111 Essential Hawaiian Words (from the regular glossary)
This is an list of 111 words from the Glossary that everyone who lives in Hawai‘i should know and are somewhat familar with because their usage is so commonplace, however a few of words listed are not so well known, but should be. Learning these words might also be interesting to anyone who will visit Hawai‘i and is interested in the Hawaiian language. I strongly encourage anyone who is unfamiliar with Hawaiian spelling to read the ‘okina and kahakō entries.

 
ahi. noun. Fire. This word is very similar to the word for tuna (‘ahi) shown below, but ahi is spelled without an ‘okina. If you don't know what an ‘okina is, then you may want to read the ‘okina entry.
   For more information, see ahi in the regular glossary.

 
‘ahi. noun. Hawaiian tuna fishes, especially the yellow-fin tuna. This word is very similar to the word for fire (ahi) shown above, but ‘ahi is spelled with an ‘okina. If you don't know what an ‘okina is, then you may want to read the ‘okina entry.
   For more information, see ‘ahi in the regular glossary.

 
Ā hui hou. phrase. Goodbye. Literally "until [we] meet again." Okay, so this is a phrase and not a word, but I wanted to include it because it is commonly used to say "goodbye."
   For more information, see Ā hui hou in the regular glossary.

 
ahupua‘a. noun. Land division, usually extending from the uplands to the sea. Ahupua‘a is the combination of two words, ahu (altar or heap) and pua‘a (pig). An altar of stones with the image of a pig marked the boundary line of the ahupua‘a land division. Many of the names of the old ahupua‘a land divisions are preserved in the names of Hawai‘i towns.
   For more information, see ahupua‘a in the regular glossary.

 
‘aina. noun. Meal. Compare with pā‘ina. The picture above shows a MRE meal. The MRE is a self-contained, individual field ration in lightweight packaging used by US servicemembers in combat or other field conditions where organized food facilities are not available. And I don't have to tell you, they are mighty tasty (‘ono)!
   For more information, see ‘aina in the regular glossary.

 
‘āina. noun. Land. This word is used often, because there is so much talk in Hawai‘i about the ‘āina. It is also used in the compound word kama‘āina which is a combination of two words, kama (child) and ‘āina (land). For some reason the kahakō is commonly forgotten in the spelling of kama‘āina, but not the ‘okina, so kama‘āina is often misspelled as kama‘aina.
   For more information, see ‘āina in the regular glossary.

 
akamai. stative verb. Smart, clever.
   For more information, see akamai in the regular glossary.

 
ala. noun. Path, road, street, trail. A word used in many place names. Some examples of ala in place names are; Ala Moana which means "ocean (moana) street (ala)", Ala Wai which means "freshwater (wai) way (ala)" and Kealakekua which means "the (ke) pathway (ala) [of] the (ke) god (kua)."
   For more information, see ala in the regular glossary.

 
ali‘i. noun, stative verb. Chief, chiefess, king, queen; royal. Compare with lani (very high chief).
   For more information, see ali‘i in the regular glossary.

 
aloha. Love, hello, goodbye. These are the commonly given definitions, but the word aloha has many other less commonly used and understood meanings, most of which are shown below.

aloha. noun, transitive verb, stative verb. Love, affection, compassion, mercy, sympathy, pity, kindness, sentiment, grace, charity; greeting, salutation; sweetheart, lover, loved one; beloved, loving, kind, charitable; to love; to show kindness, mercy, charity. The picture above shows an Aloha Airlines airplane. Aloha Airlines ceased operations on March 31, 2008.
   For more information, see aloha in the regular glossary.

 
ānuenue.  noun. Rainbow. A mnemonic device for remembering the colors of the rainbow is "Roy G. Biv". Red Orange Yellow Green Blue Indigo Violet
   For more information, see ānuenue in the regular glossary.

 
da kine. pidgin term, not Hawaiian. Whatchamacallit, whatsit, thingamajig, that thing, this thing. A corruption of the English "the kind." Da kine is used as a filler term when you do not know the word(s) for the thing you are talking about. Da kine is also used as a shorthand term when it is likely the listener will understand what is meant. The picture above shows the front entrance of Da Kine Bail Bonds in downtown Honolulu at 1381 Queen Emma Street. Da Kine Bail Bonds was made famous by Duane "Dog" Chapman and his TV show "Dog the Bounty Hunter.
   For more information, see da kine in the regular glossary.

 
E komo mai. phrase. Come in, welcome. Literally "Enter [toward the speaker]." This phrase is often used on the entrance signage of Hawai‘i businesses.
   For more information, see E komo mai in the regular glossary.

 
‘Ewa. (Capitalized), place name. Crooked. A town and plain on O‘ahu. According to "Place Names of Hawaii" this ‘Ewa means "crooked.

