Polynesia

American  

[pol-uh-nee-zhuh, -shuh] / ˌpɒl əˈni ʒə, -ʃə /

noun

1. one of the three principal divisions of Oceania, comprising those island groups in the Pacific Ocean lying east of Melanesia and Micronesia and extending from the Hawaiian Islands south to New Zealand.

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Polynesia British  

/ -ʒɪə, ˌpɒlɪˈniːʒə /

noun

1. one of the three divisions of islands in the Pacific, the others being Melanesia and Micronesia: includes Samoa, Society, Marquesas, Mangareva, Tuamotu, Cook, and Tubuai Islands, and Tonga

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Polynesia Cultural  

1. Group of islands in the central and southern Pacific Ocean, including the islands of the state of Hawaii and the islands of French Polynesia. Tahiti and Samoa are in Polynesia, which means “many islands.”

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Etymology

Origin of Polynesia

C18: via French from _poly- + Greek nēsos island

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Polynesia

The government of French Polynesia said she had done all this without telling authorities of her possible exposure to hantavirus.

From Barron's ● May 15, 2026

In Borneo, a mythic spider brings forth life by feeding a tree; in Polynesia, spider-silk ladders connect heaven and earth.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026

French Polynesia said passengers on the same flight as the woman from San Francisco to Tahiti were not considered close contacts and "the risk of infection is considered very low".

From BBC ● May 13, 2026

Alternating every two or three chapters, Ms. Seve and the actor Caleb Teaupa unfurl a blood- and brine-soaked epic set in and around the islands of long-ago Polynesia.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 12, 2026

It had been emerald green, like the plumage of Dr. Dolittle’s parrot Polynesia.

From "Inkheart" by Cornelia Funke