The Hawaiian language has offered a number of words to the English language. Some Hawaiian words are known to non-Hawaiian speakers, and a few have also been assimilated into the English language (e.g. aloha, meaning "hello", "love", or "goodbye", or mahalo, meaning "thank you"). English also borrows some Hawaiian words (e.g. ukulele, mahimahi, and muʻumuʻu). Hawaiian vocabulary often overlaps with other Polynesian languages, such as Tahitian, so it is not always clear which of those languages a term is borrowed from.
The Hawaiian orthography is notably different from the English orthography because there is a special letter in the Hawaiian alphabet, the ʻokina. The ʻokina represents a glottal stop, which indicates a short pause to separate syllables. The kahakō represents longer vowel sounds. Both the ʻokina and kahakō are often omitted in English orthography.
Due to the Hawaiian orthography's difference from English orthography, the pronunciation of the words differ. For example, the muʻumuʻu, traditionally a Hawaiian dress, is pronounced by many mainland (colloquial term for the Continental U.S.) residents. However, many Hawaii residents have learned that the ʻokina in Hawaiian signifies a glottal stop. Thus, in the Hawaiian language, muʻumuʻu is pronounced pronounced as /haw/, approximately . The pronunciations listed here are how it would sound in Hawaiian orthography.
| Vowel | Pronunciation | |
|---|---|---|
| a | pronounced as /link/, pronounced as /link/ or pronounced as /link/ | |
| e | pronounced as /link/, pronounced as /link/, or pronounced as /link/ | |
| i | pronounced as /link/ or pronounced as /link/ | |
| o | pronounced as /link/ or pronounced as /link/ | |
| u | pronounced as /link/ or pronounced as /link/ |
| Hawaiian word | Meaning | Pronunciation (IPA) | Definition link | --> |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ʻAʻā | A kind of rough-surface volcanic rock. Note that there are two glottal stops before and after the first a. Thus, it is not spoken as "ahh", but as "ah-ah". | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Akamai | Intelligent, clever, smart. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Aloha | Hello, goodbye, and love; outside of Hawaiʻi, only the first two meanings are used. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| ʻAwa | A Polynesian shrub, Piper methysticum, of the pepper family, the aromatic roots of which are used to make an intoxicating beverage. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link < | -- wikt lists this as being Tongan; need to 2xcheck? (see talkpage for note) --> |
| Haole | Foreigner or outsider. Usually directed towards Caucasians or people from the mainland. May be said offensively, but is commonly said familiarly. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Honu | Green sea turtle. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Hula | Ancient Hawaiian form of dance. In the older days, men used to do hula as a sign of masculinity and as a war dance. Also see haka. Many people get confused between the Hawaiian hula (more graceful and slow) and the Tahitian hula (quicker and more hip movements). | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Humuhumunukunukuāpuaʻa | The reef triggerfish. It is notorious for its long name, which many struggle to pronounce correctly. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Kahuna | Hawaiian priest, wizard, or shaman; used in the slang phrase "big kahuna". | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Kamaʻāina | Child of the Land, refers to any person born and raised in Hawai’i. Does not describe someone who moves to Hawai’i. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Keiki | A child. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Kukui | The candlenut tree, state tree of Hawaii, so named because the nuts were used as candles. Kukui nut leis were worn by celebrities such as Jessica Simpson and Tyra Banks in 2005–07 and became popular must-have accessories. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Lānai | A veranda or patio, from the word lānai (not to be confused with the island, Lānaʻi). | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Laniakea | The galaxy supercluster that is home to the Milky Way. It means "immeasurable heaven". | pronounced as /haw/ | ||
| Lei | A garland of flowers and/or leaves to be worn around the neck (not to be confused with the Romanian lei, plural of leu, meaning the currency). | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| lūʻau | A Hawaiian feast. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Mahalo | Thank you. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Mahi-mahi | Dolphin fish; the word means "very strong." | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Mana | Magical or spiritual power. | pronounced as /haw/ | ||
| Manō | Shark (not to be confused with the Spanish mano, meaning "hand"). | pronounced as /haw/ | ||
| Muʻumuʻu | A loose gown or dress. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| ʻOhana | Family, neighborhood. May also mean a guest house where family members stay. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Ono | Good to eat. May also refer to the Scombrid Fish, also known as the Wahoo. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Pāhoehoe | A kind of smooth-surface volcanic rock. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Pele's hair | A type of volcanic glass fibers named after Pele, the Hawaiian fire goddess of volcanoes (see also limu o Pele). | pronounced as /haw/ | ||
| Pele's tears | Solidified pieces of lava named after Pele. | |||
| Poi | A type of Hawaiian food made from mashing corms of the taro plant. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Puka | A hole or perforation. Puka shells are round shells with center holes, strung together to make popular necklaces. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Taboo | From Hawaiian kapu. Also Maori, Tongan, Samoan, Tahitian tapu or Fijian tabu. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| ʻUkulele | A small guitar-like musical instrument that resembles the Portuguese cavaquinho (literally "jumping flea"). | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Wahine | A (Polynesian) woman, a female surfer. | pronounced as /haw/ | Link | |
| Wiki | Fast; used in the "Wiki Wiki Shuttle" and "English Wikipedia". | pronounced as /haw/ | Link |