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Idioms

Phrases

Proverbs

Loan words

Historical loan words

tōtara

1. (noun) tōtara, Podocarpus totara, Podocarpus cunninghamii - large forest trees with prickly, olive-green leaves not in two rows. Found throughout Aotearoa/New Zealand. Trees are either male or female with the female producing bright red fruit. Popular timber for carving. The reddish-brown bark peels in long strips and is used for the outside covering of pōhā.

(Te Pihinga Textbook (Ed. 2): 14-16;)

He tōtara ngā rākau o tō mātau whare nō Tutaemātuatua ngāherehere koia nei anake hoki te ngāherehere tōtara e tipu ana i tō mātau takiwā i tērā wā (HP 1991:12). / The timber of our house was tōtara from Tutaemātuatua forest and that was the only tōtara forest growing in our district at that time.

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2. (noun) sea-tree, antipatharian coral, Aphanipathes sp. - looks like a gnarled shrub. Attaches to the sea-bottom and grows to about 1.5-2 m high with branches. The polyps are minute and arranged on feather-like portions. Found at 75-180 m deep on a rocky base.

Wao tōtara

1. A forest of tōtara: a gathering of esteemed ones.

Taku wao tōtara i rutua e ngā hau pūkerikeri a Tāwhiri / my noblemen who were uprooted by the violent winds of Tāwhiri.

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māhuri tōtara

1. (noun) young chief - often used as an expression of endearment.

I a ia e kōtirotiro ana, ka tūtaki ki a Te Ngaru, he māhuri tōtara nō Ngāti Te Tākinga (TTR 1994:142). / While she was a young girl, she met Te Ngaru, a young chief of Ngāti Te Tākinga.

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tōtara pārae

1. (noun) pātōtara, dwarf mingimingi, Leucopogon fraseri - a very small shrub up to 15 cm high. The small leaves are very close-set with a sharp stiff point at the apex. The fruit are yellowish-orange when ripe.

tōtara tāhuna

1. (noun) pātōtara, dwarf mingimingi, Leucopogon fraseri - a very small shrub up to 15 cm high. The small leaves are very close-set with a sharp stiff point at the apex. The fruit are yellowish-orange when ripe.

Tōtara haemata

1. A lofty tōtara. A great chief or leader.

Ko wai te tōtara haemata o taua iwi? / who is the prominent leader of that tribe?

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Tōtara māmore

1. A tōtara that has no branches. A male who has no bore no children.

I mate tōtara māmore tērā tangata / He died with no issue.

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Tōtara whakahae

1. A tōtara that inspires envy in the eye of the beholder. A great chief or leader.

Taku tōtara whakahae nō ngā kāwai nui nō ngā kāwai roa / My noble tōtara from the great and long lines of descent.

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pātiki tōtara

1. (noun) yellowbelly flounder, Rhombosolea leporina - distinguished from other flounder by its distinctive yellow blind-side colouration, elongate body and deeply split anterior dorsal and pelvic fin rays. Endemic to coastal Aotearoa/New Zealand and the Chatham Islands from subtidal to depths of 25 m in bays, estuaries and brackish coastal lakes.

tōtara papa

1. (noun) pātōtara, dwarf mingimingi, Leucopogon fraseri - a very small shrub up to 15 cm high. The small leaves are very close-set with a sharp stiff point at the apex. The fruit are yellowish-orange when ripe.

tōtara wāhi rua

1. (verb) to be divided, split - used of a tribe or group of people.

I taua wā anō, ka tōtara wāhi rua te Kīngitanga (TTR 1994:151). / At that time the King movement was divided.

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tōtara kiri kōtukutuku

1. (noun) New Zealand cedar, Libocedrus plumosa - a tall native tree with a cone-shaped head of heavy, almost horizontally spreading branches. The trunk is without branches for some distance above the ground and has thin, parchment-like bark which falls in long strips. The leaves are rich green, compressed and flattened, giving a feathery effect.

Tōtara-nui

1. (location) Queen Charlotte Sound.

Tōtara-i-āhua

1. (location) One Tree Hill (Auckland) - this alternative name comes from the name of the tōtara tree that grew on Maungakiekie, after which the mountain gained its Pākehā name of One Tree Hill. The original tree was cut down for firewood and replaced by a pine tree.

amoka

1. (noun) tōtara, Podocarpus totara, Podocarpus cunninghamii - large forest trees with prickly, olive-green leaves not in two rows. Found throughout Aotearoa/New Zealand. Trees are either male or female with the female producing bright red fruit. Popular timber for carving. The reddish-brown bark peels in long strips and is used for the outside covering of pōhā. A South Island name.

See also tōtara

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