Hawaiian

[huh-wahy-uhn, -wah-yuhn]

adjective

1. of or relating to Hawaii or the Hawaiian Islands.

noun

1. a native or inhabitant of Hawaii or the Hawaiian Islands.

2. the aboriginal language of Hawaii, a Polynesian language.

Hawaiian

/ həˈwaɪən /

adjective

1. of or relating to Hawaii, its people, or their language

noun

1. a native or inhabitant of Hawaii, esp one descended from Melanesian or Tahitian immigrants

2. a language of Hawaii belonging to the Malayo-Polynesian family

Word History and Origins

Origin of Hawaiian¹

First recorded in 1815–25; Hawaii + -an

Example Sentences

Kilauea is one of six active volcanoes located in the Hawaiian Islands.

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Maybe that bin of Beanie Babies isn’t going to pay for your next Hawaiian vacation.

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He wrote that he traded in his signature Hawaiian shirts for “a closet full of crazy T-shirts, all emblazoned with messages that encouraged people to wash their hands and mask up.”

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A little more than a year later, standing on the Hawaiian volcano, Haleakala, we got engaged at sunrise.

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Newby’s presence at the weeklong gathering — held at The Royal Hawaiian Resort, a pricey beachfront hotel known as the “Pink Palace of the Pacific” — reflected his growing national stature.

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