Māori Grammar

In, on, by, under... - kei runga...

Here are the important locative words:

hea: where
konei: here, this place (by me)
konā: there, that place or thereabouts (by you)
korā: over there
mua: in front, before
muri: behind, after
raro: under, beneath
reira: there, the aforementioned place or time
roto: in, inside, into
runga: on, above
tai: seaward
tawhiti: in the distance, afar
te taha matau: the right-hand side
te taha mauī: the left-hand side
tu: beyond, on the other side
tātahi: the seaside, the beach
tāwāhi: overseas, abroad, the other side
uta: ashore, landward
waenganui: between, middle, amid
waho: outside

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The cat is on the table

kei runga

Kei roto te miraka i te pounamu.
The milk is in the bottle.

Kei roto taua kāinga i a Ngāti Porou.
That place is Ngāti Porou territory.

Kei waenganui a Tūrehu i ana tuākana.
Tūrehu is between her older sisters.

Kei roto ō kī i te motukā.
Your keys are in the car.

Kei te noho ia, i runga i te tūru, kōrero pukapuka ai.
He's sitting in a chair reading a book.

Titiro ki tō taha mauī.
Look to your left.

Kei waenganui a Niko i te rākau me te motokā.
Niko is between the tree and the car.

Kei raro ō hū i tō moenga.
Your shoes are under your bed.

Kei roto ia i tōna rūma moe.
He is in his bedroom.

Kei roto ia i te whare.
He/she's inside.

Kei roto a Kahurangi rāua ko Hōhepa i tō rāua whare.
Kahurangi and Hōhepa are inside their house.

Kei raro i te pukapuka.
Under the book.

Kei raro ngā taonga tākaro i te nohoanga.
The toys are under the sofa.

Kei roto a Tawa rāua ko Ataahua i tō rāua whare.
Tawa and Ataahua are inside their (2x) house.

Kei waenganui i rāua.
Inbetween them.

Kei roto tāku kāri nama i tāku pāhi.
My credit card is in my wallet.

Kei roto tō waea pūkoro i te kīhini.
You mobile phone is in the kicthen.

Kei roto te paruauru i te wharau. E moe ana ia
The gardener is in the shed. He's sleeping.

Kei runga te tioka i te ara.
The chalk is on the path.

Kei runga tāku rorohiko i tōku tēpu tari.
My computer is on my desk.

Kei waenganui ngā tūru i ngā tēpu.
The chairs are in between the tables.

Kei waenganui te tamaiti i ngā kuia.
The child is between the elderly women.

Kei roto ngā tamariki i te whare kura.
The children are in the school building.

Kei raro te ngeru i te tōtara.
The cat is under the tōtara tree.

Kei waho ōku hoa i te kūaha.
My friends are outside the door.

He kapu kei te taha matau o te pouaka whakaata.
A cup is on the right-hand side of the television.

Kei te haere au ki roto
I am going inside.

Kei waenga ō tātou manuhiri i a tātou.
Our visitors are among us.

Kei tua ngā mate i tērā ārai.
The dead are beyond that veil.

Kei runga tō mātou whare i tētahi puke.
Our (3/+ exclusive) house is on a hill.

Kei roto a Honi mā i te kīhini.
Honi is in the kitchen.

I runga a Pāora rāoua ko Mia i te atamira.
Pāora and Mia were on the stage.

Kei te taha matau o te rākau te kāinga o te kurī.
The dog's home is on the right side of the tree.

Kei roto taku kāri utu-ā-hiko i taku pūkoro.
My eftpos card is in my pocket.

Kei roto a Taika rāua ko Kauri i tō rāua whare.
Taika and Kauri are inside their house.

Kei raro i te motokā te kurī e kimihia ana e koe.
The dog which you are looking for is under the car.

Kei waenganui i te whare kori tinana me te toa kākahu.
It's between the gym and the clothing store.

Kei waenganui rāua i ngā tama.
They are among the boys.

Te reka hoki! Hei, titiro ki muri i a koe, ki te taha matau, kei te kīhini taku hoa e mahi ana.
Delicious! Hey, look behind you, to the right, my friend is working in the kitchen.

Kei roto te kāheru i te wharau
The spade is in the shed.

Kei waenganui āu kī i te tūru me te waea pūkoro.
Your keys are between the chair and the cell phone.

Kei tō taha mauī te rūma kaukau.
The bathroom is on your left?

Kei waenganui te tāone i te ngahere.
The town is in the middle of the bush.

Kei runga te kapu i te tēpu.
The cup is on the table.

Anā, kei tō taha mauī.
There it is. On your left side.

Kei waenganui āu kī i te tūru me te waea pūkoro.
Your keys are between the chair and the cell phone.

Kei roto ngā kūmara i te umu.
The kumara are in the oven.

Kei waenganui tana matua i ngā manuhiri.
Her/his father is in the middle of the visitors.

Kei raro iho nei he tauira o te reremahi poto.
Below is an example of a short verbal sentence.

Kei roto rāua i te kīhini.
Those two are in the kitchen.

Anei, kei taku taha matau.
Here it is, by my right side.

Kei tana hoa a Rangi.
Rangi is with his friend.

Kei waenganui te kōtiro i ōna mātua.
The girl is between her parents.

He aha kei te taha matau o te pouaka whakaata?
What's on the right-hand side of the television?

Kei raro ia i te rākau.
He is under the tree.

Kei raro a Ōamaru i Murihiku.
Oamaru is north of Murihiku.

Kei roto ngā rākau i te wao.
There are trees in the forest.

Kei te kurī raro i te motokā.
The dog is under the car.

Kei roto ia i te kihini.
He is in the kitchen.

Kei roto tonu ia i tōna rūma moe.
He is still in his bedroom.

Kei roto i a Ngāti Tahu.
Among Ngāi Tahu.