Not Finished Yet: e ... ana

Level 2

Put e before the verb and ana after it. The action has not finished, so it is often still ahead.

How It Works

The pattern wraps the verb: e in front and ana behind. The subject follows the whole group, as in E hele ana au.

Grammars describe it as an action that is not completed. That covers the future and an action in progress, so one sentence can be read two ways until the context decides.

SentencePossible meanings
E kākau ana au i ka leka.I will write the letter. / I am writing the letter.
E hele ana au ʻapōpō.I will go tomorrow.

For something happening right now, learners usually start with ke … nei. Use e … ana when the action is still to come or still going. Some Hawaiian speakers also use ala or lā in place of ana, but those are a later row.

Examples (5)

  1. E hele ana au i ke kula i ka Pōʻalua.

    I will go to school on Tuesday.

    The day name makes this a future sentence.

  2. E kuke ana ʻo Leilani.

    Leilani is going to cook.

    ʻO comes before the name, and the subject follows ana.

  3. E kākau ana au i ka leka.

    I am writing, or will write, the letter.

    With no time word, the context decides.

  4. E hele mai ana ka hoaloha.

    A friend is coming.

    Mai fits between the verb and ana.

  5. E hoʻomākaukau ana lākou i ka ʻaina ahiahi.

    They are getting the evening meal ready.

    Ana comes after the whole verb, not after the object.

Common Mistakes

  • Using ke ... nei for something that has not happened yet.

    Ke hele nei au i ke kula ʻapōpō.
    E hele ana au i ke kula ʻapōpō.

    Ke ... nei is for something happening now. A later time such as ʻapōpō goes with e ... ana.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Not Finished Yet: e ... anaLevel 2

Learn This First

E ... ana shows an action that has not finished or is coming, so learners compare it with the present and past markers.

Words in This Pattern

e