Talking about our jobs in te reo Māori

You might want to talk about your mahi (job) in te reo Māori when you meet someone new.

We’ve found some useful sentences to get you started.

Let’s start with he pātai (a question).

Kei hea koe e mahi ana?

Where do you work?

Kei (organisation) ahau e mahi ana.

I work at (organisation).

Example

Kei Te Amorangi Mātauranga Matua ahau e mahi ana.

I work at the Tertiary Education Commission.

There is a formal and an informal way to talk about your job.

He aha tō tūranga mahi?

What’s your job?

He (job) taku tūranga mahi.

I work as a (job).

He (job) ahau.

I’m a (job).

Example

He kaihanga tākaro taku tūranga mahi.

I work as a game developer.

He kaihanga tākaro ahau.

I'm a game developer.

Curious about your job title in te reo Māori? Check our job profiles:

• Job profiles
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Sources

Thanks to Ian Cormack, director of Taumatua Māori Language Services, for editing te reo Māori in this article.

• MāoriLanguage.net website
• Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori website
• Te Whanake website
• Reo Māori website