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Idioms

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Loan words

Historical loan words

namu

1. (noun) sandfly of various species, black flies, Austrosimulium spp. - tiny, blackish, hump-backed, biting insects. The females need to suck blood for their eggs to mature.

(Te Māhuri Study Guide (Ed. 1): 58-59;)

Ka kī te waeroa ki tōna taina, ki te namu, 'Me waiho kia ahiahi ka haere ai tāua hei wheowheo taringa, hei hohō taringa.' (W 1971:54) / The mosquito said to its junior relation, the sandfly, 'We should wait until it's evening and then go to hum and buzz the ears.'

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2. (noun) vagina, female genitals, vulva.

Ko te whakaputanga o te tamaiti i te namu o te whaea ki te aotūroa (W 1971:217). / The progressive movement of the child through the vagina of the mother into the enduring world.

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