Hawaiian Words

LEARN HAWAIIAN! HERE ARE SOME WORDS FROM THE NATIVE HAWAIIAN LANGUAGE

A HAWAIIAN GLOSSARY:
'aina
{noun} Land, earth.

 

alelo
{noun} Tongue, language.

 

aloha
{noun-transitive verb, noun-stative verb} Love, affection, compassion, mercy, sympathy, pity, kindness, sentiment, grace, charity; greeting, salutation, regards; sweetheart, lover, loved one; beloved, loving, kind, compassionate, charitable, lovable; to love, be fond of; to show kindness, mercy, pity, charity, affection; to venerate; to remember with affection; to greet, hail. Greetings! Hello! Good-by! Farewell! Alas!

 

aloha 'aina
{noun-verb} Love of the land; to nurture and care for the land.

 

halau
{noun} Long house, as for canoes or hula instruction; meeting house.

 

hele
{noun-intransitive verb} To go, come, walk; going, moving.

 

hula
{noun-transitive verb} 1. A dance characterized by rhythmic body movements, a hula dancer; to dance the hula. 2. Song or chant used for the hula; to sing or chant for a hula.

 

kai
{noun-stative verb} Sea, sea water; area near the sea, seaside, lowlands; tide, current in the sea.

 

kama'aina
{noun-intransitive verb} Native-born, one born in a place, host; acquainted, familiar. [Commonly referred to a long-time resident of Hawai'i, as distinguished from a visitor.]

 

kanaka maoli
{noun} Full-blooded Hawaiian person. [Also refers to an indigenous person of Hawai'i whose ancestry predates the arrival of Captain Cook in 1778, such as a Native Hawaiian.]

 

kumu
{noun} 1. Teacher, tutor. 2. Beginning, source, origin; starting point. 3. Bottom, base, foundation, basis, main stalk of a tree, trunk, handle, root; hereditary, fundamental. 4. Reason, cause, goal, justification, motive, grounds, purpose, object, why.

 

kupuna
{noun} 1. Grandparent, ancestor, relative or close friend of the grandparent's generation, grandaunt, granduncle. 2. Starting point, source; growing.

 

lei
{noun} Garland, wreath; necklace of flowers, leaves, shells, ivory, feathers, or paper, given as a symbol of affection; beads; any ornament worn around the head or about the neck; to wear a lei; crown.

 

lu'au
{noun} Hawaiian feast, named for the taro tops always served at one. This is not an ancient name, but goes back at least to 1856, when so used by the Pacific Commercial Advertiser newspaper; formerly a feast was pa'ina or 'aha'aina.

 

mahalo
{noun-transitive verb} 1. Thanks, gratitude; to thank. 2. Admiration, praise, esteem, regards, respects; to admire, praise, appreciate.

makai
{noun-stative verb} On the seaside, towards the sea, in the direction of the sea.

 

makua
{noun-stative verb} Parent, any relative of the parent's generation, as uncle, aunt, cousin; progenitor; main stalk of a plant; adult; full-grown, mature, older, senior.

 

malama
{noun-transitive verb} To take care of, tend, attend, care for, preserve, protect, maintain; care, preservation, support, fidelity, loyalty; caretaker, keeper.

 

malihini
{noun-stative verb} Stranger, foreigner, newcomer, tourist, guest, company; one unfamiliar with a place or custom; new, unfamiliar, unusual, rare, introduced, of foreign origin; for the first time.

 

mauka
{noun} Inland, upland, towards the mountain, in the direction of the uplands.

 

mele
{noun-transitive verb} Song, anthem, or chant of any kind; poem, poetry; to sing, chant.

 

nalu
{noun-transitive verb} Wave, surf; full of waves; to form waves; wavy, as wood grain.

 

'ohana
{noun-stative verb} Family, relative, kin group; related.

 

'olapa
{noun} Dancer, as contrasted with the chanter or ho'opa'a (memorizer); now, any dance accompanied by chanting and drumming on a gourd drum.

 

'olelo
{noun-transitive verb} Language, speech, word, quotation, statement, utterance, term; to speak, say, state, talk, mention, quote, converse, tell; oral, verbatim, verbal.

 

'ono
{noun-transitive verb} Delicious, tasty, savory; to relish, crave; deliciousness, flavor, savor.

 

pilikia
{noun-intransitive verb} Trouble of any kind, great or small; problem, nuisance, bother, distress, adversity, affliction, accident, difficulty, inconvenience, perturbation, tragedy, lack; in trouble, troubled, bothered, cramped, crowded. See 'a'ole pilikia.

 

pule
{noun-transitive verb} Prayer, incantation, blessing, grace; to pray, worship, ask a blessing.

 

'ukulele
{noun} A four-stringed instrument shaped similar to a very small guitar. [Literally defined as "leaping flea"; probably derived from the Hawaiian nickname of Edward Purvis, who was small and quick and who popularized this instrument brought to Hawai'i by the Portuguese in 1879.]

 

wai
{noun-stative verb} Water, liquid or liquor or any kind other than sea water; to flow, like water, fluid.

 

wikiwiki
{stative verb} Fast, speedy; to hurry, hasten; quick, fast, swift.

 

POPULAR HAWAIIAN PHRASES

 

A hui hou kakou Until we meet again
Aloha kakahiaka Good morning
Aloha `auinala Good afternooon
Aloha ahiahi Good evening
Aloha `oe Farewell to you
A`ole pilikia No problem
Hana Hou! One more time!
Kipa hou mai Come visit again    Mahalo Thank you
Mahalo nui loa Thank you very much
Malu No Reserved For (This is ideal for place card settings)
Me ka `oia`i`o With sincerity
Mau Loa Forever
Nau wale no Just for you
`O wai kou inoa? What is your name?
Pomaika`i Good Luck