totem
See also: Totem and tótem
English
Etymology
From Ojibwe (o)doodem(an).
Pronunciation
- (General American) IPA(key): /ˈtoʊtəm/
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈtəʊtəm/
- Rhymes: (General American) -oʊtəm, (Received Pronunciation) -əʊtəm
- Hyphenation: to‧tem
Noun
totem (plural totems)
- Any natural object or living creature that serves as an emblem of a tribe, clan or family; the representation of such an object or creature.
- The clan whose kinship is defined in reference to such an object or creature.
- 1921, Wilhelm Max Wundt, Edward Leroy Schaub, Elements of folk psychology: outlines of a psychological history:
- The totem members were forbidden to eat the flesh of the totem animal, or were allowed to do so only under specific conditions.
- 2014, Michael Pomedli, Living with Animals: Ojibwe Spirit Powers, page 165:
- These meanings flow from bear-like characteristics imprinted on totem members. Members of the bear clan may have dispositional, cognitive, and physical capabilities similar to those of bear.
- 1921, Wilhelm Max Wundt, Edward Leroy Schaub, Elements of folk psychology: outlines of a psychological history:
- (figuratively) A symbol or personification.
- 2023 January 19, Damien Cave, quoting Richard Shaw, “How Covid’s Bitter Divisions Tarnished a Liberal Icon”, in The New York Times, ISSN 0362-4331:
- “She became a totem,” he added. “She became the personification of a particular response to the pandemic, which people in the far-flung margins of the internet and the not so far-flung margins used against her.”
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- An arbitrarily chosen object serving as a reminder to check whether one is awake or not, to aid in having lucid dreams.
- 2010, ren, “Inception and Lucid Dreaming”, in alt.religion.wicca, Usenet:
- The best way to determine if you are dreaming or not is to have a totem in your lucid dreams that does not exist in reality. Inducing yourself is as easy as waking up during the night and practicing as you fall back asleep. Say, "I will be aware I am dreaming while I am dreaming by seeing my totem."
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- A tall object resembling a totem pole.
- 2014 February 4, Hayllar, Tom, A Long Way Walkin’ in Australia: From the Tasman to the Timor Sea, Bloomington, Indiana: Balboa Press, →ISBN, page 207:
- Out the front of the Drive-in rose the town’s main tourist attraction, a totem of signs to bizarre places with impossible distances such as Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and so on.
-
Derived terms
- totemic
- totemical
- totemically
- totemism
- totemist
- totemistic
- totemistically
- totem kin
- totem pole
- totem stone
Translations
natural object or living creature that serves as an emblem of a tribe
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Anagrams
- motet, motte
Dutch
Pronunciation
Audio (file)
Noun
totem m (plural totems, diminutive totempje n)
- totem, object that signifies a kinship group
- totem, physical representation of a kinship symbol
Derived terms
- totempaal
French
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /tɔ.tɛm/
Noun
totem m (plural totems)
- totem
Derived terms
- totémique
- totémiser
- totémisation
Further reading
- “totem”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
German
Pronunciation
Audio (file)
Adjective
totem
- strong dative masculine/neuter singular of tot
Italian
Etymology
Unadapted borrowing from English totem, from Ojibwe (o)doodem(an).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈtɔ.tem/[1]
- Rhymes: -ɔtem
- Hyphenation: tò‧tem
Noun
totem m (invariable)
- totem
Derived terms
- totemico
- totem informativo
- totemismo
- totem multimediale
References
- totem in Luciano Canepari, Dizionario di Pronuncia Italiana (DiPI)
Anagrams
- metto
Polish
Etymology
Borrowed from English totem, from Ojibwe (o)doodem(an).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈtɔ.tɛm/
Audio (file) - Rhymes: -ɔtɛm
- Syllabification: to‧tem
Noun
totem m inan
- totem (natural object or living creature that serves as an emblem of a tribe)
- totem (representation of such a creature)
Declension
Declension of totem
singular | plural | |
---|---|---|
nominative | totem | totemy |
genitive | totemu | totemów |
dative | totemowi | totemom |
accusative | totem | totemy |
instrumental | totemem | totemami |
locative | totemie | totemach |
vocative | totemie | totemy |
Derived terms
adjective
- totemiczny
nouns
- totemista
- totemistka
Related terms
adjective
- totemistyczny
noun
- totemizm
Further reading
- totem in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
- totem in Polish dictionaries at PWN
Portuguese
Alternative forms
- tóteme
Etymology
Borrowed from English totem, from Ojibwe (o)doodem(an).
Pronunciation
Template:pt
Noun
totem m (plural totens)
- totem (object or creature that serves as an emblem of a tribe, clan or family)
- totem pole (Native American sculpture made by carving trees)
Romanian
Etymology
From French totem.
Noun
totem n (plural totemuri)
- totem
Declension
Declension of totem
singular | plural | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
indefinite articulation | definite articulation | indefinite articulation | definite articulation | |
nominative/accusative | (un) totem | totemul | (niște) totemuri | totemurile |
genitive/dative | (unui) totem | totemului | (unor) totemuri | totemurilor |
vocative | totemule | totemurilor |
Serbo-Croatian
Etymology
From Ojibwe (o)doodem(an).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /tǒteːm/
- Hyphenation: to‧tem
Noun
tòtēm m (Cyrillic spelling то̀те̄м)
- totem
Declension
Declension of totem
singular | plural | |
---|---|---|
nominative | tòtēm | totemi |
genitive | totéma | totema |
dative | totemu | totemima |
accusative | totema | toteme |
vocative | toteme | totemi |
locative | totemu | totemima |
instrumental | totemom | totemima |
Turkish
Etymology
Borrowed from French totem, From Ojibwe (o)doodem(an).
Noun
totem (definite accusative totemi, plural totemler)
- (religion) totem
Declension
Inflection | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Nominative | totem | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Definite accusative | totemi | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Singular | Plural | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Nominative | totem | totemler | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Definite accusative | totemi | totemleri | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dative | toteme | totemlere | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Locative | totemde | totemlerde | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ablative | totemden | totemlerden | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Genitive | totemin | totemlerin | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Synonyms
- ongun
Derived terms
- totemci
- totemcilik