PARTICLES
Here is a summary of all the particles and announcers we've looked at so far, as well as some we're going to be looking at very soon. In the lessons, we've called them "announcers", but they can also be called particles. In each case, there is a sentence which follows each announcer to clarify the meaning. Can you make sentences of your own using the particles you already know about?
| a | Imperative, intentive. | A 'ori tátou - "Let's dance" | |
| á | Possessive marker for pronouns, á-series possessive. | Te hoa á taua - "Our-two's friend." | |
| a'e | Directional "up, upwards"; "sideways". | Ma hiti a'e te ra, ua 'imi táua i te tiare. - "While the sun rose (up), we looked for flowers." | |
| atu | Directional "away to", "far away". | E haere atu 'oe! - "Get away! Go away!" | |
| e (1) | The indefinite article, similar to English "a" | E ratere 'oe - "You are a tourist." | |
| e (2) | Imperative, intentive marker. | E 'ori! - "Dance!" | |
| e (3) | Connective, "to" or "-ing". | Hina'aro 'oe e 'ori? - "Do you want to dance?" Maita'i e fa'aea vau - "It's good that I am resting." | |
| e (4) | Vocative. | E Mary! - "Mary!" | |
| e (5) | Connective, "and" | Te Fenua e te moana - "The land and the sea." | |
| e (6) | Passive agent marker | Ua fa'ara hia vau e to'u metuatane - "I was woken up by my father." | |
| hia | passive marker | Ua 'amu hia te i'a - "The fish was eaten." | |
| i (1) | Locative "in, at, on, to" | I ni'a ó i te mou'a - "On top of the mountain" | |
| i (2) | object marker | Te inu nei au i te taofe - "I'm drinking coffee." | |
| iá | Object marker for pronouns | E parau iá tatou. - "Talk to all of us." | |
| iáia | Him, her, its (object), to him, to her, etc. | Ua hi'o vau iaia. - "I looked at her." | |
| iána | Him, her, its (object), to him, to her, etc. | Ua horo'a vau iána i te tiare - "I gave the flower to her." | |
| iá'oe | You (object), to you | A haere au ia'oe - "I will go to you." | |
| iá'u | Me (object), to me | Tápapu 'oe iá'u? "Do you understand me?" | |
| ma | While, when | Ma ua parau nei au ia'oe, ua hi'o 'oe i te mahana - "While I was talking to you, you looked at the sun." | |
| mai (1) | Negative imperative | Mai 'inu te taofe! - "Don't drink the coffee" | |
| mai (2) | Directional marker "from, from far away, to here" | Ua haere mai Peretani mai au - "I came from Britain" | |
| ná | "for, by - for pronouns" ná-series possessive | Ná Pua teie pehepehe - "This song is (written) by Pua" | |
| náia | "for him, for her, for it, by him, by her, by it." ná-series possessive | Ua horo'a atu 'oe e 'ava'ava náia - "You gave him a cigarette" | |
| nau | "for you, by you" ná-series possessive | Teie himene e mánava nau - "This song is a welcome for you" | |
| na'u | "for me, by me" ná-series possessive | Teie buka na'u - "This book is for me"; "This book is (written?) by me" | |
| nó | "for, by - for pronouns" nó-series possessive | Nó Pua teie pehepehe - "This song is for (in honour of) Pua" | |
| nóia | "for him, for her, for it, by him, by her, by it." nó-series possessive | Nóia iho to'u here - "My love is only for him" | |
| nou | "for you, by you" nó-series possessive | Teie himene e mánava nou - "This song is a welcome for you (in your honour)" | |
| no'u | "for me, by me" nó-series possessive | Teie Ti'i no'u - "This is my Tiki, a Tiki inherited by me" | |
| 'o | name announcer | 'O vau ha'ata'ita'i te 'ukulele - "It's me who's playing the ukulele" | |
| ó | "possessive marker for pronouns" ó-series. | Te pito ó te fenua - "The navel of the world - old name for Easter Island" | |
| tá | "Possessive marker for pronouns" tá-series possessive. | Ua hapu tá ratere uri i te moana - "The visitor's dog swam in the sea" | |
| tána | "his, her, its" tá-series possessive. | Maita'i roa tána pereo'o - "Her car is great" | |
| tau | "your, yours" tá-series possessive. | Eaha tau mau tiare? - "Which are your flowers?" | |
| ta'u | "my" tá-series possessive. | 'Ute'ute ta'u mau tiare - "My flowers are red" | |
| te | Definite article, "the", but of wider use than English. | Te moana, te fenua e te here - "The ocean, the land and love." | |
| te (noun) nei | "this...here", "this very...", "this...now" | Nui te ruperupe ó te Tahiti nei - "This Tahiti is truly verdant and beautiful" | |
| te (noun) ra | "that...there", "that very...", "that...then" | Haere atu vau i te Havaiki ra - "I'm going to that (distant) Hawai'i" | |
| te (verb) nei | "present continuous aspect, action here and now" | Te 'ori nei tátou i teie marae - "We're all dancing here at the marae" | |
| te (verb) ra | "present continuous aspect, action distant" | Te himene ra rátou i téna fare purera'a - "They're all singing there at the church" | |
| tei | Dependent clause marker. | Teie te vahine tei nehenehe roa - "This is the woman who is very beautiful" | |
| teie | "this" | Teie fare i 'anei - "This house here" | |
| téna | "that over there" | Téna fare i reira - "That house over there" | |
| térá | "that" | Ruperupe térá motu "That island is verdant" | |
| tó | "possessive marker for pronouns" tó-series. | Nui tó tino nehenehe ó te mau 'ori - "The beauty of the dancers is great" | |
| tóna | "his, her, its" tó-series possessive. | Eaha mana'o tóna metuatáne? - "What does her father think?" | |
| tou | "your, yours" tó-series possessive. | Tei hea tou fare? - "Where is your (ancestral) home?" | |
| to'u | "my" tó-series possessive. | 'Ute'ute to'u fare purera'a - "My church is (painted) red" | |
| ua | completed aspect, past tense, habitual action. | Ua haere 'oia i Marite - "She went to America" |
Which are the new particles? Judging from the example sentences can you figure out how they are used? Why are there so many different possessive words which seem to mean the same things? What could be the difference in their menaings and usage? To find out, click the "Possessives" tab at left to continue learning Tahitian!
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