koia, koia
1. well, well! you don't say! really! indeed! well done! that explains it - an idiom that sometimes is used to praise someone's work, idea or achievement, but it can also sometimes be a little scathing or scornful.
(Te Kōhure Textbook (Ed. 2): 43;)
Koia, koia! He aha te hē o konei mō tō tāua tēneti? / You don't say! What's wrong with here for our tent?
Koia, koia. Māu rawa te kī mai ki a au me ako au ki te tunu kai. Ko tō oati mai ki a au i a tāua i mārena ai, māu rawa tērā mahi (HKK 1999:85). / Well, well. You can actually say to me that I must learn to cook. Your promise to me when we were married was that you would do that job.
Hai aha atu māna ngā mahi a ērā rā, ko tāna kē he aro ki āna mahi kia tika i a ia. Koia, koia! / He shouldn't bother about what anyone else is doing, all he needs to do is concentrate on getting his work right. Isn't that right!
Synonyms: kē, tinana, koa, katoa, rawa, i neki, inā, tonu, ata, rā anō, rā pea, rānō, mārie, mārika, mārire, ia rā, tino
2. (modifier) well arranged, in good order, systematic, well-ordered, well-organised, ordered, tabulated.
Whakamīharo ana ngā iwi taetae mai ki Pākanae i te nui me te āhua nahanaha o ngā mahinga kai (TTR 1990:56). / Visitors to Pakanae were amazed at the extent and well-order nature of the cultivations.
Synonyms: whakarārangi
e kī (e kī)
1. (interjection) you don't say! is that right! well, well! really! get you! - an expression of surprise, amazement or anger at what has been heard or seen. Sometimes as e kī rā.
(Te Pihinga Textbook (Ed. 2): 106; Te Pihinga Audio Tapes/CDs (Ed. 2): exercise 40; Te Kōhure Textbook (Ed. 2): 220;)
E kī, kua oti tō tuhinga whakapae i a koe te tuhi! / Is that right, you've finished writing your thesis!
tēnā
1. (interjection) well then, now then, very well then, match that - used at the start of a sentence to focus attention on what follows. Often preceded by a.
Tēnā, pupuhi. Auē. Kotiti kē (HP 1991:114). / Well then, fire. Oh dear. It missed.
Ka huaina te moana ko Taupō-nui-a-Tia. A tēnā, he aha i huaina ai ko Taupō-nui-a-Tia? (HP 1991:248). / The lake was named Taupō-nui-a-Tia. Now then, why was it called Taupō-nui-a-Tia?
2. (interjection) well, well then - often used when changing the subject or concluding a topic.
Ki te puta mai te wai, te huhuka rānei o te waha, kāti, tukua ki raro, kia tere te unu i ngā kākahu mākū, hoatu he kākahu maroke (TP 1/1904:11). / If liquid emerges or there's frothing of the mouth, well, put her down, quickly take off the wet clothes and put on dry garments.
tēnā koa
1. let me see it, let me see now, well then, now then, very well then, please - placed at the beginning of a request.
Tēnā koa neke mai ki konei. / Move over here, please
Tēnā koa, kia kite ahau. / Well then, let me see.
Synonyms: koa, whakawaireka, nā, tēnā, tēnā ina
2. well before, well in advance, a long time prior - when noa atu follows mua it indicates that something happened a long time prior to some other event.
He kupu tawhito tonu anō a 'Māori', nō mua noa atu i te Pākehā nei (JPS 1894:30). / 'Māori' is quite an ancient word, from well before the Pākehā arrived.
3. long after, well after, a long way away - when noa atu follows muri, or another word of time or place, it indicates that something happened a long time after some other event, or was some distance away.
Ka haria ngā papa me ngā haeana hei hanga whare karakia anō mōna ki Otamaoa. Ka whakatūria ki muri noa atu i tō mātau whare (EM 2002:55). / The timber and iron was taken to build another church for him at Otamaoa. It was erected a long way away from our house.
Kua whakahokia e koe te ingoa nei, me Māui ki muri noa atu o Wahieroa, o Whaitiri, i a Hāpai- ariki, i a Tupuaterangi. E Tuhi, e hē rawa ana tēnei. Ēnei tāngata kei muri noa atu o te waipuke (TTT 1/11/1929:1915). / You have placed this name with Māui long after Wahieroa, Whaitiri, Hāpai-ariki and Tupuate rangi. Tuhi, this is absolutely wrong. These people are long after the flood.
4. much more - when following an adjective noa atu can indicate comparison.
Nō tētahi tangata nui noa atu tōu hāte. / Your shirt belongs to someone much bigger.
me/mai/mei kore ake ...
1. in case ... may, were fortunate, to see whether, if it were not for, thanks to, it's just as well - an idiom praising the importance of someone's or something's contribution.
