Hawaiian Word of the Day: December 12th

By Leilani Poliʻahu

Published December 12, 2024 at 12:00 AM HST

Need a very generic Hawaiian word for a tool or apparatus that you might call a doohickey in English? Try hāmea, a new Hawaiian word, and a great new word for that little thing you use, but can't remember what to call it.

Hawaiian Word of the Day

Leilani Poliʻahu

See stories by Leilani Poliʻahu

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Uē means to cry, weep, lament, or to mourn. You might hear a mother say, “Mai uē”—don't cry—or you might use it to discuss the reactions of the Hawaiians to the loss of their Queen: uē nā kānaka—the people weep.
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Hawaiian Word of the Day: August 28th

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Mākaukau means able, competent, capable, skilled, expert, prepared. We often hear a kumu hula call out that one-word question to her students — “Mākaukau?” — and the answer is always ʻae – yes.