Te reo Māori→English

Translate Te reo Māori to English the way locals mean it.

Te reo Māori often packs reassurance, hesitation, and shared responsibility into small words that a textbook reader may take too literally.

Going the other way? English to Te reo Māori

474 local dialects

AIRTranslate on iPhone choosing between Māori varieties

What locals actually say

Ka pai, waiho māku.

All good, I’ll take care of it.

Ka pai is often a reassuring acceptance, while waiho māku means leave it to me and signals that the speaker is taking responsibility, not that something should simply be left somewhere.

Kei te aha koe?

What are you up to?

Kei te followed by a verb marks an action or state in progress, so this is a casual check-in rather than a question about someone’s physical location.

Kaua e māharahara, ka pai noa iho.

Don’t worry, it’ll be fine.

Kaua e māharahara is a direct but familiar way to reassure someone, and noa iho softens ka pai into the casual sense of it’ll be alright.

Kua pau aku moni.

I’ve run out of money.

The word moni is the everyday Māori word for money, while kua pau signals that something has been used up or is all gone.

Me pēhea au e tae atu ai ki te teihana?

How do I get to the station?

The construction me pēhea au e ... ai asks how someone can carry out an action, making it a natural way to ask for directions.

He aha tā tātou kai ā te pō nei?

What’s for dinner tonight?

The inclusive possessive tā tātou includes the person being spoken to, and kai is the everyday Māori word for food or a meal.

Kei te ua i waho, nē?

It’s raining outside, eh?

Kei te ua marks an action or condition happening now, while the sentence-final particle nē invites agreement.

Ā te Rāhoroi, ka haere tātou ki te moana.

On Saturday, we’re going to the beach.

Ā te Rāhoroi sets a future time, and tātou is the inclusive we, including the person being addressed.

Notes like these come with every AIRTranslate translation, so you learn why locals phrase it that way as you go.

How Te reo Māori differs

Te reo Māori with macrons; kia ora conventions; whakataukī (proverbs) only where naturally apt.

Sound like a local everywhere, not just here.

Every one of 474 dialects, with voice, camera, a keyboard for any app, and offline packs.

Choosing Spanish (Peru) from 471 local variants

Localization Notes explaining why locals say it that way