(Te Pihinga Textbook (Ed. 2): 126-127;)
Me kore ake koe hei whakaako mai i a mātou. / We were fortunate to have you to teach us.
See also me kore ake, mei kore ake, me i kore, mai kore ake, me kore e
2. just like - this idiom can also be used to comment on the similarity of one person's talent to that of someone else.
Ira a Tarati e haka ana. Me kore ake te whaea. / Look at Dorothy performing. She's just like her mother.
Synonyms: anō, me kore ake, mai kore ake, mei kore ake, tonu, rite tonu
2. (verb) to follow in regular sequence, proceed in an orderly manner.
Kīhai i hātepe te haere o tana kōrero, i hikohiko (W 1971:38). / His talk was not well organised, it jumped about.
3. (noun) process, routine, procedure.
He hātepe utu nui te Kōti Whenua Māori mō te Māori (Te Ara 2014). / The Native Land Court was an expensive process for Māori.
4. (noun) straight flush (poker) - a hand that contains five cards in sequence, all of the same suit.
5. (noun) algorithm (maths).
Ko te hātepe tētahi tukanga, tētahi ara nahanaha hei whakaoti i tētahi rapanga, tētahi paheko tau rānei (TRP 2010:109). / An algorithm is a procedure or ordered pathway that is followed in order to solve a problem or a number operation (TRP 2010:109).
matatau
1. (modifier) learned, experienced, well-informed, knowledgeable, competent, fluent, skilled.
He tangata matatau tana matua, ā, nāna i tohutohu a Te Rangi Hīroa kia aroha ki te reo me te whiti waiata (TTR 1996:10). / His father was a learned man who gave Peter Buck a love of language and poetry.
2. (verb) (-hia,-ria) to know, know well, be proficient, expert at, competent, fluent.
Ahakoa kāore i matatau rawa ia ki te kōrero Māori ā-kīwaha, i tua atu i te reo ā-tuhi, i kaha pū tonu a Pat ki te whakaū i te reo ā-waha, me ngā tikanga Māori anō hoki (TTR 2000:81). / Although she was not very fluent in colloquial Māori, Pat placed strong emphasis on the spoken as well as the written language and on cultural practices.
Synonyms: mōhio, mahara, hua, mātau, pūrangiaho, kaiaka, tohunga, ringa rehe, Kei a ... mō te ...
3. (noun) proficiency, competence, facility, mastery.
Ki tōna reanga, kāore i ārikarika te matatau o Taiaroa ki te mahi tōrangapū (TTR 1994:104). / To his contemporaries Taiaroa's proficiency in politics was outstanding.
Synonyms: tohungatanga, matatauranga
ngoungou
1. (verb) to be thoroughly ripe, well cooked, soft.
Kāore i tua atu o te pītiti ka waiho kia ngoungou mai i te rākau, ka rere te wai i te kauae, i ngā ringa (PK 2008:533). / There is nothing better than a peach that's been left to ripen thoroughly on the tree, when the juice flows down the chin and from the hands.
2. (noun) topknot on the forehead.
oraora
1. (verb) to shake, wag, move, stir.
Ka tohu ia ki a Kae, kia tata ki uta ka oraora te tohorā, me maunu a Kae (Te Ara 2016). / He instructed Kae that when they neared the shore the whale would shake, and Kae must get off.
E kore e oraora ngā kumikumi o Haumatangi (TWMNT 3/8/1875:179). / It would scarcely stir the beard of Haumatangi. (A whakataukī referring to an inadequate quantity of food. Haumatangi was a person who had an extraordinary appetite.)
Synonyms: whakakorikori, mū, konikoni, hūnuku, tīkape, onioni, oreore, kareu, whakangāueue, rangaranga, takataka, neneke, ngatē, ngeungeu, pakuku, pīoraora, heke, nuku, ki hori, hiki, ngatete, kori, tākiri, kaneke, koni, korikori, neke, paheke, panuku, ngaue, whakaruerue, tīoi, ngatari, rū, rure, rurerure, ue, ueue, aroarowhaki, kōrurerure, ngarue, ngāruerue, ngateri, ngāueue, wiriwiri, wiri, whakahīoi, whakaoioi, whakawiri, whīoioi, ore, māueue, māwewe, kereū, pīoioi, rui, tāwiri, pioi, haurui, whakapoi, rūrū, tīoioi, hīoioi, ngaeke, ngāoraora, whakangāteriteri
2. (verb) to become well, recover, revive.
Otirā ka hari tēnei, inā hoki kua ora rawa ētahi o rātou, ko ētahi e oraora ake ana, nā te tiaki pai hoki o tō rātou tākuta (MM.TKM 14/7/1860:2). / But this is gratifying, because some of them have quite recovered and others are improving as a result of the good care of their doctor.
Synonyms: ora, tumahu, whakahauora, haumanu, whakaora, whakahaumanu
oti anō
1. well, and so, accordingly, however, as a result, and so it turned out - a conjunction.
