taea
1. (verb) to be able, accomplished, possible - although this word derives from tae and its passive ending -a, it has developed a feature distinct from the normal passive construction, in that the action of which someone is said to be capable is preceded by te and no preposition. Unlike other verbs in the passive which do not take a passive ending when following me, taea may occur after me. If taea is modified by a base and/or a particle, which would normally take a passive ending after a verb in the passive, then that base or particle also has a passive ending (usually -tia).
(Te Kākano Textbook (Ed. 2): 75-76;)
Ka taea ēnei kōrero e ia te tuhi. / He is able to write down this account.
Kīhai i oti i a ia tana tohu paetahi; ahakoa i taea ngāwaritia noatia e ia te nuinga o ngā mahi (TTR 1996:66). / He did not complete his BA; although he was able to do most of his subjects quite easily.
Synonyms: kaha, tare, āhei, waewae kai pakiaka, tareka, kei a [koe] mō te ..., toa, ringa rehe, Kei a ... mō te ..., riwha
