The Plural Article nā

Level 1

Nā means “the” for more than one thing. Most nouns do not change.

How It Works

Nā makes a noun plural and means “the”. It does not depend on the first letter of the noun.

OneMore than one
ka halenā hale
ke keikinā keiki

Most nouns stay the same in the plural. Ten words for people, listed in the Reference Grammar, lengthen the third vowel from the end: wahine becomes wāhine, kanaka becomes kānaka and kupuna becomes kūpuna.

To say “some” or “a number of” things, use he mau before the noun: he mau puke “books”. Watch the kahakō. Nā is “the” (more than one), and na without a bar is a different word.

Examples (5)

  1. nā keiki

    the children

    The noun keiki does not change.

  2. nā hale

    the houses

    Nā works for every noun.

  3. nā wāhine

    the women

    Wahine lengthens its first a in the plural.

  4. nā kūpuna

    the grandparents

    Kupuna lengthens its first u.

  5. Ke heluhelu nei nā haumāna i nā puke.

    The students are reading the books.

    Nā appears before both the subject and the object.

Common Mistakes

  • Leaving out the bar on nā.

    na keiki
    nā keiki

    Without the bar, na is a different word, “for”.

How It Connects

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

The Plural Article nāLevel 1

Learn This First

The plural article nā looks like na, and only the kahakō tells them apart, so learners need the article idea and the bar first.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

nā