Illinois
Syllables: Il·lin·ois/ˌɪləˈnɔɪ/
More pronunciations (1)Fewer pronunciations
nonstandard/ˌɪləˈnɔɪz/
Illinois proper noun: a state of the United States, named for the people. Also the ellipsis of University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign.
Proper noun
Illinois
- A state of the United States, named for the people.
- Entire states such as California, Illinois and New York are now sanctuaries, as well as major cities and counties such as Fairfax, Montgomery and Prince George’s counties and the District of Columbia in the capital region, according to the list.2018 May 10, Stephen Dinan, “Half of all Americans now live in ‘sanctuaries’ protecting immigrants”, in The Washington Times
- On the invitation list: Govs. Andy Beshear of Kentucky, Tim Walz of Minnesota, J.B. Pritzker of Illinois, Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, Tony Evers of Wisconsin, Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, Roy Cooper of North Carolina, Wes Moore of Maryland and Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico.2024 February 7, Edward-Isaac Dovere, “Harris set to host Democratic governors this weekend to discuss 2024 campaign”, in CNN
- A confederation of Algonquian tribes who lived in the Mississippi River Valley.
- The Algonquian language spoken by these tribes; the Miami-Illinois language.
- Another interesting Illinois word is the name of the celebrated chief, which the French made Chachagouache.1917, Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society, page 91
- PISTAKEE LAKE (Lake) Part of the Chain of Lakes, Pistakee is an Illinois word taken from pestekouy, meaning "buffalo"[.]2004, Sandy Nestor, Indian Placenames in America, volume 1, page 61
- A river in the United States that flows from Grundy County, Illinois, into the Mississippi River.
- A river in Colorado, United States that flows from the Never Summer Mountains in the Rockies into the Michigan River.
- A river in Oklahoma, United States that flows from the Ozarks into the Arkansas River.
- A river in Oregon, United States that flows from the southwestern corner of the state into the Rogue River.
- A township in Pope County, Arkansas, United States.
- A township in Washington County, Arkansas.
- A township in Sedgwick County, Kansas, United States.
Noun
Illinois (plural Illinois)
Adjective
Illinois
- Of or relating to the Illinois Confederacy, its people or its culture.
- Synonyms:
- Illinese
Also used as
Illinois is also the ellipsis of University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign.
Illinois meaning in Hindi, Marathi, Punjabi and Thai
Illinois in Hindi
- a state of the United States of America
- इलिनॉय ilinŏy, इलिनॉयस ilinŏyas
Illinois in Marathi
- a state of the United States of America
- इलिनॉय ilinŏy
Illinois in Punjabi
- a state of the United States of America
- ਇਲੀਨਾਏ ilīnāē
Illinois in Thai
- a state of the United States of America
- อิลลินอยส์ in-lí-nɔɔi
More languagesFewer languages
- Illinois in Vietnamese
- I-li-noi
Examples of Illinois in a sentence
- JB Pritzker of Illinois said in a social media post that he is “aware of the troubling incident that has unfolded in Franklin Park.”2025 September 12, Nicole Acevedo, “A person is killed and an ICE agent injured at an immigration arrest near Chicago”, in NBC News:
- These words are believed to have come from the Illinois word "irenweewa," which meant "he speaks in the ordinary way."2005, Jennifer Lee, The Illinois Confederacy of Illinois, Missouri, Wisconsin, ..., page 5:
Synonyms of Illinois
Forms of Illinois
| plural | Illinois |
|---|
Origin of Illinois
From French Illinois, an adaptation of an Algonquian (perhaps Ojibwe) name derived from Miami ilenweewa (“he speaks the regular way”).
Words formed from Illinois
Phrases with Illinois
Questions about Illinois
- What does Illinois mean?
- Illinois means a state of the United States, named for the people.
- What is Illinois in Hindi?
- Illinois in Hindi is इलिनॉय (ilinŏy), इलिनॉयस (ilinŏyas). See Illinois meaning in Hindi.
- How do you use Illinois in a sentence?
- JB Pritzker of Illinois said in a social media post that he is “aware of the troubling incident that has unfolded in Franklin Park.”
- What part of speech is Illinois?
- Illinois can be a proper noun, a noun or an adjective.
- How do you pronounce Illinois?
- Illinois is pronounced /ˌɪləˈnɔɪ/.
Words near Illinois in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: Illinois (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-Illinois.ogg.
Cite this entry: “Illinois.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/illinois. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.