ko wai
Identifying a Person
Ko wai can precede a role, a demonstrative phrase or a verbal predicate.
How It Works
Begin with ko wai to request an identity. A following role or demonstrative phrase identifies the person or group being asked about. A verbal predicate can establish an activity instead: Ko wai kei te waiata? asks who is singing. The predicate supplies tense and aspect; ko wai does not itself mean “who will”.
Wai has no gender or number ending, so Ko wai ēnā tāngata? can concern several people. Compare an identity answer, Ko Anahera tōku kaiako, with an actor-emphatic question. For suitable transitive past and prospective actions, nā wai … i and mā wai … e normally ask who performed or will perform the action. That preference does not extend universally to intransitive activities or nominal roles.
Examples (3)
- Ko wai tō kaiako?
Who is your teacher?
Requests the identity of a person occupying a role.
- Ko wai ēnā tāngata?
Who are those people?
The question concerns a plural group.
- Ko wai kei te waiata?
Who is singing?
The ongoing predicate establishes the activity.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Ask for the identity associated with a role, demonstrative group or activity. Ko wai works for one person or several; the following predicate establishes the activity's time and aspect, while suitable transitive responsibility questions retain their actor-emphatic frames.
Related Patterns
Practice ko wai in Bubblegum
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