[ahy-uh-wuh; sometimes ahy-uh-wey] 
) -wa for 3. | 1. | a state in the central United States: a part of the Midwest. 2,913,387; 56,290 sq. mi. (145,790 sq. km). Capital: Des Moines. Abbreviation: IA (approved esp. for use with zip code), Ia., Io. |
| 2. | a river flowing SE from N Iowa to the Mississippi River. 291 mi. (470 km) long. |
| 3. | a member of an American Indian people originally of Iowa, Missouri, and Minnesota but now of Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Kansas. |
| 4. | the Siouan language spoken by the Iowa Indians. |
| I·o·wa 1 (ī'ə-wə) n. pl. Iowa or I·o·was
[From French ayoés, ultimately from Dakota ayúxba.] I'o·wa adj. |
| I·o·wa 2 (ī'ə-wə) A state of the north-central United States. It was admitted as the 29th state in 1846. Part of the Louisiana Purchase of 1803, Iowa was organized as a separate territory in 1838. The Mound Builders lived in the area in prehistoric times. Des Moines is the capital and the largest city. Population: 2,990,000. I'o·wan adj. |
State in the midwestern United States bordered by Minnesota to the north, Wisconsin and Illinois to the east, Missouri to the south, and Nebraska and South Dakota to the west. Its capital and largest city is Des Moines.
