Māori Grammar

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Mere is a girl, Mere is the girl

ko

Sentences that begin with ko are known as "identity sentences" and answers the question "who is?" or "who are?"

There are four possible kinds of words that follow ko. 

(1) The subject can be a personal name or place:

Ko Joan tōku māmā.
Joan is my mother.

Ko Rangi tōku ingoa.
My name is Rangi.

Ko Tararua te maunga.
Tararua is the mountain.

(2) The subject can be a pronoun ("he", "she", "them", etc):

Ko ia te tama a Debbie.
He is Debbie's son.

Ko koe te manuhiri.
You are the visitor.

Ko au tā rāua tamāhine.
I am their daughter.

(3) The subject can be a noun ("the time", "the language"):

Ko te reo te mauri o te mana Māori.
The Māori language is the life force of Māori mana.

Ko te Rātū tēnei rā.
It is Tuesday today.

Ko ngā manuhiri ērā tāngata.
Those people are the guests.

(4) The subject can also be a word like "this" and "those":

Ko tēnei te whānau.
This is the family.

Ko tērā taku tūrangawaewae.
That's my place to stand.

Ko ēnei ngā rorohiko hou.
These are the new computers.

Ko Mere tōku māmā.
Mere is my mother.

Ko te kūmara tāku tūmomo huawhenua pai rawa.
Kumara is my favourite type of vegetable.

Ko Rongomai taku tamāhine.
Rongomai is my daughter.

Ko Taupō te moana.
Taupō is the lake.

Ko te raumati te wā kauhoe.
Summer is the time for swimming.

Ko rātou ngā tāmgata.
They are the people.

Ko ōku hoa kei waho!
It's my friends outside.

Ko au te kaiako.
I am the teacher.

Ko Wiremu tāku tāne.
Wiremu is my husband.

Ko Hera tāku pōtiki.
Hera is my youngest child

Ko tāku irāmutu ia.
She is my niece/He is my nephew.

Ko Hera tōna ingoa.
Her name's Hera.

Ko Taika tērā tangata.
That man is Taika.

Ko tēnei whare te whare o Hone.
This is Hone's house.

Ko tēnei he tekau tana taraka.
This is a ten ton truck.

Ko te pahi o te kura tēnei.
This is the school bus.

Ko Riripeti rāua ko Tīwana aku mokopuna.
Riripeti and Tīwana are my grandchildren.

Ko Jim rāua ko Doug aku taokete.
Jim and Doug are my brother in laws.

Ko Taranaki te maunga.
The moutain is Taranaki.

Ko te kāinga tūturu o Manu kei Pōneke.
As for Manu's permanent home, it's in Wellington.

Ko Pango te kurī.
Pango is the dog.

Ko Liam te mokopuna a Beverley rāua ko Denis.
Liam is the grandchild of Beverley and Denis.

Ko ia te kaiako o Aria.
She is the teacher of Aria.

Ko Raimona tōku tino hoa.
Raimona is my best friend.

Ko au te rōia mō tēnei take.
I am the Lawyer for this case.

Ko Wid Vella tōku tipuna.
Wid Vella is my ancestor.

Ko ā matou kurī ngā toa ki te tiaki hipi.
Our dogs are the champion sheep-musterers.

Ko Kuikui tōku whaea. Ko Tahu tōku matua.
Kuikui is my mother. Tahu is my father.

Ko Aidan te mātāmua o Kayte.
Aidan is the oldest child of Kayte.

Ko Ruahine te ingoa o tērā maunga.
Ruahine is the name of that mountain.

Ko Hōhepa koe.
You are Hōhepa.

Ko koe taku toa!
You're my star player!

Ko te wā kaukau.
It is bath time.

Ko Hone rāua ko Rāhera ōku hungawai.
Hone and Rāhera are my parents-in-law.

Ko Rāhera rāua ko Tipene ōna hoa.
Her friends are Rāhera and Tīpene.

Ko Aria te wahine a Rangi.
Aria is the wife of Rangi.

Ko te Wenerei.
It's Wednesday.

Ko taku pene tēnā!
That is my pen!

Ko Kāpuni te awa.
Kāpuni is the river.

Ko Nikau te tāne a Moana.
Nikau is the husband of Moana.

Ko ngā tohunga nāna te waka i tārai.
The experts who carved the canoe.

Ko ōna tuāhine ngā kaiwhakahaere.
His sisters are the organisers.

Ko Hōhepa taku ingoa.
My name is Hōhepa.

Ko taku hiahia he pukapuka.
A book is what I want.

Ko ngā rorohiko hou ēnei.
These are the new computers.

Ko Āwhina te mataamua. Ko Aroha te pōtiki.
Āwhina is the oldest. Aroha the youngest.

Ko Kayte te pōtiki o Beverley.
Kayte is the youngest child of Beverley.

Ko tēnā te whare nui.
That (near you) is the big house.

Ko ngā pukapuka a Pāora ēnā.
Those are Pāora's books.

Ko Rēwi au.
I am Rēwi.

Ko tōku kuia tērā!
That's my nanna!

Ko Kauri te tamāhine a Tame.
Kauri is the daughter of Tame.

Ko Rongomai tōku tuahine.
Rongomai is my sister.

Ko Taika rāua ko Tawa.
Taika and Tawa.

Ko Tame te mokopuna tuatahi.
Tame is the first grandchild.

Ko John te tungāne o Fran.
John is the brother (of a girl) of Fran.

Ko Manu mā.
Manu and the others.

Ko Brian tōku pāpā.
Brian is my father.

Ko Pania tōku teina
Pania is my younger sister.

Ko ia te rangatira o tēnei tari.
She's the boss of this department.

Ko Rangi tōku ingoa
Rangi is my name.

Ko Kahu te koroua o Terewai.
Kahu is the elder of Terewai.

Ko Eruera te tangata nā.
Eruera is that person (near you).

Ko te horopaki tērā ka tohu i te mahinga tika.
Context is what determines the correct usage.

Ko Ngāti Hāmua tōku hapū.
Ngāti Hāmua is my sub-tribe.