kāua māua ʻolua lāua

Two People: Dual Pronouns

Level 1

Four pronouns cover pairs: kāua, māua, ʻolua and lāua.

How It Works

English has “we” and “you” for any number. Hawaiian has a dual: a separate set for exactly two people.

Pronoun	Who
kāua	you and I
māua	he or she and I (not you)
ʻolua	you two
lāua	those two

Each one has a kahakō or an ʻokina, so check the spelling. To name the other person, add ʻo and the name: Ke ʻai nei māua ʻo Kala “Kala and I are eating”.

Examples (5)

Ke ʻai nei kāua i ka poi.
You and I are eating poi.
Kāua includes the listener.
Ke inu nei māua ʻo Kala i ke kope.
Kala and I are drinking coffee.
Māua and the name ʻo Kala make the pair.
Ke heluhelu nei ʻolua?
Are you two reading?
ʻOlua speaks to two people.
Ke moe nei lāua.
The two of them are sleeping.
Lāua is the dual “they”.
Ke hana nei lāua ma ka hale kūʻai.
The two of them are working at the store.
Lāua follows the verb phrase.

How It Connects

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

kāua māua ʻolua lāuaLevel 1Two People: Dual Pronouns

Learn This First

The dual pronouns extend the single pronouns to exactly two people.

au ʻoe iaI, You and He or She
Know the single pronouns, because the dual forms name two people instead of one.
Level 1

Words in This Pattern

kāuamāuaʻolualāua

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