Hawaiian Slang: Cheehoo!

Now here’s an interesting one – cheehoo! This exclamation is a fairly recent addition to the Hawaii kine vernacular. It’s not old school pidgin since by no means did Andy Bumatai shout out cheehoo! in All in the Ohana. There’s a Samoan origin to cheehoo! but what does cheehoo! mean? It doesn’t matter what cheehoo! means since it’s a colloquial exclamation in today’s Hawaiian slang. Think of it like yahoo, wahoo, woohoo, or yee-haw. It’s just something you say when you’re excited or when you’re celebrating.

Notice too that I list cheehoo! with an exclamation point. The one thing with cheehoo! is that you have to say it from deep down. If you’re going to cheehoo!, you have to go for it and commit. Cheehoo! comes from the soul and isn’t for the meek. Watch local deejay, Slick Vic, demonstrate the proper cheehoo! to Matt Lauer and Savannah Guthrie when the Today Show visited the islands. Jump to 2:13 for the cheehoo! demonstration.

When done properly, a cheehoo! is truly a force. Witness a hearty cheehoo! stop the most powerful man in America. Not only did a cheehoo! interrupt President Barack Obama, it broke his train of thought, needing some time to regain his composure. Cheehoo!

Don’t forget about these posts:

• 21 Slangs Words You Should Know Before Visiting Hawaii (Part 1)
• 21 Slangs Words You Should Know Before Visiting Hawaii (Part 2)