te ... -tanga

An Action or Quality as a Noun

Level 3

Tīmata means “begin”; te tīmatanga means “the beginning.”

How It Works

Put an established nominal form after an article or another noun determiner. Learn the whole word: tīmata → tīmatanga, mutu → mutunga, and tangi → tangihanga. Several endings occur; adding -tanga to every base does not give a reliable paradigm. Nominal and passive forms sometimes share a consonant, but their endings do not always correspond.

Compare Ka tīmata te whakataetae, “The competition starts,” with the noun-phrase fragment te tīmatanga o te whakataetae, “the beginning of the competition.” Established nouns can name actions, occasions, places or results. Learn their meanings alongside their forms. Articles express singular or plural reference. Participant phrases after event nouns have construction-specific roles; their interpretation depends on the underlying event.

Examples (3)

  1. Kei te tatari au mō te tīmatanga o te kiriata.

    I am waiting for the beginning of the film.

    Tīmatanga names a beginning inside a mō phrase.

  2. Kua tata te mutunga o te kēmu.

    The end of the game is near.

    Mutunga is the established nominal form associated with mutu.

  3. Kua mutu te tangihanga.

    The funeral has ended.

    Tangihanga names the funeral occasion.

How It Connects

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

te ... -tangaLevel 3An Action or Quality as a Noun

Learn This First

Introduce event naming through tīmatanga, mutunga and tangihanga. Learn each complete nominal form and meaning; the basic lesson does not require the later analysis of event participants.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.