Basic sentences

Kia ora whānau,

You can make sentences using a T A P structure which stands for tense, action, and pronoun.

• There are 3 main tenses we used to tell us when it’s happening

  • Kei te (happening now)

  • i te (already happened)

  • Ka (happening in the future

• Any words that describe an action can go here, some examples are provided but use Te Aka Dictionary to find some

• There are 3 single person pronouns that are commonly used

  • Koe (you - person you’re talking to)

  • Au (me)

  • Ia (him/her - person not in the conversation)

Sentence Examples

Tense

Action

Pronoun

Kei te

__________

koe

Kei te (now)

Oma (run)

Koe (you)

You are running

Kei te (now)

Pehea (how)

Koe (you)

How are you feeling [now]?

I te (past)

Kanikani (dance)

Au (me)

I was dancing

I te (past)

Moe (sleep)

Koe (you)

You slept

Ka (future)

Kōrero (run)

Koe (you)

You are going to run

Ka (future)

Haere (run)

Koe (you)

You are going

Kupu list for actions

Oma = run

Moe = sleep

Aha = what (e.g kei te aha koe? What are you doing?)

Kanikani = dance

Haere = go

Hīkoi = walk

Waiata = sing

Tangi = cry

Pehea = how