‘ewa. directional term. ‘Ewa is a widely used directional term on O‘ahu, generally meaning westward when giving directions or describing something west of a location in Honolulu. Its opposite directional terms are "Diamond Head" and "Koko Head."
   For more information, see ‘ewa in the regular glossary.

 
hālau. noun. Long house, meeting house. A long house used for canoe storage, hula instruction or as a meeting house. The word hālau is often used by hula schools of instruction in the names of their institutions. The term hula hālau (hula school) is used by many hula schools as a Hawaiian term to describe what they do, but school is a very loose interpretation of the the word hālau, since this word really refers to the building under which hula instruction would often take place. Also, hula hālau is the wrong word order, it should be hālau hula. See a list of hula schools at www.mele.com/resources/hula.html and notice how often the wrong word order (hula hālau) is used.
   For more information, see hālau in the regular glossary.

 
hale. noun. House, building, station, hall. The word hale is used in many place names like Haleakalā (house [used] by the sun), Hale‘iwa (frigate bird house) and Hale Māka‘i (police station).
   For more information, see hale in the regular glossary.

 
hana. noun. Work, activity.

hana. transitive verb. To work, labor, do, make.
   For more information, see hana in the regular glossary.

 
hānai. transitive verb. To raise, adopt, feed, assume responsibility for.

hānai. stative verb. Foster, adopted.

hānai. noun. Foster child, adopted child.
   For more information, see hānai in the regular glossary.

 
hānau. noun, intransitive verb. Birth; to give birth.
   For more information, see hānau in the regular glossary.

 
haole. noun. White person, caucasian. Formally, any foreigner.

haole. stative verb. Foreign.
   For more information, see haole in the regular glossary.

   
hapa. noun. Portion, part, fraction.
   For more information, see hapa in the regular glossary.

 
hau‘oli. stative verb. Happy, glad, joyful.

hau‘oli. noun. Happiness, joy.
   For more information, see hau‘oli in the regular glossary.

 
haupia. noun. Coconut pudding. Formally made with arrowroot (pia), hence the pia in the word haupia. Nowadays, haupia is usually made with cornstarch instead of pia.
   For more information, see haupia in the regular glossary.

 
hele. intransitive verb. To go, walk. Used in the expression hele mai which means "come or to come", hele aku which means "go or to go."
   For more information, see hele in the regular glossary.

 
hōkū. noun. Star. The word hōkū is probably best know because of its usage in the name for the double-hulled voyaging canoe of the Honolulu based Polynesian Voyaging Society called the Hōkūle‘a. Hōkūle‘a means "joyous star." Hōkū is also the abbreviated name for the award given at the premier Hawai‘i music industry awards ceremony called the Nā Hōkū Hanohano Awards. The first annual award ceremony took place in 1978. The picture above shows the front and back of a medallion that was given out to winners some time in the 80's. The phrase "Ua mau ke nani o Hawai‘i i ka mele" means "The beauty of Hawai‘i is preserved in song."
   For more information, see hōkū in the regular glossary.

 
holoholo. intransitive verb. To go for a run, ride, sail.
 For more information, see holoholo in the regular glossary.

  
honu. noun. Turtle. Honu is a generic term for sea turtle, but honu is specifically used for the green sea turtle and not the ‘ea (hawksbill turtle). The green turtle got its name not because it is green on the outside, but because its meat is green.
   For more information, see honu in the regular glossary.

 
ho‘olaule‘a. Noun, transitive verb. Celebration, festival, gathering for a celebration; to hold a celebration, to celebrate.
   For more information, see ho‘olaule‘a in the regular glossary.

 
hou. stative verb. New. Maybe this word isn't so well known, but it should be, since it is used in the well known place name Punahou (new spring) and the phrase often used during the new year season, "Hauoili Makahiki Hou" which means "Happy New Year."

hou. stative verb. Again. This meaning of hou is used in the expression for "encore", "Hana Hou" which literally means "do [it] again."
   For more information, see hou in the regular glossary.

 
hui. noun. Club, association.
   For more information, see hui in the regular glossary.

 
hukilau. noun, intransitive verb. A seine; to fish with a seine. A seine is a horizontally long fishing net with floats on the top and weights on the bottom. A Hawaiian seine used wood floats on the top rope and laukī (ti leaves) were attached to the top rope to distract and confuse the fish. The bottom of the net was weighed down with stone weights. The method for using the hukilau was to deploy the net off shore, then pulling the net toward the shore to corral the fish into a smaller and smaller space. Hukilau literally means "pull leaf (or leaves)", but the translation sometimes given is "pull rope"; however "rope" in Hawaiian is "kaula."
   For more information, see hukilau in the regular glossary.

 
hula. noun, transitive verb. The hula (a dance), to dance the hula.
   For more information, see hula in the regular glossary.

 
hulihuli. intransitive verb. To turn repeatedly. A reduplication of huli. Huluhuli is a Hawaiian word most everyone in Hawai‘i understands because it is used to describe a popular cuisine called hulihuli chicken. Hulihuli chicken is broiled or barbequed on a grill or rotisserie and called hulihuli because the chicken turns on a rotisserie or is turned (or flipped) on the grill.
   For more information, see hulihuli in the regular glossary.

