kei te mahi au ki
The Maori phrase for "I work at" is kei te mahi au ki.
This phrase is used to state the place or organization where a person is employed.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase uses the first-person singular pronoun au for "I". The grammatical structure uses the continuous aspect kei te to describe the ongoing action or current state of working.
Did you know?
- In Maori, the word au can mean several completely different things depending on the context, including 'I', 'current' or 'flow', and even 'smoke' or 'steam'.
- In Maori culture, the concept of mahi often extends beyond a paid job to include any purposeful activity or contribution to the community.
- The pronoun au shares an ancestral root with words for 'gall bladder' or 'gall' in other Polynesian languages.
Examples in context
- Ko te hōhipera te wāhi e mahi ana ahau.The hospital is the place where I work.
- Ko te kura te wāhi e mahi ana ahau.The school is the place where I work.
- Kei te mahi ahau i te toaI work at the store.
- Kei te mahi ahau i te pātaka.I work at the warehouse.
- Kei te mahi au ki te kura.I work at the school.
- Kei te mahi au ki te kōti.I work at the court.
Example conversation
Aroha and Manaia meet for the first time at a party.
- ArohaKia ora, ko Aroha ahau. Ko wai koe?Hello, I am Aroha. Who are you?
- ManaiaKia ora, ko Manaia ahau.Hello, I am Manaia.
- ArohaKei hea koe e mahi ana?Where do you work?
- ManaiaKei te mahi au ki te whare rēti.I work at the rental agency.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries au, mahi, te, CC BY-SA 4.0.
