text:  Aloha. Lanai is another major island name that is often mispronounced. People tend to confuse it with the word for a porch or a stiff back chair or a variety of sweet potato. Lanai is spelled L-A-N-A-O-K-I-N-A-I and there is a macron or kahako, a stress mark over the first vowel. Say lanai if you're talking about the island. I'm Lilanipoli Ahu for Hawaii Public Radio. A hui hou.