pali

¹ American  

[pah-lee] / ˈpɑ li /

noun

1. (in Hawaii) a steep slope or cliff.

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Pali ² American  

[pah-lee] / ˈpɑ li /

noun

1. the Prakrit language of the Buddhist scriptures.

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Pali British  

/ ˈpɑːlɪ /

noun

1. an ancient language of India derived from Sanskrit; the language of the Buddhist scriptures

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Etymology

Origin of pali¹

From Hawaiian

Origin of Pali²

1685–95; short for Sanskrit pāli-bhāsa language of the canonical texts, equivalent to pāli line, row, canon + bhāsa language

Example Sentences

A red British passport was a prized possession for those who had been in the UK long enough to own one alongside the Nigerian document, known as a green pali.

From The Guardian • Aug. 24, 2019

Ho’omaluhia Botanic Garden, at the foot of the pali, is richly replanted in native species.

From New York Times • Sep. 2, 2011

A lilo o-e, la! 5Ku'u kane i ka uhu ka'i o Maka-pu'u, Huki iluna ka Lae-o-ka-laau; 470 Oia pali makua-ole 471 olaila.

From Unwritten Literature of Hawaii The Sacred Songs of the Hula by Emerson, Nathaniel Bright

The pali, the precipice, stands for any difficulty or obstacle of magnitude.

From Unwritten Literature of Hawaii The Sacred Songs of the Hula by Emerson, Nathaniel Bright

At the head of the bay rises a pali, or precipice, six or seven hundred feet high, and it is said to go down perpendicularly into the water perhaps as much more.

From Scenes in the Hawaiian Islands and California by Anderson, Mary E. (Mary Evarts)