Repeating a Word
Some Hawaiian words repeat a part or all of themselves, and the repeat changes the meaning or adds emphasis.
How It Works
Examples:
| Base | Repeated |
|---|---|
| wiki quick | wikiwiki fast |
| helu to count | heluhelu to read |
| ʻau to swim | ʻauʻau to bathe |
Some pairs move far from the base word, as with helu and heluhelu or ʻau and ʻauʻau. Others only add force. Many everyday words repeat, so watch for them as you read.
Keep the ʻokina and kahakō on each half of the word, and say both halves clearly when you read aloud. If a repeated word is new to you, look it up as its own word, because the meaning may differ from the base word.
Examples (4)
- Wikiwiki ke kaʻa.
The car is fast.
Wikiwiki repeats wiki.
- Heluhelu au i ka puke.
I read the book.
Heluhelu is a different word from helu, to count.
- ʻAuʻau ke keiki i ke kakahiaka.
The child bathes in the morning.
ʻAuʻau is a new word built from ʻau, to swim.
- Ua heluhelu ʻo Kala i ka leka.
Kala read the letter.
Reduplicated verbs take the same markers as other verbs.
Related Patterns
Practice Repeating a Word in Bubblegum
Poppy, your AI tutor, writes Hawaiian lessons at your level. Tap any grammar point in a lesson to see its full explanation.
