Hawaiian Noun / Verb · People
hānai
Pronunciation: /HAH-nai/
Meaning
Adopted child, to adopt. The Hawaiian practice of raising another's child as one's own.
Example sentences
Ua lilo ʻo ia i hānai na koʻu kupuna wahine ma hope o ka haʻalele ʻana o kona mau mākua.
She became the adopted child of my grandmother after her parents left.
Makemake au e hānai i nā keiki makua ʻole o ko mākou kaiāulu.
I want to adopt the orphaned children of our community.
ʻO ka hānai ʻana i ke keiki he hana aloha nui, hoʻoikaika ʻia e ka moʻomeheu Hawaiʻi.
Adopting a child is a great act of love, strengthened by Hawaiian culture.
About this word
“hānai” is a Hawaiian noun / verb meaning Adopted child, to adopt. It is part of the ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian language) vocabulary in the category of People. Definitions are based on the Pukui-Elbert Hawaiian Dictionary.