by Lehua Parker | Feb 11, 2013 | Learning ‘Ōlelo
junkalunka
(juhn-KAH-luhn-KAH) (adj) Pidgin description of something that is old, broken down, used up.
Example
English: Perhaps we should borrow your mother’s car since the road is steep and winding and your car tires are bald and the brakes are soft.
Pidgin: Pali road? In that junkalunka thing? No way!
Note: ‘Ōlelo is a Hawaiian word meaning language, speech, word, etc. To see the current list of Hawaiian and Pidgin words, definitions, and usage please click on
by Lehua Parker | Feb 4, 2013 | Learning ‘Ōlelo
daikon legs
(DYE-kon leh-eggs) (n) Pidgin description of legs that a short, fat, and white.
Example
English: “Interesting choice, Michi-san. Have you seen these floor-length prom dresses?”
Pidgin: “Michi, you blind? That mini shows off your daikon legs!”
Note: ‘Ōlelo is a Hawaiian word meaning language, speech, word, etc. To see the current list of Hawaiian and Pidgin words, definitions, and usage please click on
by Lehua Parker | Jan 28, 2013 | Learning ‘Ōlelo
Calabash
(cal-lah-BASH) A bowl or container often made of wood or a hollowed gourd. When used to refer to people, it implies a close friend or relative, i.e. someone so familiar he would eat out of the same serving bowl.
Example
English: “James is my father’s best friend’s son who grew up like a member of our family.”
Pidgin: “Jimmy? Calabash cousin.”
Note: ‘Ōlelo is a Hawaiian word meaning language, speech, word, etc. To see the current list of Hawaiian and Pidgin words, definitions, and usage please click on
by Lehua Parker | Jan 21, 2013 | Learning ‘Ōlelo
Kuleana
(koo-lee-ah-na) (nvt) Hawaiian word for right, privilege, concern, area of responsibility.
Example
English: “As responsible human beings we must take care of the earth! There are wastrels among us who must heed my words or our land will become a vast wasteland of corruption and filth where none can live! I call on you now to change your ways before it is too late!”
Pidgin: “What you mean, ‘not your kuleana?’ You breathing, right? You living, right? Taking care of the ‘āina is everybody’s kuleana, brah!”
Note: ‘Ōlelo is a Hawaiian word meaning language, speech, word, etc. To see the current list of Hawaiian and Pidgin words, definitions, and usage please click on
by Lehua Parker | Jan 14, 2013 | Learning ‘Ōlelo
Futless
(FUHT-less) Adj. Pidgin for bored, frustrated, confused, unsure of what to do next. Literally without fart.
Example
English: Jay is so bored, he’s sitting in on the couch, flicking the blinds, and staring at telephone lines.
Pidgin: Ho, Jay futless, yeah?
Note: ‘Ōlelo is a Hawaiian word meaning language, speech, word, etc. To see the current list of Hawaiian and Pidgin words, definitions, and usage please click on
by Lehua Parker | Jan 6, 2013 | Learning ‘Ōlelo
junkenpo
(j’un-ken-POH) Pidgin for rock, paper scissors from the Japanese jan ken pon. How you choose who picks first, does the dishes, or buys the round. As a kid on Maui we’d swing our closed fist in time with a chanted rhyme and shoot three times for a two out of three win:
Junkenpo (shoot),
I can show (shoot),
Wailuku, Wailuku,
Bomb, bomb, SHOW! (shoot)
Example
English: Todd, let’s do rock, paper, scissors to see who has to stay and babysit.
Pidgin: Junkenpo, brah. Loser sits, winner splits.
Note: ‘Ōlelo is a Hawaiian word meaning language, speech, word, etc. To see the current list of words, definitions, and usage please click on ‘Ōlelo Archive.