 
humuhumunukunukuāpua‘a. noun. A trigger fish (Rhinecanthus aculeatus). Literally "trigger fish with a snout like a pig " or literally "trigger fish (humuhumu) with a snout (nukunuku, a reduplication of nuku) like a pig (pua‘a)." This term refers to a specific type of trigger fish, which is the state fish of Hawai‘i. It is often claimed that the word humuhumunukunukuāpua‘a is the longest Hawaiian word, but it is not.
   For more information, see humuhumunukunukuāpua‘a in the regular glossary.

 
ikaika. stative verb. Strong. The word Ikaika is also a popular first name for males.
   For more information, see ikaika in the regular glossary.

 
imu. noun. An underground oven. To make a traditional underground oven called an imu, first you have to dig a pit (lua). A pig (pua‘a) is typically or traditionally cooked in an imu and the cooked pork is called "kālua pork."
   For more information, see imu in the regular glossary.

 
inoa. noun. Name.
   For more information, see inoa in the regular glossary.

 
iwi. noun. Bone.
   For more information, see iwi in the regular glossary.

 
ka / ke. definite articles. The. Ke is generally used before words that begin with an a, e, o or k and ka is used in the other instances. An interesting fact is that, at one time there was only ke, and ka was not used, but at an uncertain time, well before western contact, the ka version of ke came into usage. Ka and ke are used in numerous compound words that are the names for places and people. Some examples are shown below and I have used hyphens to show the separate words of the compound words, but the hyphens do not represent a new way of spelling these words. Examples: Hale-a-ka-lā (the house [used] by the sun), Ka-lā-kaua (the day [of] battle), Ka-mehameha (the lonely one) and Ke-ala-ke-kua (the pathway [of] the god).

ka / ke. noun marker. Sometimes ka or ke are not translated as words and are simply used as a noun markers before a noun. A good example of this ka as a noun marker is in the State of Hawai‘i motto, "Ua mau ke ea o ka ‘āina i ka pono." The ka before pono is not translated as "the." Click on the motto for more information about the state motto.

ka / ke. The one, the person being spoken of. For example: Kamehameha is comprised of two words "ka" and "mehameha (lonely)" and is translated as "the lonely one."

nā. plural definite article. The (plural). Nā is used in many place names like in the names for two streets in Waikīkī; Nāhua Street (the fruits) and Nāmāhana Street (the twins).
   For more information, see ka, ke or nā in the Glossary.

 
kahakō. noun. Macron. The image above shows the diacritic mark, called a kahakō in Hawaiian and a macron in English, above the 5 Hawaiian vowels. A kahakō makes a vowel and the syllable associated with it a long sound, with approximately a double count of length of a regular vowel. And syllables with a kahakō always receive stress when pronounced. Kahakō is comprised of the two words, kaha (mark) and kō (long vowel sound) and literally means "long vowel sound mark."Along with the ‘okina, the kahakō is an unusal "element" of the Hawaiian language. For various reasons, the ‘okina and kahakō are often excluded in the spelling of Hawaiian words, but the ‘okina and kahakō are important for correct spelling and pronunciation; they are just as important as any Hawaiian letter. For instance, you can spell the place name Waikīkī without the two kahakō as Waikiki, however the word Waikiki is an Anglicized version of a Hawaiian word and to that extent it is a legitimate spelling, but it is not a correctly spelled Hawaiian word.
   For more information, see kahakō in the regular glossary.

 
kahuna. noun. Expert (in any profession), priest.
   For more information, see kahuna in the regular glossary.

 
kai. noun. Sea, sea water. The word kai is used in many place names like ‘Ilikai (sea surface) and Kailua (two seas). The picture above shows "the seven seas."
   For more information, see kai in the regular glossary.

 
kālā. noun. Dollar, money. Transliterated from English "dollar."
   For more information, see kālā in the regular glossary.

 
kalo. noun. Taro. From the earliest of times, taro was a food staple in Hawai‘i. The bulblike part of the kalo called a corm is cooked and used to make poi.
   For more information, see kalo in the regular glossary.

 
kālua. transitive verb. To bake in a ground oven. Nowadays a modern oven is more often used than the traditional imu (ground oven) for food that is called "kālua."
   For more information, see kālua in the regular glossary.

 
kama‘āina. noun, intransitive verb. Native-born, native, one born in a place. Literally "land (‘āina) child." The word kama‘āina is commonly used nowadays to describe a person who lives in Hawai‘i. For some reason the kahakō is commonly forgotten in the spelling of kama‘āina, but not the ‘okina, so kama‘āina is often misspelled as kama‘aina. Contrast with malihini (newcomer, visitor).
   For more information, see kama‘āina in the regular glossary.

 
Kamehameha. royal chief, king who united the Hawaiian Islands into the Kingdom of Hawaii. The lonely one. Ka (the...one being spoken of) + mehameha (lonely) = the lonely one. He was also known as Kamehameha the Great. There is a very good, short biography of Kamehameha at hawaii.gov.
   For the glossary entry, see Kamehameha.

 
kāne. noun. Male, man. Contrast with wahine (female).

