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Idioms

Phrases

Proverbs

Loan words

Historical loan words

kākā

1. (noun) kākā, Nestor meridionalis - large native forest parrot with olive-brown and dull green upperparts and crimson underparts.

(Te Pihinga Textbook (Ed. 2): 13;)

He nui te manu hai kai - te kākā, te kōkō, te kererū (HP 1991:28). / There were plenty of birds as food - kākā, tūī and New Zealand wood pigeon.

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Synonyms: kōrī, kōriwhai, tātāapopo, perehere


2. (noun) parrot - a general term for all species of parrots (i.e. kākāpōkākārikikea and kākā).

Kāore e kitea he kākā nui ake i te kākāpō o Aotearoa. He kaha tonu ōna ngutu, ā, he pewa te āhua, pērā tonu i te katoa o ngā momo kākā (HM 4/1998:4). / There is no larger parrot than the kākāpō of New Zealand. Its beak is quite strong and it is curved, just like all parrot species.

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Synonyms: kākāriki

kakā

1. (stative) be hot, red-hot (e.g. chillies), inflamed.

He mate kakā te kiri, he mea kōtingotingo whero katoa te kiri (TWMNT 26/1/1875:24). / It's an illness where the skin becomes hot and is all spotted red.

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kaka

1. (noun) dress, garment, clothing.

Ko ngā kaka me ngā hīti o te tūroro me pāera katoa (TTT 1/3/1929:951). / The clothes and sheets of the patient should all be boiled.

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kaka

1. (noun) stalk (of a plant).

Ka meatia a waho ki te kaka rauaruhe (W 1971:91). / The outside was made with bracken fern stalks.

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2. (noun) fibre, single hair.

He aruhe pai rawa tēnā, kāhore ōna kaka mārō (W 1971:91). / That is excellent fern root, it does not have tough fibres.

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3. (noun) filament - the part of the stamen that supports the anther.

Ka noho mai te ketehae ki runga i te kaka, ka puta i reira te hae o te tipu (RP 2009:330). / The anther sits on the filament of a flower and the pollen of the plant emerges from there.

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4. (noun) main lines in tā moko.

Ko ngā rārangi matua o te moko, ka kīia ērā ko ngā kaka (RTA 2014:122). / The main lines of tattooing under traditional protocols are called 'kaka'.

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5. (noun) ridge (of a hill, etc.).

Kei runga au kei te kaka e tiro iho ana ki ngā mānia e hōrapa ana i raro (PK 2008:196). / I am on top, on the ridge looking down at the plains spread out below.

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kāka

1. (noun) brown bittern, Australasian bittern, Botaurus poiciloptilus - a rare bird living in swamps. Has a bulky, thick neck and is mottled brown and buff for camouflage.

ate kakā

1. (noun) hepatitis.

kākā tarahae

1. (noun) leader of a flock of kākā, orator.

I kitea tōna ū me tōna niwhaniwha ki te whai i te kaupapa, ā, i whai ingoa nā te mea he kākā tarahae ki te kōrero (TTR 1994:114). / He showed determination and resoluteness to pursue a project, and he had distinguished himself with oratorical skills.

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Synonyms: manu kōrero, wahapū, māngai, pūkōrero

waewae kākā

1. (noun) carrier tangle, parasol fern, Gleichenia microphylla - fronds erect to about 100 cm high or scrambling to about 200 cm. Stipes red-brown. Found on swampy or poor clay soils and around thermal areas in open scrubland.

ngutu kākā

1. (noun) kākā beak, Clianthus maximus - a many-branched, spreading shrub with clusters of large, bright scarlet flowers. Larger plant than Clianthus puniceus and has glossy leaflets. Now rare in the wild.

pūkahu kakā

1. (noun) pneumonia.

Ko te tamariki me te kaumātua ngā hunga e tino pāngia ana ki te pūkahu kakā (RP 2009:338). / Children and the elderly are the groups most affected with pneumonia.

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Synonyms: tarutawhiti, niumōnia, mate niumōnia

tūtae kākā

1. (noun) white oxalis, Oxalis magellanica - a small plant with long stems, clover-like leaves and white flowers. Favours damp places.

See also tūtae kāhu

Synonyms: tūtae kāhu

whakairi kaka

1. (noun) coat / clothes hanger.

Kei hea te whakairi kaka mō taku koti? / Where is the hanger for my coat?

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pane kākā

1. (noun) kākā head, talkative person.

Tarahae te tangi o te kākā ki te taringa, nō konā te kupu whakarite a te Māori mō te pākiwaha, kīia ai he kākā waha nui, he pane kākā rānei (Te Ara 2016). / The kākā has a loud, harsh call, so Māori liken talkative people as big-mouthed kākā or kākā heads.

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kaka horihori

1. (noun) synthetic fibre.

Ko te kaka horihori - he mea hanga e te tangata tēnei momo, ko te nuinga he momo kirihou (RTA 2014:95). / Synthetic fibre - this type is made by man, the majority are types of plastic.

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kaka kīrehe

1. (noun) animal fibre.

Ko te kaka kīrehe - nō ngā huruhuru o te kararehe pērā i te hipi, te noke papamāene me te paihamu (RTA 2014:95). / Animal fibre - from the hair of animals such as the sheep, silkworm and the possum.

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kaka tipu

1. (noun) plant fibre.

Ko te kaka tipu - he hua nō tētahi tipu, pērā i te harakeke, i te kātene me te kokonati (RTA 2014:95). / Plant fibre - product of a plant, such as flax, cotton and coconut.

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Kākā haetara

1. A speaker that is envied due to their oratorical skills.

Hīnawanawa katoa ana te iwi i te wehi o te kākā haetara i a ia e whakamīreirei ana i te marae areare a Tū. / Everybody had goosebumps in awe of the much envied speaker as he strut on the courtyard of Tū.

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kaka kōata

1. (noun) fibreglass.

E 20 mita te roa o te waka hourua nei i tāraia mai i te kaka kōata me te papa tāpatu (Te Ara 2013). / It was a 20-metre long double-hulled canoe made of fibreglass and plywood.

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pona kakā

1. (noun) arthritis.

He mate te pona kakā ka pā ki ngā pona o te tinana, arā, ka pupuhi, ka kakā, ka tino mamae (RP 2009:327). / Arthritis is a disease of the joints of the body, where they swell, become inflamed and are very painful.

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kākā parakiwai

1. (noun) dark coloured kākā - as opposed to a kākā kura, a kākā with scarlet colouring regarded as the leader of a flock.

Ka eke te kākā parakiwai, kaua e tākiritia, engari ka eke te kākākura, tākiritia! (JPS 1912:98). / If an ordinary kākā should land here, do not snare it, but if a kākākura (scarlet parrot) comes, snare it! (A pepeha. Ngāti Maru were living under the protection of Ngāti Urunumia, a hapū of Ngāti Maniapoto. At that time Ngāti Urunumia were on bad terms with Ngāti Hāua. Hari-maruru, a chief of Ngāti Urunumia thought it a good opportunity to pay off some old scores against his southern neighbours, Ngāti Hāua. So he made this statement to Ngāti Maru, who understood this to refer to Tū-te-mahurangi, who they obligingly killed.)

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