Māori Grammar

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The children played and then they learned

ka as a past tense marker

Typically, the tense marker ka is used to indicate that something will happen in the future. However, when telling a story, ka is often used to indicate that something happened next. Usually this will be in a situation where we have already established that the events are in the past. In the following example, the word inanahi sets the event in the past, and therefore ka is translated as a past event:

Inanahi, ka haere au ki Te Tai Rāwhiti.
Yesterday, I went to town.

Ka whakatika aua wāhine nei, ka whai atu i taua tokotoru.
Those women stood up and followed those three.

Ka takaia, ka kawea, ka whakairia ki runga ki te kauere.
They wrapped him up and took him and suspended him in a puriri tree.

Ka mea atu a Kupe ki a Hotu...
Kupe said to Hotu...

Ka pātōtō ia ki te kūaha.
She knocks on the door.

Ka mutu te kai, ka kī ia...
When the meal was over, he said...

Ka karakia ia i ngā karakia mō ngā taniwha moana.
He chanted the incantations for the taniwha of the sea.

Ka kauhoe ia i Rotorua ki Mokoia.
She swam from Rotorua to Mokia.

Ka kite a Manu i te kōrua.
Manu saw the crayfish.

Ka tangi te pere ākuanei.
The bell has rung.

Ka pīrangi ia ki ngā mea katoa.
He wants all the things.

Ka pōwhiri ki ana ringaringa.
She beckoned with her hands.

Ka tangi ngā tamāhine ki tō rātou pāpā.
The daughters mourned for their father.

Ka whakarongo puku a Ponga.
Pongo listened in silence.

Ka waiho tonu tātou hei tinihangatanga mā tō tātou whaea.
We are always left cheated by our mother.

Ka whakatika te ope tamariki nei, ka tātou i a rātou mō te haere.
The group of young people got ready and girded themselves for the journey.

Ka piki puku atu hoki a Ponga i muri i a ia.
Ponga also climbed up silently behind her.

Ka kite mai a Rangi-uru-hinga, he taniwha tēnei kei Moana-ariki e noho ana, i te kino o te mahi a Kupe ki a Hotu.
Rangi-uru-hinga, who was a taniwha living in Moana-ariki, saw the wickedness of Kupu's treatment of Hotu.

Ka waiho he wāhi kia tuwhera ana i waenganui i ngā taiepa kōhatu nei.
A place was left open between the stone walls.

Ka aha koe i ngā hararei?
What do you do in the holidays?

Ka tū mai te tumuaki ki te mihi ki a rātou.
The headmaster stood up to greet them.

Ka pōwhiri ia i a Pongo.
She beckoned to Pongo.

Ka hoki te ope rā ki tana pā.
That group returned to its pā.

Ka haere ki Zealandia mō te kawhe.
I went to Zealandia for a coffee.

Ka mau ki te kākahu o waho.
And took hold of her outer garment.

Ka mīharo rātou, me te tino whakamihi.
They were all full of admiration, and very grateful.

Ka hoki ake anō te kotiro rā ki te pā.
The girl returned once more to the pā.

Ka tino kaha rawa tōna tangi ki tōna mamae.
She mourned deeply for her pains.

Ka mātihe a Koa.
Koa sneezed.

Ka haere noa atu te iwi whenua ki ō rātou kāinga.
The local tribe went to their home.

Ka kite o reira taitamariki rangatira i taua kōtiro nei, i a Puhihuia,.
The young chiefs from there was this girl, Puhihuia.

Ka rite i te tokomaha te whakataāe te rā hei hokinga mō rātou.
The many young people reached agreement on the day for their return.

Ka hokona e ua te koti rā mō te whā rau tāra.
She bought that coat for four hundred dollars.

Ka nui taku hiahia kia kite i a koe!
I greatly desire to see you.

Ka puta te iwi rā i te pā.
The tribe emerged from the pā.

Ka kite a Tū i te mamaha e puta ake ana i mua o te tereina.
Tū saw the steam rising from the front of the train.

Ka whakatika te kōtiro rā, ka mua ki te kīaka.
The girl got up and took a calabash.

Ka pangaa atu to pāoro e Koa ki a Tawa.
Koa passes the ball to Tawa.

Ka kuhu mai te hoa o Mere.
Mere's friend comes in.

Ka haere mātou ki te tāone i nga Tāite.
We go to town on Thursdays.

Ka kite mātou i te Wind Wand, ā, ka hīkoi i te ara moana.
We saw the Wind Wand, and walked on the beach walkway.

Ka tū atu anō he wahine.
Another woman stood up.

Ka mōhio taku hoa ki te tangata rā.
My friend knows that man.

Ka tū mai tētahi wahine anō me te mere pounamu i te ringa.
Another woman stood and came forward with a greenstone mere in her hand.

Ka tū ngā tamāhine i te mataihi katau o te marae.
The daughters stood at the front right of the marae.

Ka whakatika atu ētahi ki te pōwhiri i waho o te pā.
Some stood to wave outside the pā.

Ka hoe mai whaka te tauranga waka i Onehunga.
They rowed through the canoe anchorage at Onehunga.

Ka nui taku aroha ki a koe.
My love for you knows no bounds.

Ka whāngaia ngā manu e ia.
The birds were fed by her.

Ka tae ki te teihana, ā, ka hīkoi mātou i te taha moana ki Te Papa.
We arrived at the station and we walked by the sea to Te Papa Tongarewa National Museum.

Ka puta katoa ki waho ngā tāngata o te pā ki te tahu kai.
All the people of the pā came outside to cook food.

Ka whakawhanaunga koe ki a ia?
Do you relate to him?

Ka mea atu a Kupe ki a Hotu,
Kupe said to Hotu, "We must return".

