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Austronesian

[aw-stroh-nee-zhuh n, -shuh n]
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noun
  1. Also called Malayo-Polynesian. a family of languages spoken in the Malay Peninsula, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Taiwan, Madagascar, and Oceania.
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adjective
  1. of or relating to Austronesia or the Austronesian family of languages; Malayo-Polynesian.
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Origin of Austronesian

First recorded in 1900–05; Austronesi(a) + -an
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for austronesian

Historical Examples

  • The Austronesian languages spread from these areas over thousands of miles beyond.

    The Civilization of Illiteracy

    Mihai Nadin

British Dictionary definitions for austronesian

Austronesian

adjective
  1. of or relating to Austronesia, its peoples, or their languages
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noun
  1. another name for Malayo-Polynesian
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012