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Proverbs

Loan words

Historical loan words

Filters

Idioms

Phrases

Proverbs

Loan words

Historical loan words

tōne

1. (loan) (noun) ton, stone (weight).

Ko tēnei taimaha ko te 'tōne' tekau mā whā pāuna taimaha, koia te tōne (TW 12/8/1876:1). / This weight, the 'stone', is 14 pounds by weight, that is what a stone is.

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mārū

1. (adjective) be gentle, easy.

He mārū te heke iho i runga mai o ngā maunga (W 1971:184). / Descending from on the mountains was easy.

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2. (modifier) low-pitched (in tone), low in tone.

Nā te mea he roa ake te kakau o te pōrutu i tō te kōauau ka taea te whakarangirua i tōna reo. Kotahi he reo mārū, ā, ki te kaha te pupuhi kua tīorooro tōna reo tuarua (Wh3 2003:168). / Because the stem of the pōrutu is longer than the kōauau it is able to be played with two voices. One is a low-pitched voice and if it is blown hard its second voice is high-pitched.

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3. (modifier) calm.

He rangi mārū (W 1971:184). / A calm day.

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whakamārohirohi

1. (verb) to harden, condition, tone up.

He tino pai ngā mahi. He uaua, engari hai whakamārohirohi i te tangata (HP 1991:103). / The activities were very good. They were difficult, but they were to condition a person.

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2. (modifier) fit, strong, resilient.

E whai ake nei ngā uaratanga, ngā mōhukihuki me ngā wawata o te Kōmihana Hākinakina, Tūhakahaka a Hillary: "Ki te whakahaumako i te pai, i te tika me te tau o te noho o te iwi whānui i Aotearoa. Ki te whakatenatena, ki te whakatītina, ki te whakatakē i te iwi kia tapoko mai ki ngā mahi hākinakina whakamārohirohi me ōna hua o roto e ora tonu ai te tangata, taha tinana, taha wairua." (HM 1/1992:3). / Following are the desires, yearnings and hopes of the Hillary Commission for Sport, Fitness and Leisure: "To enhance the quality of life of the general population in New Zealand. To encourage, foster and encourage the people to participate in sporting fitness activities with its benefits for a person's well-being, both physical and mental.

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tanguru

1. (verb) to be deep-toned, gruff.

Ko ētahi reo i ririki, ko ētahi i rarahi, ko ētahi i tanguru (TPH 15/12/1900:3). / Some voices were soft, others were loud and some were deep.

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2. (modifier) deep-toned, gruff, baritone.

Nō taua tau anō a Pane i whakawhiti atu ai ki Ingarangi ki te taha o te kaiwaiata reo tanguru rā, o Charles Santley, ako ai (TTR 1996:56). / In that same year Fanny travelled to England to study with the baritone Charles Santley.

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ponguru

1. (verb) to smoulder.

Te putanga whakareretanga o te rū ki taua wāhi, he mano, he mano, ngā tāngata ki te mate e ai tā te waea; ā, tū tonu eke ngā ngāwhā e hū mai nei, e tioro mai nei, e ponguru mai nei, kotahi tekau mā ono (KO 15/9/1883:3). / When the earthquake suddenly stuck that place thousands and thousands of people died, according to the telegram; and there are sixteen fumaroles still erupting, making a horrible noise and smouldering.

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2. (modifier) sonorous, resonant, deep-toned, gruff.

He reo hōhonu, he reo ponguru te āhua o tōna reo, ā, ahakoa te rangi o te waiata i taea noatia e ia te waiata tika (TTR 2000:93). / He had a deep, sonorous voice, and no matter what the tune he could pitch it accurately.

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3. (noun) dense black smoke.

Kāore i kitea te kūaha, nā te kī o te rūma i te ponguru (PK 2008:663). / The door couldn't be seen because the room was full of dense black smoke.

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waehaurua

1. (noun) semitone, half tone (music).

Ko te āputa te rerekē o te tangi o tētahi oro i tētahi, arā, ko te maha o ngā waetahi, ngā waehaurua rānei kei waenganui (RTP 2015:44). / An interval is the difference in pitch from one note to another, measured in tones or semitones (RTP 2015:44).

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1. (verb) (-ngia) to breathe, taste.

E meinga ana e ngā tākuta kia noho tonu ngā tūroro i waho ai i te hau pai o te tuawhenua (TP 1/6/1901:14). / The doctors are making the patients sit outside to breath the fresh air of the interior.

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2. (noun) breath, essence, taste, breathing.

Nā konei i meinga ai ngā tāngata āhua kaha kia pikipiki tonu, kia tere ai, kia kaha ai tō rātau (TP 15/7/1901:1). / Consequently, the people who are somewhat stronger are encouraged to climb up and down so that their breathing is faster and stronger.

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3. (noun) sound, tone of voice, tenor (of a speech).

Kia whakarongo tonu mai koutou ki te o taku kupu atu ki a koutou (W 1971:29). / You should all listen to the tenor of what I say to you.

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4. (noun) tone, timbre (music).

Ko te te āhua, te wairua rānei o te reo o tētahi taonga puoro, o tētahi kaiwaiata rānei (RTP 2015:53). / The tone is the character or the feel of the sound of a musical instrument or a singer (RTP 2015:53).