Kaua tōu ringa hai whāwhā ki te karaipiture, nā te ringa tangata tēnā i hanga, kua oti te whakarerekē e te ringa tangata, kua poke hoki i te ringa tangata. Oti anō tāu e kōrero ai, ko tāku e kī atu ai (EM 2002:76). / Let not your hand touch the scriptures. They were made by man's hand, they have been altered and defiled by the human hand. And so all you should do is repeat that which I say.
Synonyms: i konā, nā konā, nā konei, nā reira, nō konā, nō reira, heoi, heoti, hoi, hoi anō, wheoi
poka
1. (verb) (-ia,-ina) to make a hole in or through, bore, pierce, cut out, appear, poke.
Kei tētehi wāhi o tēnei marae tētehi rārangi pouaka tekau mā tahi, ā he mea poka te kōhao ki te taupoki o ia pouaka, o ia pouaka hei tukunga moni iho ki roto (KO 15/1/1884:15). / In one part of this courtyard is a line of eleven boxes and each one has a hole poked into the lid as a place to donate money.
2. (verb) (-ia,-na) to operate on (medical), undertake surgery, castrate, geld, spay, neuter.
He kokoti anō tāna mahi i ngā hōiho, he poka i ngā raho o ngā tāriana (TTR 2000:246). / He also performed surgery on horses and gelded stallions.
3. (verb) to make one's way, strike a path.
I poka tonu mai a Te Arawa mā te taha o Whakaari, pā rawa mai Moehau (JPS 1893:222). / Te Arawa made its way past White Island, to Cape Colville.
4. (verb) to appear, come into view.
Nā, i te poka whakatata ki te whakaeroero ngā whetū i te ata hāpara, ka wehewehe ngā matua e toru nei, he rau tōpū ki te matua kotahi (JPS 1919:124). / So, when the stars were about to disappear at dawn, the three divisions of the army, each one of two hundred, separated.
5. (noun) hole, pit, well, puncture, dungeon.
Ki te rū te whenua, ka tuwhera ngā poka hōhonu, ka whakahoroa ngā maunga, ka hūrorirori ngā whare (TTT 1/7/1929:1029). / If there's an earthquake, deep holes open up, mountains are caused to collapse, and houses sway about.
Synonyms: wero, rua, kōruarua, kōrua, pārua, pōpokorua, pokopokorua, pokorua, hāpoki, pokere, waro, mārua, kororua
6. (noun) operation (medical).
Ko te poka i whakaritea ki te Hōhipera o Whanganui, kīhai i whakahaeretia nā te mea kāore i kitea te ngira (TTR 1996:150). / The planned operation at Whanganui Hospital did not eventuate because the needle could not be located.
pakari
1. (verb) to be mature, ripe, strong, hard, strapping, muscular, well-built, sturdy, robust.
Ka tae ki te wā kua pakari a Iratūmoana, ka rongo mō Tarakura, kotahi atu ka patua te taniwha rā (EM 2002:83). / The time arrived that Iratūmoana had matured and when he heard about Tarakura, he went straight off and killed that taniwha.
Synonyms: ruarangi, tōtōpū, whakapūioio, hiwa, maonga, maoka, maoa, tuakaka, pūioio, kōpaka, mārōrō, pakaua, whakapakeke, koeke, taikaumātua, tūpakeke, whatutoto, taipakeke, pakeke, pāhake
2. (modifier) mature, ripe, strong, hard, strapping, muscular, well-built, sturdy, robust.
He tangata nui, pakari te tipu, he ātaahua (HP 1991:24). / He was a big man of solid build and was handsome.
3. (noun) maturity, toughness.
Kite rawa hoki a Te Koreneho i te pakari, i te ātaahua o Karaitiana, me te pai hoki o tana pānui i te Paipera Tapu i te reo Māori (TTR 1990:223). / Colenso saw the maturity and how handsome Karaitiana was, and his fluency in reading the Bible in Māori.
Synonyms: poutūmārōtanga, pakeke, poutūmārō
ka mahi ...
1. well done, great, outstanding - an idiom used to praise, but may also express sarcasm. Not commonly used in modern Māori but appears in a number of whakataukī.
Ka mahi te take pakiranga (HKK 1999:52). / Well done, shallow rooting tree. (A whakataukī used for a person who gives in easily or is easily discouraged.)
Synonyms: taiea, taumata rau, tapatapahi ana, kōhure, whakaharahara, ahurei, kātuarehe, te kino kē hoki
puke
1. (verb) (-a) to well up, rise (as water), swell, flood.
Ka whano ka tākiri te ata, ka puke mai tētahi ngaru nui, ka taupokina taua iwi, ngaro katoa - neke atu i te rua mano taua iwi (JPS 1901:71). / When morning had nearly dawned, a great wave rose up and completely overwhelmed that tribe, more than two thousand of them.
