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(New Zealand) A small ball made of leaves and fibres, attached to a string.
2008, Ellen Koskoff, “Haka poi”, in The Concise Garland Encyclopedia of World Music, Routledge, →ISBN, page 738:
Warriors formerly used poi actions to maintain wrist flexibility, but poi have developed as a women's dance. Classic poi dances and songs are reputed to have been those of the people of the Taranaki, Rotorua, and Whanganui tribal areas, but poi are now performed everywhere in Aotearoa.
2013, Catriona Rainsford, The Urban Circus: Travels with Mexico's Malabaristas, Bradt Travel Guides, →ISBN, page 18:
A couple of days later Trico announced that, if I were to travel with them, it was imperative that I learn some form of malabares, or circus skill. The available options were poi, staff or juggling. ‘Poi’, the form of malabares that Sandra played, are two balls at the end of chains which are spun in patterns around the body. When the balls are replaced by wicks soaked in gasoline and set alight, the poi ‘spin fire’.
(New Zealand) A traditional dance performed by Maori women involving the rhythmic swinging of such a ball.
Kurabe, Keita (2016 December 31) “Phonology of Burmese loanwords in Jinghpaw”, in Kyoto University Linguistic Research, volume 35, →DOI, →ISSN, pages 91–128
poi (food) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia 
