kei runga noa atu [koe]
1. [you're] top-notch! [you're] great! [you're] too much! [you're] outstanding! [you're] on to it! [you're] the bomb! - an idiom praising someone for his/her outstanding work.
(Te Kōhure Textbook (Ed. 2): 196;)
Kei runga noa atu rāua ki te poapoa i ngā tāngata ki te whakauru mai ki Te Wānanga Aronui o Tāmaki Makau Rau. / They're so good at enticing people to enrol in the Auckland University of Technology.
ākuni [koe] i a au
1. I'll get you! I'll deal to you! wait 'til I get my hands on you! you'll get it! you just wait! you'd better watch out! - an idiom indicating that the speaker is fed up with or angry with what someone is doing or saying and warning them that if he/she is not careful there'll be trouble.
Ākuni koe i a au. Kia tere tō heke mai i te rākau nā! / You'll be in trouble soon. Hurry up and get down from that tree!
See also ākuanei [koe] i a au
koia kei a [koe]
1. good on you, get you, you're the bomb, you're awesome, it's good that ..., no flies on you, good for you - an idiom supporting and praising someone's efforts but can also be used to criticise what someone has said or done, implying that it will come back to bite them.
(Te Kōhure Textbook (Ed. 2): 77;)
Koia kei a Hare e patipati nei kia whakapikihia tana utu. / Harry is pretty smart trying to get a pay rise.
2. what a cheek - an idiom to criticise what someone has said or done indicating that at some time in the future it will come back to bite her.
Koia kei a Iriata e inoi nei kia whakapikihia tana utu ā-hāora mai i te tekau tāra ki te rua tekau tāra (HKK 1999:85). / What a cheek Iriata has in asking for her hourly rate to be raised from ten dollars to twenty dollars.
ka mutu koe
1. you're the one, you're marvellous, you're neat all right, you're awesome, you're too much - an idiom to praise someone or their work.
Tio: Kotahi rau paiheneti taku māka mō taku whakamātautau pāngarau, e Mā. Whaea: Ka mutu koe! / Joe: My mark for my maths exam was a hundred percent, Mum. Mother: You're neat all right!
[tō] kaha kē
1. you've got a nerve, you've got a cheek, that's not on, shame on you, you're a dick - sometimes used as an idiom to criticise someone's actions.
Pare: Anei ā tāua rare - nāku i tango mai i ngā tamariki rā. Rangi: Tō kaha kē! (HKK 1999:84). / Pare: Here are our sweets - I took them from those children. Rangi: Shame on you!
Tō koutou kaha kē ki te mātakitaki noa atu i te kuia rā e hauhake ana i ana taewa (HKK 1999:84). / Shame on you just watching that elderly woman harvesting her potatoes.
Te kaha kē o Pukupā ki te pati moni i te wahine e hia kē nei ana tamariki (HKK 1999:84). / Pukupā has got a nerve begging money from that woman who has so many children.
[nāu tāu] mahi
1. you're the one, you're good alright, you're too much, you're awesome - an idiom in which nāu tāu may be replaced as in the examples below.
Nāu tāu mahi, e hine. Kāore i tua atu i a koe (HJ 2012:27). / You're good alright, girl. There's nobody better than you.
Rangi: Me whakawhiwhi noa te tūranga ki a ia, me pānui rānei ki ngā nūpepa? Pare: E! Nāna tāna mahi - hei aha i tiro ai ki wāhi kē! (HKK 1999:26). / Rangi: Should we just give her the position, or should it be advertised in the newspaper? Pare: Of course! She's the best - there's no point in looking elsewhere!
He mahi uaua ki te nuinga, engari he māmā noa iho ki tērā tokorua. Nā rāua tonu tā rāua mahi (HJ 2012:27). / It's a difficult task for most, but quite easy for that pair. They're the best.
kāore/kore (kē) he painga i [a Mea]
1. [so-and-so] is very good at, [you're] too much, [you're] on to it, no flies on [you], no sweat, without peer, no comparison, [you're] the best - an idiom used to say how very good someone is at a particular activity, or how excellent something is.
Kāore he painga i a Poia mō te tito waiata. / Poia is outstanding at composing songs.
Kore he painga i a koe mō te kōrero paki. / You're too much at telling yarns.
Mō te komekome, kāore he painga. / For whinging, she’s without peer.
See also kāhore he painga ki a
e oke ([koe]) i [tō] oke
1. you do what you want, go on then and do it, go ahead then, go for it, please yourself, you think you're on to it, go on then go and do your thing - an idiom to support or criticise someone's proposed action or idea. It sometimes implies that the person won't listen to advice but will find out eventually from his/her mistakes.
Pare: E mau koe ki tāu, ka mau tonu hoki au ki tāku. Rangi: Ā kāti, e oke koe i tō oke (HKK 1999:59). / Pare: You stick to what you're doing and I'll stick to what I'm doing. Rangi: OK then, you do what you want.
Synonyms: hoea tō waka
ākene [koe] i a au
1. I'll get you! I'll deal to you! you'd better be careful, you watch it or else - an idiom indicating that the speaker is fed up with or angry with what someone is doing or saying and warning them that if he/she is not careful there'll be trouble.
See also ākuni [koe] i a au
2. (noun) haven't you learnt your lesson yet? you should have known better, you'll listen next time, I told you so, I should have known better - an idiom used to comment on someone's mistake or oversight when they should have known better. In this usage iro is often preceded by a possessive.
