Māori Grammar
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We can compare two things in te reo Māori with rite... ki ("this thing is like that thing") or rite tonu... ki ("this thing is just like that thing").
Rite means that one thing or a person resembles something else with ki being used to say what the thing or person resembles.
Rite koe ki tērā pēpī.
You are like that baby.
When tonu is added, it strengthens the comparison, giving the sense of “just like”, “exactly like”, or “the same as”.
Rite tonu koe ki tērā pēpī.
You are just like that baby.
Rite tonu a Pāora ki a Elvis ki te kanikani.
Pāora is just like Elvis at dancing.
Rite tonu ia ki te hōiho ki te oma.
He runs just like a horse.
Rite tonu koe ki te ika ki te kauhoe.
You are just like a fish when it comes to swimming.
When somene is compared to a person, the particle a follows ki when a name or a personal pronoun is used (or when a question is asked with ki a wai?:
Rite tonu koe ki a Rangi.
You are just like Rangi.
Rite tonu ia ki a au.
He is just like me.
Rite tonu ahau ki a koe.
I am just like you.
Rite tonu koe ki a wai?
Who are you just like?
There are two ways to elaborate and explain the nature of the similarity. We can use rite tonu... ki.. ki te with a verb:
Rite tonu koe ki tērā pēpī ki te tangi.
You are crying just like that baby.
We can also use an adjective instead of a verb and for this rite... tonu... ki... te is used.
Rite tonu koe ki tērā pēpī te pōuri.
You are sad just like that baby.
Rite tonu ia ki te kaiako te riri.
She is angry, just like the teacher.
She is just as angry as the teacher.
More than likely there will be several ways that a comparatve sentence can be translated into English:
Rite tonu koe ki tō māmā te ātaahua.
You are beautiful just like your mother.
You are just as beautiful as your mother.
You are just like your mother when it comes to beauty.
Rite tonu here is fundamentally an equal-degree comparison: you and your mother are being compared as having the same degree of ātaahua - you are equally beautiful.
There are other, unrelated, uses of rite. It is also a verb meaning "ready, complete".
Kua rite au.
I am ready.
Rite tonu also has a second, very common meaning: "always, regularly, all the time, often."
He rite tonu te pae mai o ngā upokohue ki uta.
Pilot whales are always stranding.
There is also a common kīwaha or idiom:
He rite tonu.
Ad nauseum. Always.
Ko taua rite tonu rā.
Same old, same old.
Rite tonu koe ki tō mama.
You are just like your mother.He rite a Amaru ki tōku māmā.
Amaru is just like my mother.He rite ia ki tōna whaea.
She is just like her mother.He rite tonu a Mere ki tōna pāpā.
Mere is just like her dad.He rite tonu tēnei hū ki tērā atu hū.
This shoe is just like that other shoe.He rite tonu ō karu ki ō whaea.
Your eyes are like your mother's.He rite tonu ia ki tōna pāpā mō te mahi whenua.
He is just like his father when it comes to farming.Rite tinu a Aria ki tōna kuia.
Aria is just like her mother.He rite tonu tāku teina ki tōku pāpā.
My younger sibling is just like my father.He rite tāku irāmutu ki tōna pāpā.
My nephew is just like his like father.He rite ia ki tōna tuakana.
She is just like her elder sister.He rite tonu au ki tōku māmā.
I am like my mother.He rite ia ki tōna tuahine.
He is like his sister.Rite tonu koe ki te poaka ki te kai.
You eat just like a pig.He rite tāna aromatawai ki tāku.
His assignment is similar to mine.E hika! He rite tō haunga ki tō te kurī.
Heck! You smell like the dog.He rite tonu ia ki tōna whaea kēkē.
She is just like her aunty.He rite tonu ia ki te hihi o te rā.
He is just like a ray of sun.He rite tonu koe ki a au.
You are just like me.He rite te makawe o Ataahua ki ō tōna whaea.
Ataahua's hair is just like her mother's.He rite te huarere ki hōtoke.
The weather is like winter.He rite tō tāua waka ki tō māmā.
Our car is like mum's.He rite tonu tāku kitā ki tā tōku tuakana.
My guitar is just like my older sibling's.He rite a Rāwiri ki tōna māmā.
Rāwiri is like his mother.He rite tonu ia ki tōna pāpā.
He is just like his father.He rite tonu tēnei kuri ki tōna pāpa.
This dog is just like its father.Rite tonu ia ki a Tui Teka ki te waiata.
He sings just like Tui Teka.Tō kōtiro, he rite ki a koe.
Your girl is like you.He rite tonu te āhua o Niko ki tōna pāpā.
Niko looks just like his father.He rite tonu au ki tōku pāpā.
I am just like my father.He rite a Rāwiri ki tōna māmā, he tangata kaha ki te mahi.
Rāwiri is like his mother, a man who is strong in work.He rite a Hone ki tōna pāpā.
Hone is just like his father.He rite tonu tērā tamaiti ki tōna matua.
That child is just like his father.