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Historical loan words

kimikimi

1. (verb) (-hia) to seek, look for, search for, seek out, hunt for (of a number of people).

Ko ngā tamariki pēpe e moemoe ana i taua wā kātahi ka whakaarahia, ka pōkaikaha noa iho rātau ki te kimikimi i ō rātau pūtu me ō rātau kahu mahana, i te mea e rere ana te puaheiri i taua wā, me te hau hoki e pupuhi ana (TPH 10/1/1906:3). / The young children were asleep at that time when they were made to get up and they hurriedly looked for their boots and warm clothes because the snow was falling and the wind blowing.

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Synonyms: pōrangi, ārohi, whai, whakarapu, rapa, rapurapu, raparapa, haha, rapu, hāhau, takitaki, puretumu, rangahau, kimi, hīnana


2. way-out, way off-beam, fanciful, figment of the imagination, made-up, amazingly stupid, full of hot air, putting it on, pretender - used idiomatically to state that what someone has said is untrue, is an unlikely reason or is pure speculation. It sometimes implies that the person's response is not taking the question seriously or that somebody has plucked an idea out of the air.

I kī mai a Mihi i takea mai a Ngāi Tahu i Te Taitokerau. Tēnā kimikimi! I heke kē mai rātou i Te Tai Rāwhiti. / Mihi said that Ngāi Tahu originated from Northland. What a way-out story. They actually migrated from the East Coast.

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