Maori

[ mah-aw-ree, -oh-ree, mou-ree, mah-ree ]

/ ˈmɑ ɔ ri, -oʊ ri, ˈmaʊ ri, ˈmɑ ri /

Save This Word!

noun, plural Ma·o·ris, (especially collectively) Ma·o·ri for 1.

a member of the Native Polynesian population of New Zealand.

a Polynesian language, the language of the Maoris.

adjective

of or relating to the Maoris or their language.

QUIZ

WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?

Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!

Question 1 of 7

Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift.

who

whom

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Words nearby Maori

MAOI, Maoism, Mao jacket, Maoke Mountains, maomao, Maori, Māori Battalion, Māori bread, Māori bug, Māori bunk, Māori hen

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Maori in a sentence

Hoka One One is a phrase from the language of New Zealand’s indigenous Maori that loosely translates as “to fly over the earth.”
Ten Things You Didn’t Know About Hoka Running Shoes|jbeverly|July 27, 2022|Outside Online
Wagner’s team could find only a few historical examples of such twining, including borders on cloaks of the Maori people, an Indigenous group in New Zealand.
The world’s oldest pants stitched together cultures from across Asia|Bruce Bower|February 18, 2022|Science News
New Zealand-based streamer Broxh uses Twitch as a vehicle to keep Maori traditions alive.
The Twitch Renaissance|Emma Foster|July 15, 2021|Ozy
His followers and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern alike see him as a role model for showing youth how to make a living while helping to preserve Maori culture.
The Twitch Renaissance|Emma Foster|July 15, 2021|Ozy

In the case of the Whanganui River, tens of thousands of people have learned how the Maori tribes that live along the Whanganui treat the river as their ancestor and see themselves as its guardians.
Humans Have Rights and So Should Nature - Issue 94: Evolving|Grant Wilson|January 6, 2021|Nautilus
The Haka, a traditional Maori dance, is best known as the pregame ritual of the New Zealand All Blacks rugby team.
Cartoon Streetfights, Giant Mutant Spider Dogs, and More Viral Videos|Jack Holmes|September 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
However one Maori king has refused to meet the royals saying the 45-minute window he was allotted was not sufficiently respectful.
Kate, William and George’s Tour of Australasia, Key Dates|Tom Sykes|March 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Named after the Maori forest god, the largest living kauri has stretched to 167 feet in height in its 1200-plus years.
It’s a Big, Big World: Sights That Make You Feel Small|Lonely Planet|December 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Sollecito confesses his disdain and distrust of his Pugliese lawyer Tiziano Tedeschi and his Perugian lawyer Luca Maori.
Amanda Knox’s Ex Raffaele Sollecito Tells All in ‘Honor Bound’ Memoir|Barbie Latza Nadeau|September 18, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Garnish with purple Maori potato, vegetables and lightly fried kawakawa leaves.
The Maori Star Chef Rocking the South Pacific|Lea Lane Stern|April 2, 2011|DAILY BEAST
(For the purpose of these figures "Maori" means of the half-blood or more).
Report of the Special Committee on Moral Delinquency in Children and Adolescents|Oswald Chettle Mazengarb et al.
During this same period there were 1,433 non-Maori offenders, or 72 per cent of those delinquents.
Report of the Special Committee on Moral Delinquency in Children and Adolescents|Oswald Chettle Mazengarb et al.
She was down in the school registers as Sarah Moses, Maori, 16 years and three months.
Over the Sliprails|Henry Lawson
He saw the Maori come out strong in her face, and he knew the Maori had got the better of everything, husband and friends and all.
Stories by English Authors: Orient|Various
As in the Maori myth, one of the children of Heaven stood apart and did not consent to the deed.
Myth, Ritual, and Religion, Vol. 1|Andrew Lang

British Dictionary definitions for Maori

Māori

/ (ˈmaʊrɪ) /

noun

plural -ri or -ris a member of the people living in New Zealand and the Cook Islands since before the arrival of European settlers. They are descended from Polynesian voyagers who migrated in successive waves from the ninth century onwards

the language of this people, belonging to the Malayo-Polynesian family

adjective

of or relating to this people or their language

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012