Polynesian

[ pol-uh-nee-zhuhn, -shuhn ]

/ ˌpɒl əˈni ʒən, -ʃən /

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adjective

of or relating to Polynesia, its inhabitants, or their languages.

noun

a member of any of a number of peoples originating from and inhabiting Polynesia, and speaking closely related Austronesian languages.

the easternmost group of Austronesian languages, including Maori, Tahitian, Samoan, Hawaiian, and the language of Easter Island.

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Origin of Polynesian

First recorded in 1805–15; Polynesi(a) + -an

Words nearby Polynesian

polymorphonuclear, polymorphous, polymyalgia rheumatica, polymyxin, Polynesia, Polynesian, polyneuritis, Polynices, polynomial, polynomial ring, polynuclear

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

How to use Polynesian in a sentence

Stepping off, we hear the thrum of a ukulele and are saluted by a regal-looking Polynesian man.
We Had Marlon Brando’s Island Utopia to Ourselves|Hampton Sides|March 1, 2021|Outside Online
The South American ancestry reached three nearby sets of eastern Polynesian islands between roughly 1200 and 1230, followed by Rapa Nui in around 1380.
South Americans may have traveled to Polynesia 800 years ago|Bruce Bower|July 8, 2020|Science News
Comparisons of the length of DNA segments shared by Polynesians and Indigenous peoples from the Americas enabled calculations of when Indigenous American DNA was first introduced to Polynesian groups.
South Americans may have traveled to Polynesia 800 years ago|Bruce Bower|July 8, 2020|Science News
Computer simulations since have indicated that winds and currents would carry a vessel from northern South America to the Polynesian islands.
South Americans may have traveled to Polynesia 800 years ago|Bruce Bower|July 8, 2020|Science News

Those ancestors then could have carried that crop and South American DNA to a majority of eastern Polynesian islands, he says.
South Americans may have traveled to Polynesia 800 years ago|Bruce Bower|July 8, 2020|Science News
Around midnight, she and her husband Lennie Hayton dropped by the Luau, a faux-Polynesian restaurant in Beverly Hills.
Lena Horne's Stormy Past|James Gavin|May 10, 2010|DAILY BEAST
Yet its cranial capacity is far above that of the highest apes, and is assimilated with that of Hottentot and Polynesian skulls.
Man And His Ancestor|Charles Morris
It seemed to them as if they had left the Polynesian savages and were once more in civilised society.
Frederick Chopin as a Man and Musician|Frederick Niecks
It is natural that myths dating from an age when Greek gods resembled Polynesian idols should be as rude as Polynesian myths.
Myth, Ritual, and Religion, Vol. 1|Andrew Lang
In only one or two known cases (as in that of the Polynesian Taaroa) is he in receipt of sacrifice.
Myth, Ritual, and Religion, Vol. 1|Andrew Lang
Among the Maories and their Polynesian kinsmen the priests are the great depositaries of tradition.
The Science of Fairy Tales|Edwin Sidney Hartland

British Dictionary definitions for Polynesian

Polynesian

/ (ˌpɒlɪˈniːʒən, -ʒɪən) /

adjective

of or relating to Polynesia, its people, or any of their languages

noun

a member of the people that inhabit Polynesia, generally of Caucasoid features with light skin and wavy hair

a branch of the Malayo-Polynesian family of languages, including Māori and Hawaiian and a number of other closely related languages of the S and central Pacific

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