Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

lavalava

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English

Syllables: lavala-va
IPA

14

Scrabble Score

8

Letters

2

Syllables

3

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

An everyday item of clothing traditionally worn by Polynesians and other Oceanic peoples, consisting of a single rectangular cloth worn as a skirt, secured around the waist by an overhand knotting of the upper corners.

Example Sentences

"Some tourists buy Samoan identity merchandise as novelties, but most prefer sloganless items such as printed lavalavas."
"The guy she went out with was named Ziki Fuapopo, and the story she told involved his mother, a pile of cocaine, and a group of men dressed in lavalavas."

Etymology

Borrowed from Samoan lava-lava.

Word Breakdown

Root: lava-lava

Inflected Forms

lavalavas (plural)

Rhymes With

java lava ava cassava cava guava brava balaclava kava baklava slava fava

Questions

What does lavalava mean?: An everyday item of clothing traditionally worn by Polynesians and other Oceanic peoples, consisting of a single rectangular cloth worn as a skirt, secured around the waist by an overhand knotting of the upper corners.
Where does lavalava come from?: Borrowed from Samoan lava-lava.

How to pronounce lavalava

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “lavalava”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “lavalava”.
Repeat and practice — Say “lavalava” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.