Coeur d'Alene

or Coeur d'A·lêne

[ kur dl-eyn, kawr dl-eyn ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

, plural Coeur d'A·lenes (especially collectively) Coeur d'Al·ene

Also called Schi·tsu’umsh [shtee, -choo-, uh, mps]. a member of an Indigenous people in northern Idaho and southern Washington State around Coeur d'Alene Lake.
Also called Schi·tsu'umsh·tsn [shtee-choo-, uhmps, -, uh, n-ts, uh, n]. the Salishan language of the Coeur d'Alene.
a city in northern Idaho.

adjective

of or relating to the Coeur d'Alene or their language.

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Word History and Origins

Origin of Coeur d'Alene¹

First recorded in 1804–06 in the Lewis and Clark expedition; from French Coeur d'Alêne “heart of (an) awl,” of disputed meaning; possibly applied by French traders to a stingy tribal chief, possibly applied by a tribal chief's description of the size of a French trader's heart, or possibly referring to the sharpness of the trading skills of the native people in their dealings with the traders

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Example Sentences

We went clear through to the Coeur dAlene; we got there in the month of September.

From Project Gutenberg

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