How do you pronounce aku? AH-koo Broke da mouth What is aku? Aku is the Hawaiian word for shipjack tuna, a local favorite in Hawaii.

What does kapu mean? Kapu is the Hawaiian word for forbidden, not allowed, stay out.Įxample: No go Stairway to Heaven hike. What does junk mean? Junk is Hawaiian slang for not good.Įxample: “ How the waves?” “Junk. What does irrahz mean? Hawaiian slang short for irritating, annoying.Įxample: Stop that complaining. How do you pronounce choke? Exactly like how it is pronounced in English. What does choke mean? In Hawaiian pidgin, choke means to have a lot of something.Įxample: “ So, you catch any fish?” “Oh yeah.

What does chang mean? This pidgin word means to be frugal or have a tight wallet, aka cheap.Įxample: No tip? You so chang, brah. I’ve broken this dictionary into sections: The following translations are what I have learned the words to mean based on my own observations being in Hawaii along with some help and examples from Ryan. The following are helpful words and phrases to know when you visit Hawaii, with some you may not even hear but are fun to know anyway 🙂 Disclaimer: I have not studied the Hawaiian language, nor Pidgin, so I am not claiming to be an expert. Pidgin also became helpful during WWII when Japanese spies tried to intercept local radios but couldn’t understand what was being said. With Ryan’s Japanese background and my Filipino background, it’s always interesting for us when we recognize Japanese and Filipino words mixed in with Pidgin! It is a mix of English, Hawaiian, Japanese, Filipino, Chinese and Portuguese words that came about in the 19th century when migrants came from those respective countries to work the plantations in Hawaii. Hawaiian slang, more popularly known as Pidgin, is Hawaii’s unofficial local language and can be heard spoken throughout the islands by the locals.

Hawaiian Slang Directions, Places and Things.Hawaiian Slang Words and Pidgin Phrases You’ll Want to Know.

How to speak pidgin