Kāne. (Capitalized) Major god. One of four major Hawaiian gods. Kāne is a creator god, procreator of the life subtances such as sunlight and fresh water. The other three major gods were Kanaloa, Kū, Lono.
   For more information, see kāne in the regular glossary.

 
kapu. noun, stative verb. Taboo, prohibition, a system of prohibitions; prohibited, forbidden, sacred; no trespassing, keep out.
   For more information, see kapu in the Glossary.

 
ke / ka. definite articles. The. Ke is generally used before words that begin with an a, e, o or k and ka is used in the other instances. An interesting fact is that, at one time there was only ke, and ka was not used, but at an uncertain time, well before western contact, the ka version of ke came into usage. Ka and ke are used in numerous compound words that are the names for places and people. Some examples are shown below and I have used hyphens to show the separate words of the compound words, but the hyphens do not represent a new way of spelling these words. Examples: Hale-a-ka-lā (the house [used] by the sun), Ka-lā-kaua (the day [of] battle), Ka-mehameha (the lonely one) and Ke-ala-ke-kua (the pathway [of] the god).

ke / ka. noun marker. Sometimes ke or ka are not translated as words and are simply used as a noun markers before a noun. A good example of this ka as a noun marker is in the State of Hawai‘i motto, "Ua mau ke ea o ka ‘āina i ka pono." The ka before pono is not translated as "the." Click on the motto for more information about the state motto.

ke / ka. The one, the person being spoken of. For example: Kamehameha is comprised of two words "ka" and "mehameha (lonely)" and is translated as "the lonely one."

nā. plural definite article. The (plural). Nā is used in many place names like in the names for two streets in Waikīkī; Nāhua Street (the fruits) and Nāmāhana Street (the twins).
   For more information, see ka, ke or nā in the Glossary.

 
keiki. noun. Child.
   For more information, see keiki in the regular glossary.

 
ki‘i. noun. Image, statue, tiki. Kiʻi is the Hawaiian version of the non-Hawaiian word tiki. The word tiki comes from another part of Polynesia.
   For more information, see ki‘i in the regular glossary.

 
koa. noun. Warrior, soldier. The "Hale Koa" in name of the Hale Koa Hotel translates as "soldiers' house."

koa. stative verb. Brave.
   For more information, see koa in the regular glossary.

 
kuleana. noun, transitive verb. Right, responsibility, privilege, authority.
   For more information, see kuleana in the regular glossary.

  
lā. noun. Sun. The word lā is used in the place name Haleakalā (house [used] by the sun).

lā. noun. Day. The word lā is used in the place name Kalākaua (the day [of] battle).
   For more information, see lā in the regular glossary.

 
lani. noun, stative verb. Sky, heaven; heavenly. The word lani is used in the place name Kapi‘olani (the arch [of] heaven).

lani. noun, stative verb. Very high chief; royal. The word lani is used in many place names like the name for the royal Hawaiian palace, ‘Iolani palace (royal hawk). Lani is also used in Kalaniana‘ole (the royal chief without measure) and Kai‘ulani (the royal sacred height).
   For more information, see lani in the regular glossary.

 
lei. noun. Garland; necklace of flowers, leaves, shells, ivory, plastic or paper.
   For more information, see lei in the regular glossary.

 
lua. noun. Hole, pit. To make a traditional underground oven called an imu, first you have to dig a pit (lua). A pig (pua‘a) is typically or traditionally cooked in an imu and the cooked pork is called kālua pork.

lua. noun. Toilet.

lua. number. Two. The word lua is used in the place name Kailua (two seas).

lua. noun. A Hawaiian martial art.
   For more information, see lua in the regular glossary.

 
lū‘au. noun. Young taro tops. Young taro top leaves, used in many food items, especially as baked with coconut cream and chicken or octopus.

lū‘au. noun. Hawaiian feast. Named for the taro tops served at a lū‘au. This is not an ancient Hawaiian term. Formally a feast was known as a pā‘ina or a aha‘aina (literally "meal gathering").
   For more information, see lū‘au in the regular glossary.

 
mahalo. noun, transitive verb. Thanks, gratitude; to thank.
   For more information, see mahalo in the regular glossary.

 
mahimahi. noun. Dolphin fish. This fish name is commonly misspelled with a space (mahi mahi) or with a hyphen (mahi-mahi). It is called a dolphin fish, but as you can see from the image above, the mahimahi should not be confused with a dolphin. Not only do they look completely different, but also the mahimahi is a fish and the dophin is a mammal.
   For more information, see mahimahi in the regular glossary.

 
māhū. noun. Homosexual, of either sex.
   For more information, see māhū in the regular glossary.

