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