Kua mau taku iro. Kore rawa au e kai waipiro me te whakatete ki te taraiwa i taku waka ā muri ake nei (HKK 1999:97). /
I should have known better. I will never drink and drive my vehicle ever again. /
See also e iro e iro!, kua mau [tō] iro
hei a [koe] (rā) hoki
1. what's with you,what's wrong with you,what's the matter with you, you've got a nerve - an idiom used to express the opinion that an idea or something someone has done is a little strange or surprising. May be used to show disapproval.
Hei a koe hoki e kangakanga nā i ō tamariki (HKK 1999:81). / What's wrong with you swearing at your children.
Hei a koe hoki! Hei tō noho mai anō nei kāore he rangatira i tua atu i a koe! / Get you sitting there like there's nobody more important than you!
a koe rānei
1. get you, who are you to talk, you're one to talk, you can talk, talk about the pot calling the kettle black - an idiom used to respond to belittling or derogatory comments, the response suggesting that the accuser is actually worse than the person being criticised.
Pare: Kāore ō take ki te waiata. Rangi: A koe rānei! Nāu kē i hē ai te katoa (HKK 1999:80). / Pare: You're useless at singing. Rangi: Talk about calling the kettle black! It was you who put everybody wrong.
Pare: Kāore kē kōrua e haere ki tāwāhi? Rangi: Kāo, he mataku nō taku hoa ki te haere tawhiti i te kāinga. Pare: A koe rānei! Ko koe kē te kōkōmuka tū tara-ā-whare! (HKK 1999:80). / Pare: Won't you two go overseas? Rangi: No, because my mate is scared to go far from home. Pare: You can talk! You are the stay-at-home!
ki a [koe] (rā) hoki
1. what's with you, what's wrong with you, what's the matter with you - an idiom used to express the opinion that an idea or something someone has done is a little strange or surprising. May be used to show disapproval.
Moana: Kua kore au e āwhina i a ia. Mere: Ki a koe hoki! Ko ia tō hoa. / Moana: I won't help her. Mere: What's the matter with you! She's your friend.
Uru: Kāore māua e pai ki te toa rā - he Īnia hoki ngā rangatira. Pare: Ki a kōrua hoki! He aha te mate o te Īnia? (HJ 2012:31). / Uru: We don't like that shop - the owners are Indians. Pare: What's the matter with you two! What's the problem with Indians?
ākuni
1. (interjection) perhaps, possibly, soon, probably - often followed by pea.
Ka kōkiri atu rātou ki te taua a Ngā Puhi, me te whakaaro anō o Nuku-pewapewa ākuni pea koia nei te 'pū' i kōrerotia mai rā (TTR 1990:89). / When they engaged in combat with Ngā Puhi Nuku-pewapewa realised that these were probably the 'pū' that had been spoken about.
Synonyms: ākune, ākuanei, ākene, ēkene, pea, tērā pea, ākene pea, āpea, āwhai, tēnā pea, etia
2. you'll get it soon, you're in for it, you're in for the high jump - sometimes used as an idiom at the start of the sentence to indicate that the speaker is becoming tired of, or angry about, what someone or others have said or done and is warning them they will be in trouble if they don't stop.
Rangi: He aha hei parakuihi māu, e moko? Pare: He ahikirīmi. Rangi: Ākuni ō taringa i a au (HKK 1999:109). / Rangi: What do you want for breakfast, grandchild? Pare: Some icecream. Rangi: I'll box your ears if you're not careful.
See also ākuni [koe] i a au
[māu] (rawa) ka aha?
1. what will [you] achieve by that?, what difference will [you] make?, what can you do? - an idiom suggesting that there is no point in doing something.
E mea ana au me peka atu ki tō rāua. Māu rawa ka aha? / I am saying that we should stop off at their place. What is the point of that?
See also mā tēnā ka aha?
ākuanei [koe] i a au
1. I'll get you! I'll deal to you! you'd better be careful - an idiom indicating that the speaker is fed up with or angry with what someone is doing or saying and warning them that if he/she is not careful there'll be trouble.
Ākuanei koe i a au. Kia tere tō hoki mai ki te kāinga! / You'll be in trouble soon. Hurry up and come home!
See also ākene [koe] i a au
(ka) mahue te ...
1. why didn't [you], [you] should have, could have, could've, instead of, rather than, rather than doing what is right you do something else - an idiom used to criticise someone's thoughtless action, or something that should have been done but was not.
I mākū au i te ua. E hoa e! Ka mahue te hari tāporena. / I got soaked in the rain. Good grief! Why didn't you take a raincoat.
Porowhiua ana e Kui ōna kaka papai tonu ki te rāpihi. Mahue ana te hoatu ki ngā pōhara o tana whānau (HJ 2012:35). / Nan threw her good dresses into the rubbish. She could have given them to the poor of her extended family.
Ka mahue te mihi atu i konei, waiho rawa kia tae rā anō ki reira. / Rather than doing the greeting here, leave it until we finally arrive there.
hei aha (atu) [māu]
1. don't worry about it, don't let it bother you, you don't need, why should you care, mind your own business - an idiom indicating a lack of concern or relevance.
Kua pōuri au i ngā kōrero a Ani. Hei aha māu ngā kōrero a tēnā wahine weriweri. / I'm upset about what Ann said. Don't worry about what that horrible woman says.
Hei aha atu māu tā rātou e kī nei. / Don’t pay any attention to what they’re saying.
Hei aha atu mā rātou. / They shouldn't be worried about it.
See also hei aha (noa iho), hei aha atu, hei aha (atu) mā wai?
