- plural of leu.
lei
1 Americannoun
noun
noun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of lei
Borrowed into English from Hawaiian around 1835–45
Explanation
In Hawaii, a sweet-smelling garland of flowers is called a lei. Traditional hula dancers often wear elaborate leis made of ferns, leaves, and blossoms. Leis are such an important part of Hawaiian culture that May 1 is known as "Lei Day" and is celebrated across all the islands. It's also customary to give leis to special guests, brides and grooms, funeral mourners, retirees, and people celebrating birthdays. The custom extends to other parts of Polynesia, including Samoa and Tahiti. The Hawaiian root of lei means "ornament worn about the neck or head."
Vocabulary lists containing lei
The House Swap
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Dragonfruit
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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:
Mayor Rex Richardson, wearing a rainbow lei and holding a Pride flag, marched down the street with gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra as Bad Bunny’s “BAILE INoLVIDABLE” rang out.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 17, 2026
If you don’t splurge on an airport lei greeting, pick one up at a local Target.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026
Since the crisis erupted, the interest rates at which Romania borrows have risen, and the lei currency has depreciated against the euro, which reached an all-time high of 5.21 Romanian lei on Tuesday.
From Barron's ● May 5, 2026
In return he promised monthly top-up payments of 5,000 Moldovan lei to pensioners, or about £200.
From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2024
He gathers my hair into his hands and caresses the back of my neck before letting the lei fall into place.
From "Everything, Everything" by Nicola Yoon
He’s greeted by giggling women who hand him a drink and put flower leis around his neck before the president meets him and gives him a brief tour of Mar-a-Lago.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2025
One delegate from Hawaii accessorized his kaffiyeh with colorful floral leis.
From Slate ● Aug. 22, 2024
The family ran four stores that catered to tourists, selling aloha shirts and muumuus along with leis that Vierra’s husband, Mike Vierra, would make from plumeria blossoms he picked in their yard.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 26, 2023
But, by Buffett's 2007 "Bama Breeze" tour, I was ready to hang with the adults, draped in fake leis and ready to sing, clap and dance along with my parents and the other Parrot Heads.
From Salon ● Sep. 5, 2023
We all wear Hawaiian shirts and leis over our costumes, and the banner I painted says Sari-Sari Store in bright blue, yellow, and red letters, the colors of the Philippine flag.
From "The House That Lou Built" by Mae Respicio
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
