Māori Grammar

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Te Reo Māori Level 1
Simple sentences: present tense - e... ana

Sentences in the present tense often use kei te:

Kei te haere au.
I am going.

This can also be expressed with the tense marker e... ana...:

E haere ana au.
I am going.

This is different from other tense markers in that the verb (in this case, haere) comes between the two words e and ana instead of after them, as in kei te.

Also, e... ana... can be be used to indicate action in the past or in the future as well as the present:

E haere ana au.
I am going.
I was going.
I will be going.

Whether it is past, present or future, e... ana... relates to continious action ("I was going" rather than "I went" or "I will be going" rather than "I will go").

E aroha ana ahau ki a Tame.
I love Tame.

E whai ana ngā tamariki i te pōro.
The children are chasing the ball.

E āwhina ana a Hēmi i a Mia.
Hēmi is helping Mia.

E haere ana tātou ki te hui raranga.
We are going to the weaving meeting.

E hiahia ana ahau ki te ako i te reo Māori.
I want to learn Māori.

E hīkoi ana rātou ki te tūnga pahi.
They're walking to the bus stop.

E hiahia pukapuka ana ahau.
I want a book.

E kōrero ana ngā wāhine.
The women are talking.

E mahi ana ia i Pōneke.
She works in Wellington.

E haere ana koe ki te kura āpōpō.
You're going to school tomorrow.

E tapahi ana ia ki te kani.
He was cutting with the saw.

E haere mai ana te ope rā ki runga i te marae.
That group over there is coming onto the marae.

Eana te whare.
The house is standing.

E takoto ana rāua.
They're lying down.

E inu ana ia i te kapu wai.
She is drinking a cup of water.

E whāngai ana a Tawa i te kurī.
Tawa is feeding the dog.

E waiata ana rātou.
They are singing.

E hui ana te kōmihana ia marama mō te rua rā.
The Commission meets for two days in each month.

E mauāhara ana a Nikau ki a Honi.
Nikau is holding a grudge against Honi.

E pōwhiri ana rātou ki a mātou.
They are welcoming us.

E hoki ana ia ki te kani.
He was returning to the saw.

E haere atu ana au ki kō.
I'm going over there.

E kihi ana ia i tētahi ngeru pango.
She is kissing a black cat.

E tangi haere mai ana te ope.
The group are weeping as they come.

E kauhoe ana ia ki te motu.
She is going to swim to the island.

E mohio ana au ki ana kupu.
I know what her words mean.

E rerere ana te manu i runga tata iho i te ngata.
The bird is hovering just above the snail.

E whiti ana te rā.
The sun is shining.

E māngere ana ngā tamariki i te pouaka whakaata.
The television is making the children lazy.

E maumahara ana ahau ki taku tino matukutanga.
I am remembering being very frightened.

E kai ana ngā tamariki i ngā āporo.
The children are eating the apples.

E ua ana ki waho.
It's raining outside.

E mātakitaki ana rātou i te netipāora.
They are watching the netball.

E kata ana a Pita.
Pita is laughing.

E kihi ana a Manu kāua ko Aria.
Manu and Aria are kissing.

E whakamutu ana ia i tana horonga.
She is finishing the washing.

E āwhina ana ahai i a ia.
I am helping him.

E more ana a Hine.
Hine is sleeping.

E whai ana ngā tamariki i te pōro.
The children are chasing the ball.

E titiro ana a Niko.
Niko is looking.

E kai ana te pēpi i ngā rīwai.
The baby is eating the potatoes.

E hui ana te kōmihana o te Taura Whiri ia marama mō te rua rā.
The Māori Language Commission meets each month for two days.

E paru ana ana ringa.
He has dirty hands.

Kāore au e ako ana i te reo Māori.
I am not learning the Māori language.

E mōhio ana au ki te tangata e kōrero nā koe.
I know the person you're talking about.

E noho ana mātou i Kawakawa.
We were living in Kawakawa.

E paki ana.
It is sunny.

