Moana continued to stare at Jean-Luc. "Like ash?" She knew what lava was but her island didn't have tar on it and Moana has yet to run across tar in the village. She was trying to visualize what he meant but his phrasing wasn't giving her a lot of clues.

She didn't understand how ash could be used to make rope stronger. The plants that she weaved were like plastic to the touch, so maybe it was something like that? Moana's imagination was being stretched by this whole conversation.

"I think the string I made will be fine. It won't absorb water." Which she assumed was the point of taring.