hongi

[ hong-ee ]

/ ˈhɒŋ i /

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noun New Zealand.

a Maori greeting in which noses are pressed together.

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Origin of hongi

Borrowed into English from Maori around 1840–45

Words nearby hongi

honey-sweet, honey trap, honey wagon, honeywort, hong, hongi, Hong Kong, Hong Kongese, Hongshui He, Hongwu, Hong Xiu Quan

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use hongi in a sentence

Near the end of the narrative, Rutherford gives an account of a great battle, in which the chief Hongi was a prominent figure.
John Rutherford, the White Chief|George Lillie Craik
But Hongi captured the pah, and slew five hundred of the unfortunate inmates.
History of Australia and New Zealand|Alexander Sutherland
Over a thousand were killed, and Hongi and his men feasted on the spot for some days till three hundred bodies had been eaten.
History of Australia and New Zealand|Alexander Sutherland
Thus did Hongi conquer till the whole North Island owned his ascendancy.
History of Australia and New Zealand|Alexander Sutherland

This young fellow was a nephew of Hongi, the powerful head chief of the Ngapuhi tribe.
History of Australia and New Zealand|Alexander Sutherland

British Dictionary definitions for hongi

hongi

/ (ˈhɒŋiː) /

noun

NZ a form of salutation expressed by touching noses

Word Origin for hongi

Māori

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