E haere ana mātou ki Wānaka ā tērā wiki.
We are going to Wānaka next week.

E rapu ana ia i tētahi rangimarietanga.
He's looking for peace of mind.

E horoi ana a Amaru i a ia.
Amaru is washing himself.

E pīrangi ana a Māui ki tēnā aihikirimi.
Māui desires/wants that icecream by you.

E titiro tonu ana aku whatu, ka whakairia oratia.
My eyes were still open and yet you suspended me alive.

E mōhio ana koe ki te kaukau?
Are you knowing how to swim?

E huna ana te pūngāwerewere i roto i te pouaka rēta.
The spider is hiding in the letterbox.

E kōrero ana ia ki ngā tamariki.
He is talking to the children.

E pīrangi ana ahau ki te hoki ti Taupō.
I want to return to Taupō.

E tika ana kia mihi au ki a koe me tō whānau i tēnei wā pōuri.
It is appropriate for me to greet you and your family at this sad time.

E kata hoki ana a Koa.
Koa is also laughing.

E kimi ana a Manu i tāna waea pūkoro.
Manu is searching for his cell phone.

E moe ana te pēpi.
The baby is sleeping.

E mōhio ana ahau ki te kaukau.
I am knowing how to swim.

E tika ana me tū ki te mihi atu ki a koe.
It is appropriate to stand and acknowledge you..

E ua ana te ua.
It is raining (lit: "the rain is raining").

E haere ana koe ki te kura āpōpō.
You're going to school tomorrow.

E mōhio ana au ki ana kupu.
I am knowing what her words mean.

E puta ana ngā tamariki katoa ki waho.
All of the children are going outside.

E mōhio ana ia he porotaka te ao.
He knows that the earth is round.

E kauhoe ana rātou i ngā ngaru.
They are swimming in the waves.

E tika ana te kōrero.
The statement is correct.

E hiahia ana ia ki te kani.
He wanted the saw.

E pīrangi ana ahau ki te āporo rā.
I am wanting that apple.

E whakatipua ana te pātītī e Papa-tū-ā-nuku.
The grass is being grown by Papa-tū-ā-nuku.

E whiti ana te rā ki Kaikohe.
The sun is shining in Kaikohe.

E kōwhiti ana te tamaiti nā i ngā kuku.
The mussels are being shelled by that child by you.

E moe ana te kuia rā.
The old lady is speaking.

E kīia ana te kōrero...
The saying goes...

E hē ana tāna.
What she/he said was incorrect.

E tae katoa mai ana ngā manuhiri.
All the visitors are arriving.

E waiata ana ngā tamariki.
The children are (or were) singing.

E ua ana.
It is raining.

E noho ana au i te rohe o Pōneke.
I am living in the Wellington area.

E moe ana au i tētahi rākau kākāriki.
I am sleeping in a green tree.

E kai ana ngā tamariki i te hapa.
The children are eating dinner.

E kimi ana te ngeru ki te kiore.
The cat is searching for the mouse.

E haere ana ngā tamariki katoa ki waho.
All of the children are going outside.

E whakapono ana ia ki te Atua.
She believes in God.

E pēhea ana koutou?
How are you all now?

E kaingākau ana ia ki tana mokopuna ki a Tīwana.
She is very fond of her grandchild, Tīwana.

E whana ana te tama i te pōro.
The boy is kicking the ball.

E tata ana ia ki te matapihi ka haere tonu ia ki te kūaha.
Being near the window, she walked to the door.

E maumahara ana ahau ki tō rāua arunga e te kurī rā.
I remember them being chased by that dog.

E tono ana ia kia haere ia ki te whakatā.
He is requesting to go for a break.

E kimi ana a Manu i tāna waea pūkoro.
Manu is searching for his cell phone.

E rere ake ana te manu ki te kōmata o te rākau.
The bird is flying to the top of the tree.

E kihi ana ia i tātahi ngeru pango.
She is kissing a black cat.

