Te Reo Glossary
Suggested Glossary of Te Reo Māori words for delegates:
kia ora hello (informal)
mōrena morning (used as a greeting as in ‘good morning’)
kia ora e hoa greetings friend
tēnā koutou hello (to 3 or more people)
haere mai welcome
haere rā goodbye (to someone leaving)
e pēhea koe how are you? (to one person)
e pai ana I am good
mihi whakatau speech of greeting, welcome speech
karakia prayer/grace/blessing
marae the open area in front of the wharenui where official greetings take place
wharenui meeting house
pōwhiri welcome ceremony on a marae
te reo the language
kōrero talk
hui to gather, congregate (as a verb) / gathering, meeting (as a noun)
ka pai good
waiata to sing (as a verb) / song (as a noun)
kaumātua elder
wāhine woman
tāne man
tumuaki principal
tamariki child/children
rangatahi young people/youth
tangata whenua local, indigenous people
manuhiri visitor/s, guest/s
whanau family
whare house/building
e tū stand up
e noho sit down
manaakitanga hospitality/kindness/generosity/support
tautoko to support
Te Aka Māori Dictionary has sound recordings of the pronunciation of each word.
Guide to pronunciation
· All Māori words end with a vowel.
· No two consonants appear together in te reo Māori except for the digraphs ‘ng’ and ‘wh’. Note - In the south island ‘ng’ is pronounced ‘k’. ‘wh’ is pronounced ‘f’.
· If unsure of how to pronounce a Māori word, break it up by vowels, as all vowels are spoken.
· Macrons (ā, ē, ī, ō, ū, Ā, Ē, Ī, Ō, Ū) are placed above vowels to signal they are pronounced longer.
Vowel Pronunciation
Short
•a as in aloud
•e as in entry
•i as in eat
•o as in ordinary
•u as in to
Long
•ā as in car
•ē as in led
•ī as in peep
•ō as in pork
•ū as in loot