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Sentences that begin with ko are known as "identity sentences" and answers the question "who is?" or "who are?"
There are four possible kinds of words that follow ko.
(1) The subject can be a personal name or place:
Ko Joan tōku māmā.
Joan is my mother.
Ko Rangi tōku ingoa.
My name is Rangi.
Ko Tararua te maunga.
Tararua is the mountain.
(2) The subject can be a pronoun ("he", "she", "them", etc):
Ko ia te tama a Debbie.
He is Debbie's son.
Ko koe te manuhiri.
You are the visitor.
Ko au tā rāua tamāhine.
I am their daughter.
(3) The subject can be a noun ("the time", "the language"):
Ko te reo te mauri o te mana Māori.
The Māori language is the life force of Māori mana.
Ko te Rātū tēnei rā.
It is Tuesday today.
Ko ngā manuhiri ērā tāngata.
Those people are the guests.
(4) The subject can also be a word like "this" and "those":
Ko tēnei te whānau.
This is the family.
Ko tērā taku tūrangawaewae.
That's my place to stand.
Ko ēnei ngā rorohiko hou.
These are the new computers.
Ko Āwhina te mataamua. Ko Aroha te pōtiki.
Āwhina is the oldest. Aroha the youngest.Ko Kuikui tōku whaea. Ko Tahu tōku matua.
Kuikui is my mother. Tahu is my father.Ko Riripeti rāua ko Tīwana aku mokopuna.
Riripeti and Tīwana are my grandchildren.Ko tēnā te whare nui.
That (near you) is the big house.Ko Rongomai tōku tuahine.
Rongomai is my sister.Ko Rewi te hoa o Mere.
Rewi is Mary's friend.Ko Kauri te tamāhine a Nikau.
Kauri is the daughter of Nikau.Ko Mere tōku māmā.
Mere is my mother.Ko ngā rorohiko hou ēnei.
These are the new computers.Ko tāku irāmutu ia.
She is my niece/He is my nephew.Ko ahau te kōtiro tuarua.
I am the second girl.Ko ōna tuāhine ngā kaiwhakahaere.
His sisters are the organisers.Ko te kūmara tāku tūmomo huawhenua pai rawa.
Kumara is my favourite type of vegetable.Ko ngā pukapuka a Pita ēnā.
Those are Pita's books.Ko Raimona tōku tino hoa.
Raimona is my best friend.Ko te wā kaukau.
It is bath time.Ko ia te kaiako o Ari.
She is the teacher of Ari.Ko John te tungāne o Fran.
John is the brother (of a girl) of Fran.Ko Hōhepa taku ingoa.
My name is Hōhepa.Ko Jim rāua ko Doug aku taokete.
Jim and Doug are my brother in laws.Ko taku hiahia he pukapuka.
A book is what I want.Ko Rongomai taku tamāhine.
Rongomai is my daughter.Ko Tame tērā tangata.
That man is Tame.Ko Ngāti Hāmua tōku hapū.
Ngāti Hāmua is my sub-tribe.Ko ia te rangatira o tēnei tari.
She's the boss of this department.Ko au te kaiako.
I am the teacher.Ko Hēmi mā.
Hēmi and the others.Ko koe taku toa!
You're my star player!Ko te pahi o te kura tēnei.
This is the school bus.Ko Manu te tāne a Rina.
Manu is the husband of Rina.Ko Ruahine te ingoa o tērā maunga.
Ruahine is the name of that mountain.Ko tōku kuia tērā!
That's my nanna!Ko taku pene tēnā!
That is my pen!Ko Pania tōku teina
Pania is my younger sister.Ko Rewi te rangatira.
Rewi is the chief.Ko Pango te kurī.
Pango is the dog.Ko tēnei whare te whare o Hone.
This is Hone's house.Ko te raumati te wā kauhoe.
Summer is the time for swimming.Ko ngā tohunga nāna te waka i tārai.
The experts who carved the canoe.Ko te Rātū tēnei rā.
It is Tuesday today.Ko Wiremu tāku tāne.
Wiremu is my husband.Ko Ataahua te wahine a Niko.
Ataahua is the wife of Niko.Ko Tame te mokopuna tuatahi.
Tame is the first grandchild.Ko Brian tōku pāpā.
Brian is my father.Ko te Moana-nui-ā-Kiwa te moana.
The Pacific Ocean is the ocean.Ko Liam te mokopuna a Beverley rāua ko Denis.
Liam is the grandchild of Beverley and Denis.Ko ōku hoa kei waho!
It's my friends outside.Ko Taranaki te maunga.
The moutain is Taranaki.Ko tēnei he tekau tana taraka.
This is a ten ton truck.Ko Eruera te tangata nā.
Eruera is that person (near you).Ko te horopaki tērā ka tohu i te mahinga tika.
Context is what determines the correct usage.Ko Hēmi tōku ingoa
Hēmi is my name.Ko ā matou kurī ngā toa ki te tiaki hipi.
Our dogs are the champion sheep-musterers.Ko Taupō te moana.
Taupō is the lake.Ko Kahu te koroua o Terewai.
Kahu is the elder of Terewai.Ko Kāpuni te awa.
Kāpuni is the river.Ko Aidan te mātāmua o Kayte.
Aidan is the oldest child of Kayte.Ko Koa rāua ko Hera.
Koa and Hera.Ko Tōrere te marae e tū ai te hui.
Tōrere is the marae where the meeting will take place.Ko Taranaki te maunga e tū mai rā.
That mountain standing over there is Mount Taranaki.Ko Mia tāku pōtiki.
Mia is my youngest childKo Rāhera rāua ko Tipene ōna hoa.
Her friends are Rāhera and Tīpene.Ko au te rōia mō tēnei take.
I am the Lawyer for this case.Ko Wid Vella tōku tipuna.
Wid Vella is my ancestor.Ko tēnei te whare.
This is the house.Ko te whare tēnei.
This is the house.Ko Hera tōna ingoa.
Her name's Hera.Ko te kāinga tūturu o Aroha kei Pōneke.
As for Aroha's permanent home, it's in Wellington.Ko te tino tangata o taua marae, ko Hapi.
The leading person of that marae is Hapi.Ko Kayte te pōtiki o Beverley.
Kayte is the youngest child of Beverley.Ko Hone rāua ko Rāhera ōku hungawai.
Hone and Rāhera are my parents-in-law.