luau
[loo-ou, loo-ou]
- a feast of Hawaiian food, usually held outdoors and usually accompanied by Hawaiian entertainment.
- a cooked dish of taro leaves, usually prepared with coconut cream and octopus or chicken.
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Origin of luau
First recorded in 1835–45, luau is from the Hawaiian word lū'au
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for luau
Contemporary Examples
Around midnight, she and her husband Lennie Hayton dropped by the Luau, a faux-Polynesian restaurant in Beverly Hills.
But the Luau incident gave her a sobering look at the truth.
While police led him to the door, Hayton rushed Horne out of the Luau, then home to the Ambassador.
Here it takes a tropical twist, with chunks of sweet pineapple, so it's right at home at a luau.
Historical Examples
"Luau is the Hawaiian name for feast," Mrs. Beaumont explained.
The Four Corners in JapanAmy Ella Blanchard
The pupil ate the luau, the teacher placed the package of salt on the altar, and the service was complete.
Unwritten Literature of HawaiiNathaniel Bright Emerson
The occasion of an outdoor festival, an ahaaina or luau, was made the opportunity for the exhibition of this dance.
Unwritten Literature of HawaiiNathaniel Bright Emerson
Luau (lu-a)--greens made by cooking young taro leaves; in modern times a term applied to a Hawaiian feast.
Unwritten Literature of HawaiiNathaniel Bright Emerson
The Tahitian "native" feast does not differ in any salient particulars from the often-described Hawaiian luau.
In the Track of the TradesLewis R. Freeman
luau
- a feast of Hawaiian food
- a dish of taro leaves usually prepared with coconut cream and octopus or chicken
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Word Origin
from Hawaiian lu'au
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
Word Origin and History for luau
n.
Hawaiian party or feast, 1853, from Hawaiian lu'au, literally "young taro tops," which were served at outdoor feasts.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper