pipi wahine
/ˈpi.pi waˈhi.ne/word by word
The Hawaiian word for cow is pipi wahine.
pipi wahine refers specifically to an adult female cow. While the term pipi can be used on its own to refer to cattle or beef in general, adding a gender descriptor specifies the sex of the animal.
Meaning: adult female of species Bos taurus (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of pipi, meaning cattle or beef and wahine, meaning woman or female.
Which one should you use?
pipi wahine is used for a female cow, whereas pipi kāne is used to refer to a male bull. The standalone word pipi refers generally to cattle or beef.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation is /ˈpi.pi waˈhi.ne/. It has 4 syllables, with the stress on the 1st syllable.
Did you know?
- The word pipi is a phonetic Hawaiian adaptation of the English word 'beef'.
- The word wahine in pipi wahine shares a common root with the word for 'woman' in almost every Polynesian language.
- Because pipi comes from 'beef', it refers to the meat as well as the animal itself.
Examples in context
- He pipi wahine kēlā.That is a cow.
Example conversation
A man and a woman are looking at a farm field.
- LeilaniE nānā i ka pipi wahine.Look at the cow.
- IkaikaHe pipi wahine nani kēlā.That is a beautiful cow.
- LeilaniʻAe, he nani loa ia.Yes, it is very beautiful.
- IkaikaE hele mai i loko.Let's go inside.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “cow” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (pipi, wahine) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries pipi, wahine, CC BY-SA 4.0.
