1
plural Ute or Utes : a member of an Indigenous people originally ranging through Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico

Note: Current-day members live as part of the federally recognized Ute Indian Tribe (Northern Ute) of the Uinta and Ouray Reservation of Northeastern Utah or the federally recognized Southern Ute Tribe of Colorado.

2
: the Uto-Aztecan language of the Ute people

Examples of Ute in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Stretching more than 1,000 feet deep into the Earth, the Mother Spring was first discovered by the Southern Ute Nation, the area’s original inhabitants. Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 5 Mar. 2025 Mesa Verde National Park is near Cortez, just north of the Ute Mountain Reservation and about 30 miles west of Durango. Brooke Baitinger, Idaho Statesman, 4 Mar. 2025 Though it was first discovered by the Southern Ute Tribe centuries ago, this site has been home to a more European-style bathhouse since 1881. Emily Pennington, Outside Online, 28 Feb. 2025 Voter Ute Wolters, a 64-year-old architect from Lower Saxony, worries about Merz's potential leadership. Rob Schmitz, NPR, 22 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for Ute

Word History

Etymology

short for earlier Utah, Utaw, from American Spanish Yuta

First Known Use

1846, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of Ute was in 1846

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Cite this Entry

“Ute.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Ute. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.

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