Polynesian
Americanadjective
noun
-
Polynesians
plural
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a member of any of a number of peoples originating from and inhabiting Polynesia, and speaking closely related Austronesian languages.
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the easternmost group of Austronesian languages, including Maori, Tahitian, Samoan, Hawaiian, and the language of Easter Island.
adjective
noun
-
a member of the people that inhabit Polynesia, generally of Caucasoid features with light skin and wavy hair
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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
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of Polynesian
First recorded in 1805–15; Polynesi(a) + -an
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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.
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The painting will make its L.A. debut on Sept. 14 with a private Polynesian blessing ceremony where guests will experience the living cultural traditions of Tahiti through music, dance and food.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
Inside are nine species of small yellow Polynesian tree snails, including the rarest of the lot, the Garrett's tree snail.
From BBC ● Apr. 28, 2026
Scientists have since established that the degradation of the island was in fact gradual, taking centuries, caused largely by drought, volcanic eruptions and the arrival of the Polynesian rat.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 20, 2026
The Seahawks team also boasts several players of Polynesian descent including backup running back George Holani, who was born in New Zealand to Tongan parents but moved to the United States as a young child.
From Barron's ● Feb. 7, 2026
What differences among societies on different Polynesian islands need to be explained?
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
Many of these changes occurred either before Polynesians arrived in Hawaiʻi or after traditional Indigenous land management practices were disrupted.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 14, 2026
Particularly marvelous are the voyages of the Polynesians who crossed the immense Pacific a thousand years ago in double-hulled canoes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 17, 2026
In the 13th Century Polynesians brought mice and Pacific rats.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2023
There were also a bunch of Polynesians who I bonded with instantly over shared food and music tastes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 12, 2023
One prong of it became the Polynesians, who populated the most remote islands of the Pacific and were the greatest seafarers among Neolithic peoples.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
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.
