, 'I see those lakes.' (Zaaga'iganan, meaning lakes, serves as the object in the sentence and belongs to the bimaadad/AN(2) animacy category. Iniwe, meaning 'those,' is a demonstrative pronoun in the same animacy category).
Other DIDIGO/VTRAN(2) verbs with an /-am/ theme are:
aaba’an = untie it
aabaabika’an = unlock it
aniikanootan = translate it
abiitan = live in it
agindan = read/count/study it
anokiitan = work for it
babaamendan = worry about it
bawinan = shake it
bazigwiitan = stand up for it
biizikan = put it on, wear it
bizindan = listen to it
daanginan = touch it
dazhindan = talk about it
dibendan = own it
ganawaabandan = look at it
ganawendan = care for it
gashkaabika’an = lock it
gashkendan = feel sorrowful about it
gashkigwaadan = sew it
giizikan = take it off
gikendan = know it
gojipidan = taste it
inendan = think of it
jiibaakwaadan = cook it (in water)
maazhendan = feel bad about it
mikan = find it
mikwendan = remember it
minwaabandan = look favorably
upon it
minwendan = like it
naanaagadawendan = ponder it
naazikan = approach it
nabonan = fold it
nagadan = abandon it
nandawaabandan = try to see it
nandawendan = want it
nandomaandan = smell it
nisidotan = understand it
noondan = hear it
odaapinan = accept it
ombinan = lift it
onaabandan vti-1 select it
ondinan obtain it from there
ozhibii’an write
waaginan = bend it
wanendan = forget it
wewiibendan = rush it
zezizekwaadan = cook it (in grease)
zhaashaagamikan = chew it
zhawendan = love, pity it
zhingobikaadan = line it with
evergreen boughs
ziiginan = pour it
ziigwebinan = spill it Example 2 (VTAN(2)-2):
Aabajitoon: to use it. Indaabajitoon emikwaan wiisiniyaan, 'I use a spoon to eat.' (Emikwaan, meaning spoon, serves as the object in the sentence and belongs to the bimaadad/AN2 category.
Other DIDIGO/VTRAN(2)-2 verbs with an /-oon/ theme are:
aabajitoon = use it
aatebidoon = turn the light off
agoodoon = hang it
anishinaabewisidoon = put it down
in Ojibwe language
apagidoon = throw it
atoon = put it, set it down
baabii’itoon = wait for it
baapitoon = laugh at it
baashkijibidoon = smash it
biidoon = bring it
biindigadoon = bring it in
biinitoon = clean it
biizikan = put it on, wear it
bimiwidoon = carry it
biskaakonebidoon = turn the
appliance on
bookobidoon = break it
boozitoon = load it
dakobidoon = tie it
gagwejitoon = try to do it
giiwewidoon = take it home
gojitoon = try it
gwekitoon = turn it around
izhiwidoon = take it along
maada’adoon = pursue it, follow it
maada’oon = share it
maajiidoon = carry, take it away
mamoon = take it
minotoon = make it nice
mooshkinatoon = fill it up (solid)
mooshkinebadoon = fill it up (liquid)
nanaa’itoon = fix it
noopinadoon = follow it
ozhitoon = make it
waasakonebidoon = turn the light on
wanitoon = lose it
wiinitoon = dirty it
zaaga’itoon = take it outExample 3 (VTAN(2)-3):
Miijin: eat it. Nimiijinan miinan,
'I'm eating blueberries.' (In this case, miinan, blueberries, belongs to the bimaadad/AN(2) category).
Naadin: fetch it
Naadidaa iniwe miinan imaa adaawewigamigong, 'Let's go after some blueberries at the store.' (In this case, miinan, blueberries, and the demonstrative pronoun iniwe, those, belong to the bimaadad/AN(2) category).
Example 4 (VTAN(2)-4): Ayaan: have it; own it. Indayaan gichi-mookomaan, 'I have a big knife.' (Gichi-mookomaan, meaning big knife, serves as the object in the sentence and belongs to the bimaadad/AN(2) category. Note: The only common verbs belonging to the VTAN(2)-4 class are ayaan ('have something') and gidaan ('eat up'). In summary, the table below offers an overview of the various verb types and their themes.
Function | Subject | Type | Object | Theme | Abbreviated |
verb | Animate cat.2 | intransitive | none | VAN(2)IN | |
verb | Animate cat.2 | intransitive | none | inherently plural | VAN(2)INp |
verb | Animate cat.1 | intransitive | none | VAN(1)IN | |
verb | Animate cat.1 | intransitive | none | pseudo-VAI | VAN(1)IN-2 |
verb | Animate cat.1 | intransitive | none | optional object | VAN(1)IN-o |
verb | Animate cat.1 | intransitive | none | inherently plural | VAN(I)IN-p |
verb | Animate cat.1 | transitive | Animate cat.2 | -am stem | VTRAN(2) |
verb | Animate cat.1 | transitive | Animate cat.2 | -oo stem | VTRAN(2)-2 |
verb | Animate cat.1 | transitive | Animate cat.2 | -i stem | VTRAN(2)-3 |
verb | Animate cat.1 | transitive | Animate cat.2 | -aam stem | VTRAN(2)-4 |
verb | Animate cat.1 | transitive | Animate cat.1 | VTRAN(1) | |
verb | Animate cat.1 | transitive | Animate cat.1 | inverse only | VTRAN(1)in |
There's a lot more to discuss regarding verb classification and the animacy of Ojibwe words, but the information above provides a basic understanding. We'll explore the topic further in future posts.
Giga-waabamin wayiiba: I hope to see you again soon.
NOTE: To clarify, our goal is not to let grammar rules dominate our approach to teaching phonetics—quite the opposite. We prioritize sounds over grammar. However, we cannot completely disregard essential grammar rules. Our focus isn't strictly on syntax. For traditional speakers, there are no rigid rules about word order. Instead, they focus on verbs, nouns, and understanding the relationship between verbs and nouns with different forms of animacy. We aim to develop a practical guide for teaching learners verb classification techniques that will help them understand how the two animacy categories influence grammar, while staying true to the traditional Anishinaabe (Ojibwe) worldview and spirituality. We believe that classifying verbs and their related nouns and pronouns into two types of animacy is crucial. Although we don't want to overemphasize grammar, it is important for learners to learn how to make verbs grammatically align with the animacy category of the subject and/or object in a sentence. This is really about animacy and how to consistently apply the different types of animacy in sentence formation. It is also about understanding how dramatically English grammar and Western concepts have eroded the old language, along with our spiritual ways and traditions. We see our teaching method as a first step in a serious effort to revitalize the language spoken many generations ago, before Western colonization.
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