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Idioms

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Historical loan words

Filters

Idioms

Phrases

Proverbs

Loan words

Historical loan words

wāna

1. (particle) (determiner) his, her (plural) - variation of the plural possessive āna.

(Te Kākano Textbook (Ed. 2): 52-56, 108-110;)

He mahi anō hoki wāna i te taiwhanga whakaatu o Te Taumata i Ākarana me Te Papa Tongarewa anō hoki i te tau 1994 (TTR 2000:75). / She also had work in exhibitions at Te Taumata Art Gallery in Auckland and, in 1994, the Museum of New Zealand.

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wāna

1. (loan) (noun) swan, Cygnus atratus and Cygnus olor - introduced birds, one a very large black swan with a crimson bill and white tip, and the other a very large white swan with an orange bill.

I te ahiahi i a rāua e whakawhiti ana i te roto i runga pōti, ka rere tata mai ētahi wāna ki a rāua (HKW 7/1899 suppl:1). / In the evening as they were crossing the lake by boat, some swans glided close to them.

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See also wani

wana

1. (verb) to bud, shoot (of a plant), sprout, come to life.

Arā te whakataukī mō te tangata ka mate, kīia ana ka hoki ki Te Pō mō ake tonu atu, kāore e wana ake anō pērā i te tī rākau: 'Ehara i te tī e wana ake' (Te Ara 2015). / There is the proverb about a person who dies, that they return to the world of darkness forever, unlike the cabbage tree, which sprouts up again: 'Not like the cabbage tree, which renews itself.'

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2. (verb) to be exciting, thrilling, inspiring, stimulating, moving, rousing.

Ko tēnei hui he wāhi e āhei ai ngā reo katoa ki te whakamōhio he aha tā rātou e whakaako nei, e hiahia nei; ngā pukapuka, ngā rīpine, ngā ataata e pā ana ki taua reo me ngā āhuatanga hou katoa e whakaarotia ake ana e tēnā reo, e tēnā reo, kia wana ake ai ngā whakaakoranga, kia tahuri atu hoki te tangata ki taua reo (HM 1/1993:1). / This conference was a venue where all languages would be able to inform others about their teaching and what they were aspiring to do; the books, tape recordings and videos relevant to a particular language and all the new methods being considered by each language to enliven the teaching so that a person would be turned on by that language.

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Synonyms: whakaaroharoha, whakanekeneke, panuku, whakaaroha, whakaneke, nekehanga


3. (noun) excitement, thrill, exhilaration, fervour, verve, gusto, zeal, zest, passion, energy, sparkle, liveliness, pizazz.

Ko te wana ki ahau, ko ngā rongo, ngā kare ā-roto rānei e ara mai ana i roto i a koe, nā runga i tētahi mahi e mahia mai ana e tētahi tangata (KR 2013:33). / To me, 'wana' are the feelings, or the emotions that rise up from within you as a result of some action performed by someone.
E ai ki te mahara ake o tētehi o te minenga ki a Mere e wani mai ana i te whatārangi kia tū ai ki te aroaro-ā-kapa, ki reira haka tahi atu ai me rātau me te puta o te ihi, o te wana (TTR 1998:1). / One member of the audience remembered Mere gliding across the stage to stand in the front row of the haka group to join them in the haka with great excitement and gusto.

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Synonyms: ngangahau, mātātoa, hemonga, ihiihi, awata, kakare, whiwhita, tāwheta, rika, whitawhita, matangareka, ngākaunui, ngākau whakapuke, kaikaha


4. (noun) seedling, young shoot.

Ka taka iho ngā kākano o te nīkau ki te whenua, nāwai ā kua pihi ake, kua tipu mai he wana (PK 2008:1056). / The seeds of the nīkau tree drop to ground and after a time they sprout and seedlings grow.

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5. (noun) stake, paling (of a fence).

wana-kore

1. (noun) uninspiring, lacklustre, limp, boring.

Ka kīia he wana-kore te āhua o tētahi kōrero, o tētahi whakaari, o tētahi waiata rānei, mēnā e kore ana te ngoi, te hihiko rānei o ngā kaitū (RMR 2017). / The nature of a story, play or a song is said to be lacklustre if the performers lack energy or vigour.

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Synonyms: waitau, memeha, mehameha, haumate, toti, tīmohea, tākohekohe, tāngange, totitoti, momohe, ngongohe, parure, pīngohengohe, pingohe

i [wāna] nei (hoki)

1. it's a pity, how sad for [her], poor thing - an idiom expressing one's pity for another's condition. wāna can be replaced by another possessive.

Ahakoa pēhea taku whakapau kaha kia mau i a au ngā kupu o te waiata, kāore tonu i taea. I wāu nei hoki! / No matter how much I tried to catch the words, I could not. How sad for you!

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ehara i te tī

1. YOLO, you only live once, seize the day - this phrase is derived from the saying ‘ehara i te tī e wana ake’, a reminder that the life of a human is unlike like the tī (cabbage tree) that continuously springs forth new shoots.

Tama: Haramai ki te pāti ā te pō nei. Pare: Hoatu koe, he mahi tāku āpōpō. Tama: Haramai! Ehara i te tī, e kō. / Tama: Come to the party tonight. Pare: You go, I have work tomorrow. Tama: Come on! You only live once, girl.

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