2. (verb) (-tia) to keep steady, control.
Ka houhia ngā rākau ki waenganui tonu o te waka ki runga i ngā taumanu ... hei whakamatua i te waka (W 1971:195). / Timber was lashed in the centre of the canoe on the paddlers' seats to steady the canoe.
Synonyms: whakamauru
3. (modifier) fatherly, paternalistic.
Nā tōna kore i pai ki te mahi whakamatua a te kāwanatanga i ngā whakahaere i ngā whenua Māori, i anga tautoko ai a Pēpene i a Tupu Taingākawa me tōna wāhanga o te Kīngitanga (TTR 1996:29). / Because he did not like the government's paternalistic attitude in its administration of Māori lands, Pēpene tended to support Tupu Taingākawa's faction of the King movement.
