How to Say “Little” in Hawaiian

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ʻuʻuku
The Hawaiian word for little is ʻuʻuku.
ʻuʻuku is an adjective used to describe something that is small in size.
Meaning: small in size (adj)

Did you know?

  • The glottal stop represented by the symbol ʻ in ʻuʻuku is a full consonant in Hawaiian and is required for the word to be understood correctly.
  • Using the word iki to mean 'little' can sometimes sound dismissive, as it carries a connotation that the subject is 'mere' or unimportant.
  • The word ʻuʻuku is created through partial reduplication of the root ʻuku, a common linguistic pattern in Hawaiian to shift meaning.

Examples in context

  • He nalu liʻiliʻi
    A small wave
  • He lei liʻiliʻi
    A little lei
  • Niu liʻiliʻi
    Small coconut
  • ʻAʻala liʻiliʻi
    Little fragrance
  • Ukulele liʻiliʻi
    Small ukulele

Example conversation

Koa and Kiana are looking at a new plant.

  1. Koa

    He pua ʻuʻuku kēia, ʻē?
    This is a little flower, right?
  2. Kiana

    ʻAe, he pua ʻuʻuku ia.
    Yes, it is a little flower.
  3. Koa

    He nani ia.
    It is beautiful.
  4. Kiana

    He nani maoli ia.
    It is truly beautiful.

Sources

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Ruth Christine
Ruth ChristineHelp make this guide better. Spot a mistake, know another way to say it, or have an example from real life? Share it below.
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