honihoni
1. (verb) (-a) to nibble, scrape.
Ira ngā rau o tēnei rākau. Kua honihonia e ngā ngārara. / Look at the leaves of this tree. They've been nibbled by insects.
Synonyms: tītongi, hārau, honi, hohoni, kōhonihoni, kakai, tītongitongi, katikati, kōtamu, pākēkē, waru, wani, harakuku, hāro, rakaraka, raraku, tīwani, kauhoro, wharowharo, raku, tuakuku, okoi, rakuraku, weku, hākuku, whawharo, tahitahi, waruwaru, wakuwaku, waku, kaku, kowani
2. (modifier) nibbling, scraping.
Ko te kōrero, ‘he kākā honihoni, he kūkū tangai nui’ he whakataurite i te āta kai a te kākā ki te kaihoro a te kūkū (Te Ara 2015). / The saying ‘a nibbling parrot, a pigeon with a stuffed crop' compares the slow deliberate eating of the kākā with the gluttony of the New Zealand pigeon. (A whakataukī related to greed.)