Ka rere mai ngā waka i tai ki uta.
The canoes came from the sea to the shore.

Ka rongo a Rangi i te whakapū ahi.
Rangi heard the fire siren.

Ka hapū anō hoki ia i muri iho i a Kōpako.
She conceived again after Kōpako.

Ka nui te mīti, te hēki me te tuna.
There's plenty of meat, eggs and eels.

Ka oho te tini i roto i te whare manuhiri.
The party at the visitor's house woke up.

Ka mahana haere ngā pō.
The nights get warmer.

Ka pupihi te hau, ha hingahinga ngā rākau, ka rere ngā tīni o te whare.
The wind blew, the trees blew over and roofing iron blew off.

Ka māharahara te rōpā rā ki te mate whakamomori o tana ariki.
That slave was anxious that his master might commit suicide.

Ka kīa e te tatamariki he mea mahi ki te mākutu.
The young people said it was done with black magic.

Ka mataku ngā kararehe i te whatitiri.
Thunder frightens animals.

Ka rongo tana whaea i tana ui ki te hinu rautangi.
His mother listened to his question about scented oil.

Ka hoki mai nā roto i te nehenehe.
They returned by way of the patch of bush.

Ka tūpeke a ia i reira.
He jumped into the air there.

Ka haere i te ara i runga i te rangitoto.
They went along the path over the coria.

Ka puta mai te mate moe ki a Te Tahi.
Te Tahi became sleeopy.

Ka tītaha a Matariki ki te uru.
The Pleiades had descended to the west from its highest point.

Ka mau ana te ururoa ka kaha whawhai ia kia ora ake anō.
Whenever a shark was caught it put up a terrific fight to survive and personifies the epitome of striving.

Ka tū mai tētahi o aua wāhine rā.
One of those women stood up.

Ka kiriweti ia ki ngā mahi whakapātaritari a tōna tungāne.
She gets annoyed with the teasing antics of her brother.

Ka mamae aku turi, ngā wāhi katoa ōku, engari kāore e heke taku taumaha.
They hurt my knees, and every other part of me, yet I don't seem to lose any weight.

Ka noho au ki te moenga inu ai i taku kawhe.
I sat in bed and drank my coffee.

Ka riro i te hai hāte a Paki.
It was taken by Paki's ace of hearts.

Ka mutu tonu te kōrero ki konei.
The story finishes right here.

Ka kapo au i te pū.
I snatched the gun.

Ka kite ia i te tīwaiwaka.
He sees the fantail.

Ka haere a Te Kooti.
Te Kooti goes.

Ka mau anō te kōtiro rā i te ipu.
That girl picked up the calabash again.

Ka karanga ki tana rōpā ki te wai ki a ia.
He called to his slave to get water for him.

Ka puta a Pihihuia me te wai.
Puhihuia appeared with the water.

Ka maremare rawa atu ahau.
I had to cough.

Ka pahemo te awa o Tōrere.
He passed Tōrere's stream.

Ka kitea kua puta i tētahi taha o te pā, kua haere whakatētahi taha o te pā.
They were seen emerging from one side of the pā, going towards the other side.

Ka pahure te pā rā.
They passed the pā.

Ka haere te ope o Ngāti-Kahukoka i mua o ēnei.
The Ngāti-Kahukoka group went in front of them.

Ka kite atu ngā tāne o tēnei i ngā wāhine o tērā.
The men of this [tribe] saw the women of that [tribe].

Ka patua katoatia.
All [the people] were killed.

Ka mahana haere te kaimoana i te rā.
The seafood is getting warm in the sun.

Ka mutu ōna tohu, ka noho ki raro.
When his instructions were ended, he sat down.

Ka hoki te kōrero ki a Hotu i ruku rā i te punga o tō rāua waka.
The story returns to Hotu who had dived for the anchor of their canoe.

Ka mutu te kōrero.
The discussion finished.

Ka roa, ka haere atu ia.
After a while, he left.

Ka roherohea taua moana e rātou.
That sea was divided up by them.

Ka mea atu te rōpā rā, 'He kai.'
The slave said, 'Food!'.

Ka mau ki tana mere pounamu, ke hoatu ki te tamaiti ariki o taua ope nei.
[He] took his greenstone mere and gave it to the young leader of this group.

Ka kite au i a ia, ka aroha atu.
When I saw her I was moved.

Ka tātua i a rātou mō te haere.
They girded themselves for the journey.

Ka tono tonu ia i ngā turituri.
He kept hearing noises.

Ka puta taua tini rā ki waho o te pā.
That group went out of the pā.

Ka mea atu te kotiro rā ki tana whaea...
That girl said to her mother...

Ka tae mai te taraka o Ari me ngā tēpu, me ngā tūru.
Ari's truck arrived with the tables and the chairs.

Ka titiro a Ataahua ki te parani i runga i te pounamu.
Ataahua looked at the brand on the bottle.

Ka hoki atu ngā tamariki ki te kura āpōpō.
The children are returning to school tomorrow.

Ka noho ia i tētahi rākau e noho rā he tāngata i raro.
[He] came to rest in a tree under which some people sat.

Ka patua taua kai rā e ia ki te manga o te kawakawa.
He struck that food with the branch of the kawakawa.

Ka tae te ope rā ki ā rātou mea i mahia mai rā i Āwhitu.
The group took their things which had been made in Āwhitu.

Ka karanga atu te rōpū whakaeke ki ngā tangata whenua.
The group ascending onto the marae calls back to the people of the land/marae.

Ka kitea au.
I am seen.

Ka kīa e te taitamariki he mea mahi ki te mākutu.
The young people said it was done with black magic.