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