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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 Taika te tāne a Aroha.
Taika is the husband of Aroha.Ko ōna tuāhine ngā kaiwhakahaere.
His sisters are the organisers.Ko Rāhera rāua ko Tipene ōna hoa.
Her friends are Rāhera and Tīpene.Ko ngā tohunga nāna te waka i tārai.
The experts who carved the canoe.Ko Wiremu tāku tāne.
Wiremu is my husband.Ko Pāora tērā tangata.
That man is Pāora.Ko ia te kaiako o Niko.
She is the teacher of Niko.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 Taranaki te maunga.
The moutain is Taranaki.Ko te raumati te wā kauhoe.
Summer is the time for swimming.Ko Wid Vella tōku tipuna.
Wid Vella is my ancestor.Ko te kūmara tāku tūmomo huawhenua pai rawa.
Kumara is my favourite type of vegetable.Ko Eruera te tangata nā.
Eruera is that person (near you).Ko te wā kaukau.
It is bath time.Ko tāku irāmutu ia.
She is my niece/He is my nephew.Ko Aidan te mātāmua o Kayte.
Aidan is the oldest child of Kayte.Ko taku pene tēnā!
That is my pen!Ko Kahu te koroua o Terewai.
Kahu is the elder of Terewai.Ko Kāpuni te awa.
Kāpuni is the river.Ko Rongomai taku tamāhine.
Rongomai is my daughter.Ko te whare tēnei.
This is the house.Ko ōku hoa kei waho!
It's my friends outside.Ko Hone rāua ko Rāhera ōku hungawai.
Hone and Rāhera are my parents-in-law.Ko te horopaki tērā ka tohu i te mahinga tika.
Context is what determines the correct usage.Ko ngā pukapuka a Hera ēnā.
Those are Hera's books.Ko Nikau rāua ko Koa.
Nikau and Koa.Ko ahau te kōtiro tuarua.
I am the second girl.Ko te Moana-nui-ā-Kiwa te moana.
The Pacific Ocean is the ocean.Ko Rewi te rangatira.
Rewi is the chief.Ko Āwhina te mataamua. Ko Aroha te pōtiki.
Āwhina is the oldest. Aroha the youngest.Ko Rewi te hoa o Mere.
Rewi is Mary's friend.Ko Jim rāua ko Doug aku taokete.
Jim and Doug are my brother in laws.Ko Rongomai tōku tuahine.
Rongomai is my sister.Ko Manu te mokopuna tuatahi.
Manu is the first grandchild.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 Pania tōku teina
Pania is my younger sister.Ko ngā rorohiko hou ēnei.
These are the new computers.Ko Tawa mā.
Tawa and the others.Ko Kayte te pōtiki o Beverley.
Kayte is the youngest child of Beverley.Ko te kāinga tūturu o Tawa kei Pōneke.
As for Tawa's permanent home, it's in Wellington.Ko tēnei he tekau tana taraka.
This is a ten ton truck.Ko Honi tāku pōtiki.
Honi is my youngest childKo tōku kuia tērā!
That's my nanna!Ko ā matou kurī ngā toa ki te tiaki hipi.
Our dogs are the champion sheep-musterers.Ko Ani te wahine a Koa.
Ani is the wife of Koa.Ko Kuikui tōku whaea. Ko Tahu tōku matua.
Kuikui is my mother. Tahu is my father.Ko Ruahine te ingoa o tērā maunga.
Ruahine is the name of that mountain.Ko Taupō te moana.
Taupō is the lake.Ko te tino tangata o taua marae, ko Hapi.
The leading person of that marae is Hapi.Ko Kauri te tamāhine a Ari.
Kauri is the daughter of Ari.Ko tēnei te whare.
This is the house.Ko Ngāti Hāmua tōku hapū.
Ngāti Hāmua is my sub-tribe.Ko Tōrere te marae e tū ai te hui.
Tōrere is the marae where the meeting will take place.Ko Taranaki te maunga e tū mai rā.
That mountain standing over there is Mount Taranaki.Ko tēnei whare te whare o Hone.
This is Hone's house.Ko Mere tōku māmā.
Mere is my mother.Ko Pāora tōku ingoa
Pāora is my name.Ko te pahi o te kura tēnei.
This is the school bus.Ko ia te rangatira o tēnei tari.
She's the boss of this department.Ko au te kaiako.
I am the teacher.Ko Riripeti rāua ko Tīwana aku mokopuna.
Riripeti and Tīwana are my grandchildren.Ko John te tungāne o Fran.
John is the brother (of a girl) of Fran.Ko koe taku toa!
You're my star player!Ko Hera tōna ingoa.
Her name's Hera.Ko Hōhepa taku ingoa.
My name is Hōhepa.Ko Brian tōku pāpā.
Brian is my father.Ko tēnā te whare nui.
That (near you) is the big house.