pilikia
Americannoun
Explanation
You may hear the word pilikia in Hawaii. It means "trouble" or "problem," and it's a broad term for anything from a minor nuisance to a major crisis. A popular slang phrase using this term is nui pilikia, which means "big trouble." A boat captain might refer to ominous clouds on the horizon as indicating nui pilikia. The term pilikia is also commonly used in the response 'a'ole pilikia, which means the opposite: "no problem" or "no trouble." It's a casual, polite way to accept a "thank you," as in "It was no trouble at all" or "No problem!"
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.
The fact of the late king dying without naming a successor was pre-eminently a pilikia, and it would be a serious pilikia if a horse were to lose a shoe on the way to Kilauea.
From The Hawaiian Archipelago by Bird, Isabella L. (Isabella Lucy)
Nolaila, ua loaa iho nei ia oe ka pilikia, no kakou pu ia pilikia.
From The Hawaiian Romance Of Laieikawai by Beckwith, Martha Warren
Mai hoahewa aku i kou mau Luna, aole wau na lakou i hookuu mai kahi paa mai, na kuu akua i lawe mai ia'u mai kuu pilikia mauwale ana, a kuu Haku.
From The Hawaiian Romance Of Laieikawai by Beckwith, Martha Warren
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.