 
maika‘i. stative verb. Good, fine, all right, well. If you shop at Foodland Super Market, you probably have a Maika‘i Card. According to Foodland's website, they say that maika‘i means excellent, but I disagree. If they wanted to use excellent they should have called it the Maika‘i Loa Card. One of the definitions of maika‘i that is not shown above is benefit. It seems to me that Benefit Card is a better interpret and makes more sense, since you receive a benefit when you use the card.
   For more information, see maika‘i in the regular glossary.

  
maka. noun. Eye.

maka. noun. Face. Used in the last name of the famous Hawaiian musician Israel Kamakawiwo‘ole (picture above). His last name means "the (ka) face (maka) [of] courage (wiwo‘ole)" or "the courageous face."
   For more information, see maka in the regular glossary.

 
makahiki. noun. Year.

makahiki. noun. Ancient festival. An ancient festival that lasted about four months. It was a period of peace in which warfare was forbidden (kapu). This makahiki season began each year when the rising of Pleiades (Makali‘i) was first observed by the kāhuna. The makahiki would start anywhere from October to November. Taxes were paid to the chiefs during the early makahiki. It was a festival, a season of games and celebration which lasted about 4 months.
   For more information, see makahiki in the regular glossary.

 
makai. directional. Toward the sea, seaward. The opposite of makai is mauka. Contrast with mauka (inland).
 For more information, see makai in the regular glossary.

 
malihini. noun. Newcomer, visitor. Contrast with kama‘āina (native).
   For more information, see malihini in the regular glossary.

 
mana. noun. Supernatural power or divine power.
   For more information, see mana in the regular glossary.

  
mana‘o. noun. Idea, thought, opinion, belief.
   For more information, see mana‘o in the regular glossary.

 
manō. noun. Shark.
   For more information, see manō in the regular glossary.

 
mauka. locative noun. Inland, toward the mountains. The opposite of mauka is makai. Contrast with makai (toward the sea).
   For more information, see mauka in the regular glossary.

 
mele. noun. Song.

mele. stative verb. Merry. Transliterated from English "merry."
   For more information, see mele in the regular glossary.

 
Menehune. noun. Mythical race of small people.
   For more information, see menehune in the regular glossary.

 
moa. noun. Chicken.
   For more information, see moa in the regular glossary.

 
moana. noun. Ocean, open sea.
   For more information, see moana in the regular glossary.

 
moku. noun. Island.

moku. noun. Ship. Called moku because the first European ships were suggestive of islands. The picture above shows the two ships used on Captain Cook's third voyage, HMS Resolution and HMS Discovery.
   For more information, see moku in the regular glossary.

 
mo‘o. noun. Lizard.
   For more information, see mo‘o in the regular glossary.

 
mua. locative noun. Ahead, forward.
   For more information, see mua in the regular glossary.

 
mu‘umu‘u. noun. A type of loose fitting dress. A long loose-fitting yokeless, short sleeve dress or gown. The mu‘umu‘u is often worn by women in the hospitality business.
   For more information, see mu‘umu‘u in the regular glossary.

 
nā. plural definite article. The (plural). Nā is used in many place names like in the names for two streets in Waikīkī; Nāhua Street (the fruits) and Nāmāhana Street (the twins).

ka / ke. definite articles. The. Ke is generally used before words that begin with an a, e, o or k and ka is used in the other instances. An interesting fact is that, at one time there was only ke, and ka was not used, but at an uncertain time, well before western contact, the ka version of ke came into usage. Ka and ke are used in numerous compound words that are the names for places and people. Some examples are shown below and I have used hyphens to show the separate words of the compound words, but the hyphens do not represent a new way of spelling these words. Examples: Hale-a-ka-lā (the house [used] by the sun), Ka-lā-kaua (the day [of] battle), Ka-mehameha (the lonely one) and Ke-ala-ke-kua (the pathway [of] the god).

ka / ke. noun marker. Sometimes ke or ka are not translated as words and are simply used as a noun markers before a noun. A good example of this ka as a noun marker is in the State of Hawai‘i motto, "Ua mau ke ea o ka ‘āina i ka pono." The ka before pono is not translated as "the." Click on the motto for more information about the state motto.

ka / ke. The one, the person being spoken of. For example: Kamehameha is comprised of two words "ka" and "mehameha (lonely)" and is translated as "the lonely one."
   For more information, see ka, ke or nā in the Glossary.

 
nani. stative verb. Beautiful, pretty. Contrast with pupuka (ugly).
   For more information, see nani in the regular glossary.

 
nēnē. noun. Hawaiian goose.
   For more information, see nēnē in the regular glossary.

 
nui. stative verb. Big, large, great. This is the meaning if nui is used after the object or subject.
   For more information, see nui in the regular glossary.

 
‘ohana. noun. Family, relative.
   For more information, see ‘ohana in the regular glossary.

