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Words with passive endings can be used in recipes and to give commands, but, more importantly, they are used in passive sentences, which are very important in te reo maori.
We don't often use passive sentences in English. It would be a bit weird if you said
The cake was eaten by me or the beer was drunk by you.
In English, we usually use active sentences and would say I ate the cake, you drank the beer.
We most often see this in newspaper reports, especially stories about crimes.
A man was arrested by the police. This is a passive sentence. An active sentence would be "the police arrested a, man".
We might also read: the man *was sentenced* to three months in prison. Again, that's a passive sentence.
And passive sentences are often used in formal or academic writing. A survey was conducted. The report was submitted. The chemical mixed was heated.
In an active sentence, the subject is the person doing the action.
In the sentence: I ate the cake, I am the subject of the sentence and the cake is the object of the sentence, the thing being eaten.
In a passive sentence, these are swapped around.
The cake was eaten by me.
The cake is now the subject of the sentence.
To make a passive sentence in Māori we first use a passive ending:
I kainga te keke.
The cake was eaten.
So the verb to eat is kai
And the passive ending is -nga, so the passive form is kainga... was eaten or is being eaten.
Secondly, we indicate who did the action with e.
I kainga te keke e au.
The cake was eaten by me.
Now you will notice that e is being used for a lot of things
It can be used as a time marker
*e* kai ana ahau
I am eating.
It can be used as a command
*e* noho!
Sit down!
It can be used to count things
E rua ngā pene
There are two pens
And here it is used to indicate who is doing something in a passive sentence.
Kei te pānuitia te pukapuka e Rangi.
The book is being read by Rangi.
I taraiwatia te motokā e koe.
The car was driven by you.
Ka waiatatia ngā waiata e ngā kōtiro o te kura.
The songs will be sung by the girls from the school.
Kei te tunua te keke e tōku whaea.
The cake is being cooked by my mother.
Yum.