Pacific Islander

noun

plural Pacific Islanders

: a native or a descendant of a native of one of the islands of Melanesia, Micronesia, or Polynesia in the Pacific Ocean

Examples of Pacific Islander in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Asian American Arts Alliance (A4) announced the thirty-eight recipients of the last round of its A4 Arts Fund, which distributes $500,000 to arts and cultural organizations that support Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities. — News Desk, Artforum, 25 Sep. 2026

Those categories include Black, Latino, Native American, Alaska Native and Pacific Islander students, according to the UC enrollment report cited in the notice. — Jaweed Kaleem, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2026

Nearly 28% also speak Spanish, while about 10% speak Asian or Pacific Islander languages. — Anthony Thompson, USA Today, 15 Sep. 2026

Students with disabilities improved more Students with disabilities were one of only two groups — the other being Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander — to improve both their average math and reading scores by more than 1%. — Theo Peck-Suzuki, Hartford Courant, 31 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1785, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

Pacific Islander

noun

: a native or a descendant of a native of Melanesia, Micronesia, or Polynesia in the Pacific Ocean