ILLINOIS

I. noun (plural ~) Etymology: French, earlier Eriniouai, singular, probably from a word in an Algonquian language derived from Proto-Algonquian *elen- ordinary + *-we make a sound Date: 1703 a confederacy of American Indian peoples of ~, Iowa, and Wisconsin, a member of any of the ~ peoples, the Algonquian language of the ~, II. geographical name river 273 miles (439 kilometers ) ~ flowing SW into Mississippi River, state central United States capital Springfield area 56,400 square miles (146,640 square kilometers ), population 12,419,293 , ~an adjective or noun