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Hawaiian

American  
[huh-wahy-uhn, -wah-yuhn] / həˈwaɪ ən, -ˈwɑ jən /

adjective

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


noun

  • Hawaiians
    plural
  1. a native or inhabitant of Hawaii or the Hawaiian Islands.

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

Hawaiian British  
/ həˈwaɪən /

adjective

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

"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

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

"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

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of Hawaiian

First recorded in 1815–25; Hawaii + -an

Compare meaning

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Before Kao’s doomed reign as CEO, Navatek was a sleepy Hawaiian engineering company with a few dozen employees.

From Salon Sep. 23, 2026

The flavors of each influence the book’s dishes, which also include more elaborate creations like a Hawaiian whole-roasted duck.

From The Wall Street Journal Sep. 20, 2026

Further east, in the island of Oahu which is home to the capital Honolulu, there were more than 20,000 customers without power, according to Hawaiian Electric.

From Barron's Sep. 8, 2026

"At the same time, we need to ensure that women across all Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities have access to culturally appropriate education, screening, and timely follow-up care."

From Science Daily Aug. 19, 2026

His favorite aunt lent him some money, and a short time later he bought passage on a ship bound for the Hawaiian Islands.

From "Farewell to Manzanar" by Jeanne Houston

The lack of stigma among the Hawaiians, we learn, is cause for colonial concern: Father Damien’s death becomes a local scandal, and provokes a moral panic among the American businessmen who had bought Hawaiian land.

From The Wall Street Journal Sep. 4, 2026

"They underscore why it is so important to move beyond treating Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders as a single population."

From Science Daily Aug. 19, 2026

He then urged his fellow Hawaiians to check in on their local communities and do what they can to support their neighbors.

From MarketWatch Mar. 30, 2026

Many Hawaiians have heeded official advice to leave coastal areas, after a powerful earthquake thousands of miles away near Russia prompted a tsunami warning in the US state and other parts of the Pacific.

From BBC Jul. 30, 2025

Instead of standard English, everyone spoke Hawaiian Pidgin, a language mash-up created by Hawaiians and early Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, and American immigrants.

From "Boots on the Ground: America's War in Vietnam" by Elizabeth Partridge

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