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Kei runga
In, on, by, under... — kei runga... Locatives — kei, i, hei Locatives — runga, raro, rōto, waho...
Kei hea asks where something is. Simple answers give a location, but more precise descriptions use locatives such as runga (on), raro (under), mua (in front of), muri (behind), or mauī/matau (left/right). These sentences identify the object and then specify its position relative to something else.

 

If I want to ask you where you are and you say that you are at the house, that is a couple of fairly straightforward sentences

 

Kei hɛ-ª koe?

Kei tɛ wharɛ ahau.

But it gets a bit trickier if we want to ask where the pen is

Kei hɛ-ª tɛ pɛnɛ

And we want to answer it is in the drawer Or under the chair Or on the book Or to the left of the plate Or it's behind the cup

 

So

Kei hɛ-ª a ngā pɛnɛ?

Where are the pens?

 

Kei runga ngā pɛnɛ i te pukapuka 

The pens are on the book

Kei hɛ-ª te manu?

Kei runga tɛ mªnu i te tuanui o tɛ wharɛ.

The bird is on the roof the house. 

 

Kei hɛ-ª a Hēmi?

Where is Hēmi?

Kei runga te pouaka makariri a Hēmi 

Hēmi is on top of the fridge 

He's on the fridge?

What's he...

I don't want to know. 

I don't want to know. 

 

Kei hɛ-ª tā rātou kurī

Where is their dog?

Kei runga tā rātou kurī I tōku moenga?

What? Their dog is on my bed?

Like... what?

What is it with all these badly behaved animals.

Tibbles! Get off the the table. 

Pssst!

 

 

 

Video

Vocabulary

ā • āe • ahau • āhua • ake • ake, ake, ake • āku • āna • ātaahua • atu • au • āwangawanga • e hoa mā • e tū • engari • haere mā raro • haunga • hiahia • hiainu • hiakai • hiamoe • hīkoi • hoa • hōhā • hōiho • hou • i • ia • iho • iti • ka • kaha • katoa • kau • keke • kēkē • ki • kia • Kia kaha! • kia ora • kino • ko wai • koe • koro • kōrua • koutou • kōwhai • kua •  • mai • māua • māuiui • ngenge • noho • nui • ō • oma • ora • pai • pango • pēhea? •  • rātau • rāua • rūma moe • taku • tama • tamaiti • tamariki • tana • tātou • tāua • tere • tino •  • wāhine • waiata • whaea • whero
← #72: Where were the children?
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#74: The spoon is to the left of the plate →