Māori Grammar

The particle ai has many uses, one of which is to indicate that an action happens habitually, regularly, or as a usual practice.

In this structure, ai follows the verb. The verb normally appears without a tense or aspect marker:

Waiata ai ia.
She always sings.

Tākaro ai ngā tamariki.
The children always play.

The word ai does not literally mean “always”. Rather, it tells us that the action is something that happens as a normal or repeated pattern. Depending on the context, it can be translated as usually, regularly, often, or sometimes always.

The habitual meaning can be made more specific by adding a time expression:

Waiata ai ia i ngā ata.
She usually sings in the mornings.

Tākaro ai ngā tamariki i ngā Rāhoroi.
The children usually play on Saturdays.

See also:

• The reason why something happened - nā... i... ai
• The reason why something will happen - mā... e... ai
• Why did? - He aha... i... ai?

▶

She is always swimming in the sea

Use of "ai" as habitual action

▶

I habitually go to the supermarket in order to buy food

Ai

Inu ai au i te waipiro ia rā ia rā.
I always drink alcohol every day.

Hīkoi ai au ia rā, ia rā.
I always walk each and every day.

Hīkoi ai a Nikau ki te kura.
Nikau always walks to school.

Karakia ai au ia ata, ia ata.
I always pray every morning.

Horoi ai au i aku niho i te ao, i te pō.
I habitually brush my teeth day and night.

Mai i tōku tamarikitanga pīrangi ai ahau ki te mahi nēhi.
Since childhood I have always wanted to be a nurse.

Waiata ai ngā manu i ngā ata.
The birds usually sing in the mornings.

Noho ai rātou ki Waiwera ia tau, ia tau.
They always stay at Waiwera each year.

Noho ai ngā wāhine ki konei.
The always women sit here.

Kai ai au i te pāreti ia ata, ia ata.
I always eat porridge each and every morning.

I ngā ata, haere ai ngā kaimahi ki te ngahere.
In the mornings, the workers always go to the bush.

Mai i tōku tamarikitanga pīrangi ai au ki te mahi hei nēhi.
Since childhood I have always wanted to work as a nurse.

Āe. Hīkoi ai au ia rā, ia rā.
Yes, I always walk each and every day.

Inu ai au i te kawhe ia ata, ia ata.
I always drink coffee every morning.

Ako ai au ia rā, ia rā.
Learn something habitually every day.

Pānui ai au i ia pō, i ia pō.
I always read each and every night.

Tae mai ai te pahi, i ia hāora, i ia hāora.
The bus regularly arrives every hour.

I ngā Rāpare, mātakitaki ai au i Coronation Street.
On Thursdays I always watch Coronation Street.

Mātakitaki pouaka whakaata ai au, ia pō.
I always watch television every night.

I ia Rāhoroi haere ai a Hēmi ki te hoko tīkiti Rotarota.
Every Saturday Hēmi always goes to buy a Lotto ticket.

Ia rā, ia rā, oho ai au ki te horoi i ngā kākahu.
Every day, I always get up to wash the clothes.

Inu ai au i te waipiro ia wiki ia wiki.
I always drink alcohol every week.

Tuhituhi reta ai ia.
He regularly writes letters.

I ngā raumati, kaukau ai au i te moana.
In the summer, I regularly swim in the sea.

Haere ai ia mā runga pahikara ki te mahi ia ata ia ata.
He always goes to work by bike every morning.

Tū ai ngā whakamātautau i te mutunga o te tau.
The exams always take place at the end of the year.

Haere ai au ki Pōneke.
I am always going to Wellington.

Tunu rēwena ai ia i ia Rātapu.
She always bakes bread every Sunday.

Mau mōhiti ai ia.
He always wears glasses.

Hokihoki ai ia ki te wā kāinga.
He returned home regularly.

Ia Rāapa ia Rāapa waea ai tāku tamāhine ki a au.
Every Wednesday my daughter always phones me.

Mau pāhau ai ia? Kāo!
Does he always have a beard? No!

Oho ai au i te wari karaka i te ata.
I usually wake up at eight o'clock in the morning.

Kai ai ngā manu i ngā kākano o tēnei rākau hua.
The birds usually eat the seeds of this fruit tree

Tunu kai ai ahai i a pō, i a pō.
I always cook food every night.

Ia rā, ia rā, tunu ai au i te hapa.
Every day I always cook dinner.

Kai ai te ngeru i ngā kiore.
The cat always eats mice.

Maranga mai ai au ia rā, ia rā i te whitu karaka.
I always get up every day at seven o'clock.

Titiro ai au ki te ua.
I always watch the rain.

Haere ai a Rangi ki te marae ia rā, ia rā.
Rangi always goes to the marae each and every day.

Mahi ai au, ia te rā, ia te rā, hāunga anō ko ngā Rātapu.
I work regularly, every day except on Sundays.

Ia rā, ia rā, tunu ai au i te hapa.
Every day, (each day) I always cook dinner.

Oma ai a Honi ki te mahi i ngā rā katoa.
Honi always runs to work every day.

Haere ai mātou ki Rotorua i ngā hararei.
We regularly go to Rotorua in the holidays.

Tirotiro ai ia i ngā pānui mō ngā matenga i ia rā, i ia rā.
She checks out the death notices religiously every day.