hei ... mā / mō

An Intended Item for Someone

Level 5

Hei + item or role + mā/mō + beneficiary.

How It Works

Place the intended item or role after hei, followed by a beneficiary phrase with mā or mō. The a/o distinction reflects the beneficiary's relationship to the item. Food ordinarily belongs to the a category, while a home belongs to the o category; this is not a living-versus-nonliving distinction.

Singular personal forms combine preposition and pronoun, as in māu. Nonsingular pronouns remain separate: mō tātou. Neither hei nor the role noun acquires a number-agreement ending.

Compare Māu tēnei, “This is for you,” with Hei tina māu tēnei, which also identifies the intended meal. The construction expresses intended provision without asserting that the item has already been received or used. Category choice follows the relationship expressed rather than the beneficiary's number.

Examples (3)

  1. Hei tina māu tēnei.

    This is to be lunch for you.

    Tina names the meal; māu identifies its recipient.

  2. Hei kai mā ngā tamariki ēnei āporo.

    These apples are to be food for the children.

    Food uses the ordinary a-category relationship.

  3. Hei kāinga mō tātou tēnei whare.

    This house is to be a home for us.

    The home relationship uses mō; tātou includes the addressee.

How It Connects

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

hei ... mā / mōLevel 5An Intended Item for Someone

Learn This First

Combine an intended item or role with its beneficiary. Choose mā or mō from the expressed relationship, independently of beneficiary number, and distinguish intended provision from completed receipt or use.