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Learn Maori

Speak te reo Māori with clear vowels, macrons and confident everyday sentences.

Free to start. Built from a single prompt. No credit card.

Te reo Māori is the Polynesian language of the Māori people of Aotearoa New Zealand and an official language there. Its alphabet uses 15 letters: five vowels, eight consonants and the digraphs wh and ng. Macrons mark long vowels and can carry grammar, so wahine means woman while wāhine means women. Grammar runs on particles: kei te marks the present, i the past and ka a new or future action. Pronouns separate one, two and many, and inclusive from exclusive we. Learnr builds a personalized Māori course from a single prompt and teaches it in short, interactive lessons.

How to learn Maori, step by step

Get the vowels and macrons right. Māori vowels are short and pure, and a macron doubles the length: compare wahine (woman) and wāhine (women). Mispronouncing vowels is the most noticeable beginner error, so drill them with audio before building vocabulary.
Practice wh, ng and the tapped r. Wh is usually pronounced like f, ng sounds like the ng in singer even at the start of a word, as in ngā, and r is a light tap. Say place names like Whanganui and Ngāruawāhia aloud until they flow.
Learn greetings and introduce yourself. Start with kia ora and tēnā koe, then build your pepeha, a short introduction naming your mountain, river and people. It anchors vocabulary and is used often in formal and community settings.
Build sentences with tense particles. Kei te pēhea koe? asks how you are, and kei te pai means fine. Use i for the past and ka for something new or upcoming. Short daily Learnr lessons let you swap particles and verbs until patterns feel automatic.
Learn pronouns and a and o possession. Pronouns have dual forms that split inclusive from exclusive: tāua is you and I, while māua is someone else and I. Possessives split into a and o categories, so tāku pukapuka (my book) but tōku whare (my house).
Listen to te reo in real settings. Māori radio, news programs and waiata (songs) give you natural speech, and kapa haka and marae events show the language in use. Local classes and community groups offer speaking practice.

What you'll learn

Pronounce Māori vowels, wh, ng and the tapped r correctly
Read and write words with macrons
Build sentences with kei te, i, ka and e ... ana
Use singular, dual and plural pronouns and a and o possessives
Introduce yourself with a pepeha and handle everyday conversation

What's inside your Maori course

A sample path Learnr builds for Maori. Your real course adapts to your goal and level.

1. Vowels, macrons and pronunciation
2. Greetings, karakia and introducing yourself
3. Sentence patterns with tense particles
4. Pronouns: singular, dual and plural
5. Possession with a and o categories
6. Pepeha, marae settings and conversation

How long does it take to learn Maori?

Pronunciation and greetings come within weeks. Everyday conversation usually takes 9 to 18 months at 30 to 60 minutes a day, and full fluency longer. Living in Aotearoa New Zealand with access to classes and Māori media speeds progress.

What you need before you start

No prior study is needed. Hawaiian, Tahitian or other Polynesian languages share many patterns, and respect for tikanga, Māori customs, matters as you learn.

Common mistakes to avoid

Dropping macrons in writing and speech, which changes word meanings; learn and type every word with its macrons.
Pronouncing wh as w and ng as n plus g, which sounds careless to native ears; practice both sounds with place names.
Learning words without the cultural setting, such as formal greetings on a marae; learn the tikanga that goes with the language.

How Learnr builds your course

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Maori questions, answered

How is te reo Māori pronounced?

Vowels are pure and short or long, wh is usually like f, ng is like the ng in singer and r is a light tap. Spelling is very regular, so pronunciation is predictable once you learn the rules.

Is Māori similar to Hawaiian?

Yes. Both are Polynesian languages with similar sounds, particles and pronouns, and many words are related, such as Māori whare and Hawaiian hale for house. They are separate languages, though.

Can I learn te reo Māori outside New Zealand?

Yes. Daily practice with a structured course, Māori radio and podcasts, and online classes all work from anywhere, though in-person community events add a lot.