 
‘okina. noun. Glottal stop. Literally means "cutting off, seperation." The ‘okina is represented in writing as an upside-down or inverted apostrophe. Sometimes the ‘okina is called a diacritical mark, but it is not a diacritical mark. The only diacritic mark in the Hawaiian language is the kahakō. Along with the kahakō, the ‘okina is an unusal "element" of the Hawaiian language. As strange as it may seem, the ‘okina is a real and full fledged consonant in the Hawaiian language, however it is a unique consonant in that it doesn't have a sound like the other consonants. The ‘okina is what is called a “voiceless glottal plosive”, which makes it sort of a silent consonant. For various reasons, the ‘okina and kahakō are often excluded in the spelling of Hawaiian words, but the ‘okina and kahakō are important for correct spelling and pronunciation; they are just as important as any Hawaiian letter. For instance, the not so well known word ka‘i is a two syllable word and means "to lead, to direct", but remove the ‘okina and it becomes the much better known word kai which is a one syllable word and means "sea." Also, you can spell the place name Hawai‘i without the ‘okina as Hawaii, however Hawaii is an Anglicized version of a Hawaiian word and to that extent it is a legitimate spelling, but is not a correctly spelled Hawaiian word.

‘okina. noun. The Hawaiian letter "‘." As strange as it may seem the okina is a full-fledged Hawaiian consonant, so there are 13 letters in the Hawaiian language. They are a, e, i, o, u, h, k, l, m, n, p, w, ‘ (‘okina). It is often incorrectly stated that the Hawaiian language has only 12 letters because the ‘okina is incorrectly disregarded as a consonant.
   For more information, see ‘okina in the regular glossary.

 
‘ōkole. noun. Buttocks.
   For more information, see ‘ōkole in the regular glossary.

 
‘ono. transitive verb. Delicious, tasty. The picture above shows the Ono Hawaiian Foods restaurant at 726 Kapahulu Ave in Honolulu. They have no website that I know of, but you can get more information by googling "Ono Hawaiian Foods" or by phone at (808) 737-2275.
   For more information, see ‘ono in the regular glossary.

 
‘ōpala. noun. Trash, rubbish, garbage. A picture of a trash can is shown above. Mahalo (thanks) is written on many trash receptacles to thank people for throwing away their trash in the receptacle, but some people who visit Hawai‘i mistakenly believe that mahalo is the word for trash or garbage. This confussion may be hard to believe, since the word mahalo for thanks is so commonly used, but I have personally experienced this misunderstanding from visitors.
   For more information, see ‘ōpala in the regular glossary.

 
pa‘akai. noun. Salt. Pa‘akai is comprised of two words "pa‘a" and "kai." Literally "firm sea or solid sea."
   For more information, see pa‘akai in the regular glossary.

 
pā‘ina. noun. Meal, dinner, small party with dinner. Compare and contrast with lū‘au.
   For more information, see pā‘ina in the regular glossary.

 
pakalōlō. noun. Marijuana. Literally "numbing tobacco."
   For more information, see pakalōlō in the regular glossary.

 
pali. noun. Cliff, precipice.
   For more information, see pali in the regular glossary.

 
papahe‘enalu. noun. Surfboard.
   For more information, see papahe‘enalu in the regular glossary.

 
pau. stative verb. Finished, done, completed.
   For more information, see pau in the regular glossary.

  
pele. noun. Lava flow, volcano, volcanic eruption.

Pele. (Capitalized) proper noun. Volcano goddess.
   For more information, see pele in the regular glossary.

 
poi. noun. Poi. A Hawaiian staple food made from cooked taro (kalo) corms which are pounded and thinned with water.
   For more information, see poi in the regular glossary.

 
poke. transitive verb. To slice, cut crosswise into small pieces.

poke. noun. A raw fish salad. A name for the raw fish salad which consists of raw fish sliced into small pieces (poke, transitive verb) and other ingredients, served as an appetizer or main course.
   For more information, see poke in the regular glossary.

 
pono. noun, stative verb. Rightous, proper, correct, right, just. The Hawai‘i State seal shows the state motto "Ua mau ke ea o ka ‘āina i ka pono" which means "The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness."
   For more information, see pono in the regular glossary.

 
pua. noun. Flower, blossom.
   For more information, see pua in the regular glossary.

 
pua‘a. noun. Pig, pork.
   For more information, see pua‘a in the regular glossary.
 
puka. noun. Hole. The image above shows a puka. About every 5 seconds, Jack Lord as Steve McGarrett will emerge from the opening in the hole.
   For more information, see puka in the regular glossary.

 
pūpū. noun. Shell. General name for marine and land shells.
pūpū. noun. Hors d'oeuvre, appetizer.
   For more information, see pūpū in the regular glossary.

 
pupuka. stative verb. Ugly. Contrast with nani (beautiful).
   For more information, see pupuka in the Glossary.

 
pupule. stative verb. Crazy. Sometimes written with a kahakō as pūpule for emphasis.
   For more information, see pupule in the regular glossary.

