tuaka
1. (noun) quill (of a feather).
I ngā wā o mua whakamahia ai te tuaka hei pene (PK 2008:984). / In former times a quill was used for a pen.
Synonyms: tā
2. (noun) midrib (of a leaf).
He harakeke iraira, he mumura te kākāriki o ngā whā, he kōwhai ngā tāekaeka, he karaka ngā tapa me te tuaka, he mā, he mōhinuhinu te muka o tēnei harakeke (PK 2008:603). / A variegated flax, with bright green leaves, yellow stripes, orange edges and midrib, while the fiber of this flax is white and shiny.
See also karawhā
3. (noun) axis (of a graph).
E rua ngā tikanga pāngarau o te tuaka. Ko tētahi, ko te rārangi huapae me te rārangi poutū hei anga mō tētahi kauwhata. Ko te tikanga tuarua, ko te rārangi torotika e wehe ana i tētahi hanga kia rua ōna wāhanga ōrite (TRP 2010:294). / Tuaka is used in two ways in pāngarau. First, it is the horizontal and vertical lines which act as a framework for a graph. It is also a straight line which divides something into two identical parts (TRP 2010:294).