E tātaku ana tērā i ngā kauhau o nehe, me te kōrero i ngā mahi a ngā tūpuna i mahia i tēnei taha.
They recited the old recitations from ancient times, and talked about the deeds of the ancestors.

E haka ana te iwi whenua rā i te haka.
The local people were performing the haka.

E whakakākahuana ia i a ia anō ki ōna kākahu tino pai.
He's getting himself dressed in his best clothes.

E pīrangi ana a Hera ki tēnā aihikirimi.
Hera is wanting that icecream by you.

E mataku ana ia ki a au?
Is she afraid of me?

E kauhoe ana ia ki te moutere.
She is going to swim to the island.

E pōwhiri ana rātou ki a mātou.
They are welcoming us.

E mau ana mātou i te wahie i te rori ki te whare.
We are carrying the firewood from the road to the house.

E mātaki-kiriata ana mātou.
We're movie-watching.

E whaikōrero ana te koroua.
The elderly man is making a speech.

E ako ana au ki te raranga harakeke.
I am learning to weave flax.

E mātakitaki pouaka whakaata ana a Ari.
Ari is television watching.

E pēhea ana tērā kerēwatiki?
How is that clever dickie?

E pīrangi ana koe ki tēnei tī hāte kōwhai?
Are you wanting this yellow t-shirt?

E haere ana mātou ki te one āpōpō.
We are going to the beach tomorrow.

E haere ana koe ki hea?
Where are you going now?

E haere ana a Rangi.
Rangi is going.

E whakamārama ana te kaiako i te mahi ki ngā tamariki.
The teacher is explaining the work to the children.

E hui ana a Rama rāua ko Pita ki te pātaka kōrero.
Rama and Pita are meeting in the library.

E haere ana ia ki te whakarongo.
He is listening.

E haere ana au ki te rūma horoi hīrere ai.
I'm going to the bathroom for a shower.

E mea ana koe ko Ponga hei ariki mōu?
Are you saying that Pongo is to be your lord?

E whakapono ana au ki a koe.
I am believing in you.

E haere ana tātou ki te toa āpōpō.
We will be going to the store tomorrow.

E titiro ana te tauhou ki a au.
The stranger was looking at me.

E kōrero ana au ki a ia.
I am speaking to her.

E hiahia ana ia ki te haere ki tāwāhi.
Do you want to go to.

E moe ana te paruauru i roto i te wharau.
The gardener is sleeping in the shed.

E heke ana te hukarere.
The snow is falling.

E whakarongo ana māua ko Paora ki te tumuaki.
Paora and I are listening to the head-master.

E tū ana ia ki mua i Te Rōpū Whakamana i te Tiriti o Waitangi.
He is standing in front of the Treaty of Waitangi.

E titiro ana te tauhou ki ahau.
The stranger was looking at me.

E whiri ana au i tētahi kōnae.
I am braiding a food basket.

E tatari ana au ki te rārangi kia hoko ai i ōku hū.
I am waiting in the queue to pay for my shoes.

E tū ake ana ia ki te marae.
He is standing up on the marae.

E pīrangi ana a Hana ki tēnā aihikirimi.
Hana desires/wants that icecream by you.

E noho ana au i te rohe o Pōneke.
I am living in the Wellington region.

E hiahia ana au ki tērā kākahu kahurangi.
I want that blue dress.

E kāia ana hoki he tino toa koe ki taua mahi.
It is also said that you were a real champion at that job.

E haere ana mātou ki te one.
We are going to the beach.

E pōuto ana ia i te rākau nā.
He is chopping down the treee.

E pēhea ana tērā tāne pai?
How is that good man?

E kauhoe ana te hoiho i te moana.
The yellow-eyed penguin is swimming in the sea.

E tū ana te tamaiti tāne.
The boy is standing.

E tū ana te waka ki te huarahi.
The car is parked on the road.

E haere ana au ki te mahi.
I am going to work.

E mātakitaki ana te ngeru ki te manu.
The cat is watching the bird.

E mārama ana au ki te kōrero.
I understand what is being said.

E mahi ana au i te hōhipera.
I work at the hospital.