   
shaka. not a Hawaiian word. A hand gesture meaning something like "right on", a gesture of affirmation or approval. The word shaka is not a Hawaiian word, but the word and the gesture is of modern Hawai‘i origin. The origin of the hand gesture is attributed to the man Hamana Kalili of the town of Lā‘ie on the island of O‘ahu. Hamana Kalili lost the middle three fingers of one hand to a work place accident at the Kahuku Sugar Mill. Hamana was involved with the Church of Latter-Day Saints as choir director and at the annual hukilau fundraiser he would portray King Kamehameha. When he would raise his hand or waved, it was obvious that he was missing fingers, so kids and people began to imitate his wave. The gesture became a sign of affirmation or approval. For more about the shaka, see this Star-Bulletin article and an article at the Polynesian Cultural Center website. In addition to discussing the gesture, the Star-bulletin article also speculates on the origin and meaning of the word shaka.
   For more information, see shaka in the regular glossary.

 
taboo. not a Hawaiian word. Forbidden, prohibited. Taboo has all the same meanings as the Hawaiian word Kapu. Taboo was a spelling interpretation of various other Polynesian (Polenekia) words, like the Tongan word "tapu", the Fijian word "tabu" and even the Hawaiian "kapu." The Hawaiian equivalent and cognate of "tapu" and "tabu" is "kapu." See kapu.
   For more information, see taboo in the regular glossary.

 
tiki. not a Hawaiian word. A carved image, statue. This is not a Hawaiian word, but comes from another part of Polynesia (Polenekia). The Hawaiian version and cognate of the word tiki is ki‘i.
   For more information, see tiki in the regular glossary.

  
tūtū. noun. Grandmother, any female relative or acquaintance of the grandparent's generation. This term can also be used for the male gender, but in practice it is used almost excessively for women only, women of a grandmother's generation and is usually used as a term of affection. If it is used for "grandfather", it is usually modified with kāne, as in tūtū kāne. Frank Delima did a very funny TV commercial for the "The Cab" in which he plays on the word tūtū. You can see the commercial on the homepage of "The Cab" company website. The Cab company took the commercial off of their homepage and I don't know where else it can be found. It is a must see! They really should put it on youtube.
   For more information, see tūtū in the regular glossary.

 
‘ukulele. noun. A small, guitarlike musical instrument. Literally "leaping flea." This word is commonly mispronounced as if the second letter u is the letter a, as ukalele.
   For more information, see ‘ukulele in the regular glossary.

 
wa‘a. noun. Canoe, outrigger canoe.
   For more information, see wa‘a in the regular glossary.

 
wahine. noun. Woman, female. The picture above shows a plaque used on the door of a women's restroom. Contrast with kāne (male).
   For more information, see wahine in the regular glossary.

 
wai. noun. Water (but not sea water), liquid of any kind. The word wai can be used for many types of liquid, but generally the meaning is usually water. Sea water is called kai. Contrast with kai (sea water). The word wai is used in many Hawai‘i place names such as Ala Wai (freshwater way), Waikīkī (spouting water) and Waimānalo (potable water).
   For more information, see wai in the regular glossary.

 
wikiwiki. stative verb. Quick, quicky, fast, speedy. The picture above shows a shuttle bus of the free Wikiwiki shuttle system at the Honolulu International Airport.
   For more information, see wikiwiki in the regular glossary.

