Cree Writing Guide
A plain-language guide to the roman spelling, long vowels, syllabics, and review labels used in this dictionary.
English Headword Order
The source puts the main term first, as in "Face, your". This site displays it as "(your) face" and "Accident, has an" as "(has an) accident". Text after the first comma outside parentheses moves to the front in parentheses; commas within definitions stay in place. Entries remain alphabetized by their main headword and the exact source wording is preserved.
What This Dictionary Uses
Entries show Cree in roman orthography first, with Cree syllabics when available. Generated syllabics are useful for learning and searching, but they still need review before they should be treated as authoritative.
Roman Orthography / SRO Basics
Standard Roman Orthography writes Cree sounds with consistent letters. Long vowels are important because they can change meaning, so this site keeps marks such as â, ê, î, and ô visible.
Long Vowels and Spelling Marks
The medical dictionary source commonly marks long vowels with circumflexes, such as â. Some Cree learning resources use macrons, such as ā. These conventions vary by resource; this site preserves the source spelling and search also matches common unmarked forms.
Cree Syllabics
Syllabics are a writing system used by many Cree communities. A roman spelling can often be converted to syllabics, but conversion is not the same thing as community review.
Generated vs Reviewed Writing
Generated writing is marked as needing review. Imported means a spelling came from a named source; it does not by itself mean this project has checked it. Community review, clinical review, syllabics review, and category review are shown separately on each entry.
Dialect Notes
Cree words vary by dialect and region. The SLMHC source credits Cree contributors from Fort Severn and Fort Albany / the James Bay coastal area. Many imported records in this app carry a broad Plains Cree label that has not been individually verified against that source context. Check the source and a qualified language reviewer for the community where a term will be used.
Why Medical Terms May Be Phrases
Some biomedical terms do not have a single direct equivalent. In those cases, a Cree expression may describe the action, condition, or relationship instead of copying the English noun form.
Sources and Further Reading
The source dictionary is the Sioux Lookout Meno Ya Win Health Centre Cree Medical Dictionary. It uses roman spelling; syllabics shown on this site may be generated and need review.
For writing-system learning, see the Cree Literacy Network resources on spelling, long vowels, and syllabics.