kanoi
1. (verb) to twist (as in making a rope or cord), twine.
Ko te mironga o te whītau hei aho miro ai ki runga i te turi, whakamākūkū ai a roto o te ringa ki te hūare, kia huri ai te kanoi o te whītau, ka miro (M 2006:114). / The twisting of the fibre into a thread was done on the knee, the palm of the hand being moistened with saliva so that the strand of the flax fibre twisted.
2. (verb) to weave the aho tāhuhu (first weft) of a garment.
Mā te tohunga e kanoi te kahu (W 1971:94). / The expert will weave the cloak's first weft.
3. (verb) to trace one's descent, have authority.
Kāhore he tangata, arā he tupuna i kanoi ki te rangatiratanga hei pēhi i te kino, hei hāpai i te tika mō ngā tāngata o tēnei motu, kia noho pai ai rātou (TP 2/1909:6). / There was nobody, that is an ancestor, who had the authority and status to suppress evil and maintain justice for the people of this country, so that they lived in harmony.
4. (noun) strand (of a cord or rope).
5. (noun) authority, expert.
Kāore he kanoi i kō atu i a Tiramōrehu mō ngā kōrero tīpuna Māori o Te Waipounamu (TTR 1990:350). / There was no authority on the Māori traditions of the South Island better than Tiramōrehu.