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5. (noun) intonation.

Ko te te āhua o te tangi mai o te reo o te tangata, arā, ko te piki me te heke o te reo i te roanga atu o te rerenga kōrero, ko te hātahi rānei; ko te wairua anō hoki o te kōrero, pēnā he maioro, he wainene rānei (RMR 2017). / Intonation is the nature of the sound of a person’s voice, such as the rise and fall in pitch, or monotone over the duration of a sentence, and also the feeling in the voice, such as whether it is discordant or mellifluous (RMR 2017).

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waetahi

1. (noun) tone (music) - a difference in pitch between two musical notes equal to two semitones.

Ko te āputa te rerekē o te tangi o tētahi oro i tētahi, arā, ko te maha o ngā waetahi, ngā waehaurua rānei kei waenganui (RTP 2015:44). / An interval is the difference in pitch from one note to another, measured in tones or semitones (RTP 2015:44).

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komeme

1. (verb) to mutter, mumble, talk in a low tone, complain.

Ko ōna ngutu kau e komeme ana, kīhai ia tōna reo i rangona (PT Hamuera I 1:13). / Only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard.

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Synonyms: hamumu, whakatanguru, pararāwaha, kumeme, kōwhetewhete, hāmeme, hāmumumumu, hāwata, pātīhau, whetewhete


2. (verb) to be burst inwards, stove in, dent.

Ka rangona te tūtukitanga o taua tima ātaahua, ko tōna ihu komeme ana i te tūtukitanga ai ki te pari, takoto ana i runga i ngā toka (THM 1/7/1895:2). / The collision of that beautiful ship was heard when its bow was stove in in the collision with the cliff, leaving it lying on the rocks.

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3. (verb) to be withered, wrinkled, contracted by cold.

Kua komeme te kiri o ngā tamariki, he roa nō rātou e kaukau ana i te awa. / The children's skin was wrinkled because they were swimming in the stream for so long.

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kuihi

1. (verb) to speak in a low tone.

Ka tae mai a ia ki a mātou, ki ngā mea tamariki, ka pakipaki i ō mātou pāpāringa, me te pōpō i ō mātou māhunga, me te kuihi te waha, he kōrero pea i ana kupu mō mātou, ā, tē mōhiotia kautia atu (White 5 1888:107). / When he reached us, the young ones, he patted our cheeks, stroked our heads and spoke in a low tone, perhaps talking about us in his words, but we did not understand anything.

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atarau

1. (modifier) moonlit.

Kei ngā pō atarau, kei ngā pō rākaunui o te marama, e kitea atu ana a Rona, me tana tahā, me te rākau ngaio e tū ana i tana taha (TWK 2:13). / On moonlit nights, on nights when the moon is full, Rona can be seen with her calabash and the ngaio tree standing at her side.

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2. (noun) moonlight.

E tiaho ana te atarau ki runga ki ngā ōriwa o taua kāri (KO 15/2/1884:16). / The moonlight was shining down on the olive trees of the garden.

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Synonyms: ata māhina


3. (noun) moon.

Ā, muri tonu iho i te whakapāwera i aua rā, ka whakapōuritia te rā, e kore anō e titi te atarau (PT Matiu 24:29). / Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light.

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Synonyms: māhina, marama, ahoroa


4. (noun) vestige, shadow.

I whakahuatia e Nōpera Pana-kareao ōna whakaaro ki tēnei kōrero, "Ko te atarau o te whenua i riro i te Kuīni, ko te tinana o te whenua i waiho ki ngā Māori." Kotahi tau i muri mai ka hurihia pēneihia e ia tana kōrero, “Ko te tinana o te whenua kei te Kuīni, ko te atarau anake i mahue ki te Māori." (Te Ara 2015). / Nōpera Pana-kareao expressed his thoughts with this saying, "The shadow of the land will go to the Queen, but the substance of the land will remain with us." One year later he reversed his opinion, saying, "The Queen has the substance of the land and the Māori retains only the shadow."

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5. (noun) variety of harakeke from Whanganui river. Has straight, strong, pointed leaf with red tonings inside the old blades. Very blue bloom on the back of the blades. Very few flower heads. A handsome bush, quite a contrast with a distinctive deep blue tone about its tall bright bronzy leaves.

whakahoho

1. (verb) to cooee - to call a clear-toned, trilling, wordless call to attract attention.

I a au e tamariki ana, ā, i te pāmu e pupuhi rāpeti ana, ka reri te tina, ka whakahoho mai taku whaea kia mōhio ai au me hoki au ki te kāinga kai ai. / When I was a youth and on the farm shooting rabbits, when lunch was ready my mother would cooee so that I knew I must return home to eat.

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2. (noun) cooee - a clear-toned, trilling, wordless call to attract attention.

Ka pā te whakaoho a tō rāua hoa, ka mōhio e tata ana rāua ki te puni. / When they heard the cooee of their friend, they knew they were close to the camp.

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taniwha

1. (noun) variety of harakeke from Waiomatatini, East Coast. A handsome bronze coloured harakeke. Deep brown tones with crimson, almost translucent margins and markings along centre of blades. Purply-blue bloom on the underside of the leaves and on the kōrari. Good ornamental.

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