kahunaEnglishOxford New American Dictionarykahuna /kəˈho͞onə, kəˈhunə / ▸ noun (in Hawaii) a wise man or shaman. ▪ North American informal an important person; the person in charge: one big kahuna runs the whole show. ▪ North American informal (in surfing) a very large wave. – ORIGIN Hawaiian.