Translate English to Maori
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Type English above and get the te reo Maori translation. Maori is an official language of New Zealand, woven into public life from broadcast news to place names, and its revival through kohanga reo immersion schools has made everyday phrases part of general New Zealand English. This page covers greetings, messages, and study text.
Common English to Maori translations
| English | Maori | Pronunciation | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hello | Kia ora | KEE-ah OR-ah | ||
| Hello (formal, to one person) | Tēnā koe | teh-NAH kweh | ||
| Yes | Āe | AH-eh | ||
| No | Kāo | KAH-aw | ||
| Welcome | Haere mai | HIGH-reh MY | ||
| See you again | Ka kite anō | kah KEE-teh ah-NAW | ||
| Good morning | Ata mārie | AH-tah MAH-ree-eh | ||
| Good night | Pō mārie | POH MAH-ree-eh | ||
| Thank you very much | Ngā mihi nui | NAH MEE-hee NOO-ee | ||
| How are you? | Kei te pēhea koe? | kay teh PEH-heh-ah kweh | ||
| Please | Tēnā koa | TEH-nah KWAH | ||
| Sorry / excuse me | Aroha mai | AH-roh-hah MY | ||
| I don’t understand | Kāore au i te mārama | KAH-oh-reh oh ee teh MAH-rah-mah | ||
| Family | Whānau | FAH-noh |
Tips for English to Maori translation
The macron matters. A bar over a vowel marks length, and length changes words in Maori, so keep the marks when you copy a translation. The wh combination is pronounced close to an English f: whānau (family) starts with an f-sound, not a w.
Maori greetings scale with the audience: tēnā koe addresses one person, tēnā kōrua two, tēnā koutou three or more. Kia ora covers all of them informally and doubles as thanks; when in doubt it is the safe, warm choice.
About the Maori language
Te reo Maori is the Polynesian language of the indigenous people of New Zealand, a close relative of Hawaiian and Tahitian. A revival that began with kohanga reo (language nest) preschools in the 1980s carried it into schools, government, and media, and Maori Language Week is now a national fixture. Words like mana, haka, and kiwi reached world English from te reo.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. Free, no account, no word-per-day cap for normal use.
Yes, every result has audio playback where a voice is available, and the speaker buttons in the table above work the same way.
No. Text is processed in real time and discarded; nothing is logged to a profile.
Translate up to 100 words per pass; split longer texts into paragraphs.
Maori pronouns distinguish one, two, and many, and greetings follow: koe, korua, koutou. The translation picks the singular unless your English signals a group.
In most dialects, yes, close to an English f. The audio button on each phrase demonstrates it.
Maori is spoken in New Zealand, where it has been an official language since 1987. Immersion schools, broadcasting, and everyday borrowings like kia ora keep it visible across the country.
Usually like an English f: whānau (family) sounds close to FAH-noh. This is the single most useful pronunciation rule for reading Maori.
The macron (tohutō) marks a long vowel and can change meaning: keke means cake while kēkē means armpit. Keep macrons in your text whenever possible.
No. Kia ora works as hello, thanks, and general goodwill. The translator reads the surrounding sentence to pick the right sense, so give it a full sentence when the meaning matters.
Explore related pairs below, or use the box above to start translating.
