e ... nā

An Event Near the Addressee

Level 4

Head noun + e + predicate phrase + nā + remaining participants.

How It Works

E introduces the predicate and nā follows its phrase. Nā connects the event with the listener’s position or situation. The head can identify a person acting or a place where an independently expressed subject acts. The particle does not change for number.

Compare te tamaiti e tuhi nei, “the child writing here”, with te tamaiti e tuhi nā, “the child writing there by you”. The child remains the writer; the particle changes the viewpoint. A directional can precede nā: e kōrero mai nā combines orientation toward the reference point with listener-associated framing.

Postverbal nā differs from initial nā expressing ownership or introducing actor emphasis. Read its position and the entire construction. English “there by you” is useful in physical settings; conversational association need not specify an exact distance.

Examples (3)

  1. He tauira hou te tama e tuhi nā.

    The boy writing there by you is a new student.

    The boy supplies the writer.

  2. Whakarongo ki ngā manu e tangi nā i te rākau.

    Listen to the birds calling in the tree there by you.

    The plural head does not change nā.

  3. He makariri te whare e noho nā kōrua.

    The house where you two are staying there is cold.

    The house supplies location; kōrua addresses two people.

How It Connects

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

e ... nāLevel 4An Event Near the Addressee

Learn This First

Shift the relative event's viewpoint toward the addressee's situation while retaining its participants. Postverbal nā associates the event with the listener; its position distinguishes it from initial ownership or actor-emphatic nā.