Hawaiian Glossary

Puke wehewehe 'olelo

In the first section, click on the words to hear the pronunciation.

Consonants are pronounced as they are in English, with the exception of W. After I and E, W is usually pronounced like V.

A is usually pronounced like A in ABOVE.
E is usually pronounced like AY in PLAY.
I is usually pronounced like EE in SEE.
O is usually pronounced like O in GO.
U is usually pronounced like OO in BOO.

Vowels are each pronounced individually when one after the other. For example, ali'i is pronounced AH LEE EE.

The Basics:

Aloha -- A greeting, also used when parting. Both hello and goodbye. Love.

Mahalo -- Thank you.

The Islands: O'ahu, Maui, Kaua'i, Hawai'i, Moloka'i, Lana'i, Ni'ihau and Kaho'olawe.

For the really adventurous:

'aina -- The land, earth. eg. Ua mau ke ea o ka 'aina i ka pono. The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness. (Hawaii's state motto.)

'akahi -- One. (Especially when counting in a series.)

ali'i -- Ancient Hawaiian royalty.

aloha -- A greeting, also used when parting. Both hello and goodbye. Love.

'alua -- Two. Twice.

'au'au -- To bathe or take a shower. eg. Gotta go 'au'au after fishing all day.

'eha -- Four. Four times.

'ekahi -- One. Once.

'ekolu -- Three. Three times.

'elima -- Five. Five times.

'elua -- Two. Twice.

ewa -- An area west of Honolulu. (Used as a directional term.) eg. Head ewa on H-1 and take the Waikele offramp to the outlet stores.

hala -- The pandanus tree, whose leaves are plaited into mats, baskets and hats.

halau -- A long house for canoes or hula instruction. Often used to refer to hula troupes. eg. A halau from Kauai took second place in the 1996 hula festival on the Big Island.

hale -- House. eg. It's appropriate that Honolulu's City Hall is called Honolulu Hale.

hapu'u -- An endemic tree fern, common in many forests of Hawai'i, and now frequently cultivated.

haole -- Originally, a foreigner, but the term is now used mainly to depict blondes or caucasians.

hihiwai -- An endemic grainy snail found in both fresh and brackish water.

ho'oponopono -- To correct.

hui -- A club, association or group.

hukilau -- A net; to fish with a net.

hula -- A lovely Hawaiian dance form.

huli -- To turn or flip over.

humuhumu-nukunuku-a-pua'a -- This is Hawaii's state fish, whose nose is shaped like a pig's.

imu -- An underground oven. eg. The kalua pig at the luau was cooked in an imu.

kahuna -- A priest, minister or expert in any field. eg. A kahuna was asked to bless the site before construction began.

kahuna lapa'au -- A healer or doctor.

kai -- Sea, near the sea.

kalua -- To bake in an underground pit or oven. Often used to describe pig served at lu'aus.

kama'aina -- A native-born or longtime Island resident.

kane -- Man or men. eg. Go through the door marked kane, not wahine.

keiki -- Child or children.

kiawe -- Algaroba tree. Like mesquite, its wood is often used to barbecue.

kokua -- Assistance, help. eg. We need your kokua. Please don't litter.

koloa -- Hawaiian duck. Considered an endangered species.

konohiki -- Headman of an ahupua'a (land division).

kukui -- Candlenut tree bearing nuts containing oily kernels formerly used for lighting by ancient Hawaiians. eg. Polished kukui nuts are often used to make leis.

kuleana -- Small piece of property.

kumu hula -- Teacher of Hawaiian dance. eg. Our kumu hula is strict, but a gentle spirit.

la'au lapa'au -- Medicine. Curing medicine.

laua'e -- A fragrant fern whose pieces were often strung in pandanus leis.

laulau -- A combination of pork, beef, chicken and/or fish, wrapped in luau leaves and steamed.

lei -- A flower necklace. eg. Each of her friends gave her a lei at the graduation ceremony.

liliko'i -- Passion fruit used for desserts and beverages. eg. Order the liliko'i juice; it's exotic.

lokahi -- Unity. To blend opposites.

lomilomi -- Massage. eg. Ah, after a tough day at work, I could use some lomilomi.

lua -- Bathroom, toilet. eg. He went to the lua about an hour ago....wonder if he's coming back to work.

luna -- A foreman, boss or supervisor. eg. Get busy; here comes the luna.

mahalo -- Thank you.

makai -- Towards the ocean. (Used in giving directions.) eg. Turn right on Kalakaua Ave., go two blocks, then makai on Royal Hawaiian.

mahimahi -- A dolphinfish. A very popular dish with both visitors and locals alike.

malihini -- A newcomer or visitor.

mauka -- Towards the mountains. (Used in giving directions.) eg. The hotel is on the mauka side of the street.

'ohana -- Family.

'ono -- Delicious, tasty, savory. eg. The laulau was ono!

opae -- Shrimp. eg. They caught some opae to use as bait.

'opakapaka -- Blue snapper. eg. The special of the day is steamed 'opakapaka sprinkled with crushed almonds and served on a bed of rice pilaf or the pasta of your choice.

'opihi -- Limpet. Plucked from shoreline walls and eaten raw. eg. 'Opihi make great pupus (appetizers.)

'opu -- Stomach. eg. Santa got a big 'opu from eating so much laulau, fish and poi.

pau -- Finished. eg. All pau. What's next?

pau hana -- Finished with work. eg. Yeah!, pau hana time. Let's hit the surf.

pikake -- A shrub with small, white, very fragrant flowers. eg. Her pikake lei smells so good.

piko -- Umbilical cord, navel.

pipi kaula -- Beef salted and dried in the sun. Broiled before eaten.

pohaku -- Rock, stone.

poi -- A Hawaiian staple made from cooked taro.

poke -- Raw fish chunks mixed with seaweed. eg. Let's put a little bit of chili pepper in with the poke for more flavor.

po'okela -- Best, supreme, foremost.

pua'a -- A pig or hog.

tutu -- Grandmother.

'ukulele -- A musical Hawaiian string instrument, introduced by the Portugese.

ulua -- A species of jack crevalle. eg. We caught two huge ulua and a few smaller fish today.

'ulu maika -- Stone used in playing the maika game (bowling). eg. Visitors can play 'ulu maika at some luaus.

umeke -- Bowl, calabash, as of wood or gourd.

wahine -- Woman or women. eg. The Rainbow wahine are one of the top ranked volley ball teams in the nation year after year.

weke -- Several species of edible, goatfish that inhabit Hawaiian reefs, characterized by a red color or striped markings.

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