Essential Words Directory
English to Hawaiian Directory

activity. See hana.
adopt. See hānai.
adopted. See hānai.
adopted child. See hānai.
again. See hou.
ahead. See mua.
all right. See maika‘i.
appetizer. See pūpū.
association. See hui.
authority. See kuleana.
bake (bake in a ground oven). See kālua.
beautiful. See nani.
belief. See mana‘o.
big. See nui.
birth. See hānau.
blossom. See pua.
bone. See iwi.
brave. See koa.
building. See hale.
buttocks. See ‘ōkole.
canoe. See wa‘a.
carved image. See tiki.
caucasian. See haole.
celebrate. See ho‘olaule‘a.
celebration. See ho‘olaule‘a.
chicken. See moa.
chief. See lani.
child. See keiki.
clever. See akamai.
cliff. See pali.
chief. See ali‘i.
chiefess. See ali‘i.
club. See hui.
coconut pudding. See haupia.
come. See explaination of hele mai in hele.
come in. See E komo mai.
complete. See pau.
correct. See pono.
crazy. See pupule.
cut into small pieces. See poke.
dance the hula. See hula.
day. See lā.
delicious. See ‘ono.
dinner. See pā‘ina.
divine power. See mana.
do. See hana.
dollar. See kālā.
dolphin fish. See mahimahi.
done. See pau.
dress. For the mu‘umu‘u style of dress, see mu‘umu‘u.
enter. See E komo mai.
expert. See kahuna.
eye. See maka.
face. See maka.
family. See ‘ohana.
fast. See wikiwiki.
feast. See lū‘au.
feed. See hānai.
female. See wahine.
festival. See ho‘olaule‘a. For the ancient festival called makahiki, see makahiki.
fine. See maika‘i.
finished. See pau.
fire. See ahi.
fish (to fish). For to fish with a seine, see hukilau.
flower. See pua.
forbidden. See kapu / taboo.
foreign. See haole.
forward. See mua.
foster. See hānai.
foster child. See hānai.
fraction. See hapa.
garbage. See ‘ōpala.
garland. See lei.
glad. See hau‘oli.
glottal stop. See ‘okina.
go. See hele.
god. For one of the major Hawaiian gods, see kāne.
good. See maika‘i.
goodbye. See Ā hui hou / aloha.
goose. See nēnē.
gown. For the mu‘umu‘u style of dress, see mu‘umu‘u.
grandmother. See tūtū.
gratitude. See mahalo.
great. See nui.
hall. See hale.
happiness. See hau‘oli.
happy. See hau‘oli.
heaven. See lani.
heavenly. See lani.
hello. See aloha.
hole. See lua / puka.
homosexual. See māhū.
hors d'oeuvre. See pūpū.
house. See hale.
hula. See hula.
hula school. The term is hālau hula and for an explanation, see hālau.
idea. See mana‘o.
image. See ki‘i.
inland. See mauka.
island. See moku.
joy. See hau‘oli.
joyful. See hau‘oli.
just. See pono.
keep out. See kapu.
king. See ali‘i.
labor. See hana.
land. See ‘āina.
land division. For a specific type of land division, see ahupua‘a.
large. See nui.
lava flow. See pele.
lei. See lei.
lonely one, the. See Kamehameha.
long house. See hālau.
love. See aloha.
macron. See kahakō.
make. See hana.
male. See kāne.
man. See kāne.
marijuana. See pakalōlō.
martial art. For a Hawaiian martial art, see lua.
meal. See ‘aina / pā‘ina.
meeting house. See hālau.
merry. See mele.
money. See kālā.
muumuu. See mu‘umu‘u.
mythical race of small people. See Menehune.
name. See inoa.
native. See kama‘āina.
new. See hou.
newcomer. See malihini.
no trespassing. See kapu.
ocean. See moana.
open sea. See moana.
opinion. See mana‘o.
outrigger canoe. See wa‘a.
oven. For the traditional Hawaiian underground oven, see imu.
part. See hapa.
party with dinner. See pā‘ina.
path. See ala.
pig. See pua‘a.
pit. See lua.
poi. See poi.
pork. See pua‘a.
portion. See hapa.
privilege. See kuleana.
priest. See kahuna.
precipice. See pali.
pretty. See nani.
prohibited. See kapu / taboo.
prohibition. See kapu.
proper. See pono.
pudding. For coconut pudding, see haupia.
queen. See ali‘i.
quick. See wikiwiki.
quickly. See wikiwiki.
rainbow. See ānuenue.
raise. See hānai.
raw fish salad. See poke.
relative. See ‘ohana.
responsibility. See kuleana.
ride. See holoholo.
right. See kuleana / pono.
rightous. See pono.
road. See ala.
royal. See ali‘i / lani.
rubbish. See ‘ōpala.
run. See holoholo.
sacred. See kapu.
sail. See holoholo.
salt. See pa‘akai.
sea. See kai.
seaward. See makai.
sea water. See kai.
seine. See hukilau.
shaka. See shaka.
shark. See manō.
shell. See pūpū.
ship. See moku.
sky. See lani.
slice into small pieces. See poke.
smart. See akamai.
soldier. See koa.
song. See mele.
speedy. See wikiwiki.
star. See hōkū.
station. See hale.
statue. See ki‘i / tiki.
street. See ala.
strong. See ikaika.
sun. See lā.
supernatural power. See mana.
surfboard. See papahe‘enalu.
taboo. See kapu / taboo.
taro. See kalo.
taro tops. See lū‘au.
tasty. See ‘ono.
thank. See mahalo.
thanks. See mahalo.
that thing. See da kine.
the. See ka (singular) / ke (singular) / nā (plural).
the lonely one. See Kamehameha.
thingamajig. See da kine.
this thing. See da kine.
thought. See mana‘o.
tiki. See ki‘i.
toilet. See lua.
trail. See ala.
trash. See ‘ōpala.
trigger fish. For the trigger fish that is the Hawai‘i state fish, see humuhumunukunukuāpua‘a.
tuna. See ‘ahi.
turn. See hulihuli.
turtle. See honu.
two. See lua.
ugly. See pupuka.
ukulele. See ‘ukulele.
underground oven. See imu.
visitor. See malihini.
volcano. See pele.
volcano eruption. See pele.
volcano goddess. See pele.
walk. See hele.
warrior. See koa.
water. See wai.
welcome. See E komo mai.
well. See maika‘i.
whatchamacallit. See da kine.
whatsit. See da kine.
white person. See haole.
woman. See wahine.
work. See hana.
year. See makahiki.

HOME • HAWAI‘I • ‘ŌLELO HAWAI‘I • POLITICS
THIS & THAT • EXTERNAL LINKS
WHAT'S NEW • CONTACT • FAQ