A tepee is a round tent. Tepees were first made by Native American peoples from animal skins or the outer covering of trees. = wigwam. a round tent with a pointed top, used by some Native Americans (tipi, from ti + pi ). or tipi Tall tent dwelling used by the Plains Indians. It was suited to their nomadic life of buffalo hunting, because it could be easily folded and dragged by a horse. It was made by stretching dressed and fitted buffalo skins over a skeleton of 20-30 wooden poles, all slanted in toward a central point and tied together near the top. A flap at the top allowed smoke to escape, and a flap at the bottom served as a doorway. The tepee became a popular symbol of all American Indians, although the wigwam, wickiup, hogan, igloo, and longhouse were at least as important