51 Māori Words Every New Zealander Should Know

Vocabulary flashcards covering key Māori words and their English definitions.

Aotearoa

New Zealand; often translated as 'land of the long white cloud'.

aroha

Love.

awa

River.

haka

Generic term for Māori dance.

hangi

Traditional feast prepared in an earth oven.

hapu

Clan or sub-tribe; also means 'to be pregnant/born.'

hīkoi

Walk.

hui

Gathering or meeting.

iti

Small.

iwi

Tribe.

kai

Food.

karakia

Prayer.

kaumatua

Elder.

kauri

Large native conifer tree.

kiwi

Native flightless bird (also colloquial term for a New Zealander).

koha

Gift or present (commonly money, food, or valuables given by guests to hosts).

kōhanga reo

'Language nest'; Māori-immersion preschool for ages 0–4.

mahi

Work or activity.

mana

Prestige or reputation.

manuhiri

Guests or visitors.

Māori

Indigenous people of New Zealand; also the Māori language.

marae

Area for formal discourse in front of a meeting house; often refers to the entire marae complex.

maunga

Mountain.

moa

Extinct large flightless bird.

moana

Sea or ocean.

motu

Island.

nui

Large; many; big.

pā

Hill fort or fortified village.

Pākehā

New Zealander of non-Māori descent, usually European.

pounamu

Greenstone or jade.

puku

Belly or stomach.

rangatira

Person of chiefly rank; boss.

taihoa

To delay or wait; hold off to allow plans to mature.

tama

Son; young man; youth.

tamāhine

Daughter.

tamariki

Children.

tāne

Man; husband; men; husbands.

tangi

Funeral.

taonga

Treasured possessions or cultural items; anything precious.

tapu

Sacred; not to be touched; taboo.

te reo Māori

The Māori language.

tipuna/tupuna

Ancestor.

tuatara

Reptile endemic to New Zealand; the sole surviving member of order Rhynchocephalia.

wahine

Woman; wife.

wai

Water.

waiata

Song or chant.

waka

Canoe; can also refer to a canoe migration group.

whaikōrero

The art and practice of speech-making (formal oratory).

whakapapa

Genealogy; to recite genealogy.

whānau

Extended family.

whenua

Land or homeland.