lole wāwae
The Hawaiian word for pants is lole wāwae.
lole wāwae is a noun used to refer to a garment that covers the body from the waist downwards.
Meaning: garment covering the body from the waist downwards (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of lole, meaning clothing or garment and wāwae, meaning legs or feet, literally translating to "clothing for the legs".
Did you know?
- Before the introduction of western 'pants', traditional Hawaiian garments like the malo were used, which are loincloths rather than leg-coverings.
- The term wāwae is a cognate shared across the Pacific, appearing as vaꞌe in Rapa Nui and waewae in Māori.
- Because lole wāwae is a descriptive phrase, Hawaiian often creates new words for modern items by combining a general category with a body part.
Examples in context
- Ua hou kēia lole wāwae.These pants are new.
- E ʻae, makemake au i ka lole wāwae hou.Yes, I want new pants.
Example conversation
Koa and Kiana are getting ready for a hike.
- KoaKiana, aia kou lole wāwae?Kiana, where are your pants?
- KianaAia kēlā lole wāwae ma ka hale.Those pants are in the house.
- KoaE huki wikiwiki ia.Put them on quickly.
- KianaʻAe, e hele mai!Yes, let's go!
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries lole, wāwae, CC BY-SA 4.0.
