Māro. 1. a. Stretched out, stiff. Ka maro a raua aho (T. 25). Ka maro te kaki o te kawau (P.).
2. Hard, solid. Ka maro te paru o tenei wahi, me kau tu.
3. Unyielding, headstrong.
4. Keeping steadily on one's course. Kia maro tonu te ihu o te waka ki reira (T. 116). Kia maro te haere.
5. n. Fathom, measured with the arms extended. Ko te whanui e toru maro (W. i, 11).
whakamārō, v.t. Extend, stretch. Ka whakamarokia te ika o te rangi (Pi. 175, 2).
mārōrō. 1. a. Somewhat stiff, etc.
2. Strong. E kore pea koe e maroro aianei.
3. n. Line used in marking out the plan of a house.
Williams Dictionary
Maro. 1. n. A sort of kilt or apron worn by males and females. He maro aute te maro o Whakatau (T. 59). The maro might be made of various materials other than aute, as above. He maro waero hoki (T. 15). He ao te rangi ka uhia; he tu, he maro taranga i taupi (P.). ‖ also 5, below. It was also made in various patterns, the maro kopua being highly ornamented, and worn by women of high rank; another pattern was the maro whaiapu. Ko te wahi koa i pai ai ia no te maro whaiapu (T. 15). The maro huka or maro tuhou was roughly made of leaves of karamu for use in certain ceremonies in time of war. Terms with regard to the use of the maro indicated whether a woman was married or single; thus maro kau and maro kore referred to a spinster, while maro nui and maro pūrua were applied to a married woman.
2. Material (moss, lichen, etc.) used by a woman at certain periods. No te haerenga o Apakura ki tatahi, ka whiua tona maro ki te moana (T. 57).
3. Fronds of fern, or twigs, used in certain rites, as rahui, or in connection with a new house. Ko te maro he rau otaota, kiwikiwi pea, aha ranei, ka apiti ki te kohatu, ko te aria tena o te tangata.—Ka mahia te whare, ka oti, ka poua te pou tahu o roto, ka whakamaua te maro ki runga hai taki i te mahana ki roto.—Kei te pou tuaroa te maro e tau ai au … kei te poutokomanawa te maro e tau ai au … kei te pou whakaotinga te maro tauria (M. 374).
4. A rite and incantation for success in war and other purposes. He maro taua (M. 221). Katahi ka wehea e ia te taha mo te taniwha, he maro; ka wehea hoki e ia te taha mo te hapuku (J. iii, 98). But in another version of this story recorded by Sir G. Grey the lady's maro were material: Tae atu ki nga maro, he aute ko te mea ma i te aroaro, ko te mea whero i te tuara (these were eaten by the taniwha and hapuku) (Pi. 135, 3). One such incantation was known as maro huka, that being the dress worn by the priest on the occasion of its recital.
5. v.t. Put on as amaro. Taenga atu ki te rimu o te kowhatu, motuhia ake, a marohia iho (Pi. 135, 3). Homai taku maro kia hurua kia marohia (T. 98). No te marohanga e te wahine he raupo, he toetoe, he kutakuta, he raurekau, he aha, he aha (M. lxxvii).
6. Perform the rites as in 3, above; maro huka being used for reciting the special maro for war. Ka huihui nga tohunga ki te tuaahu ka maro huka, ka tatua i te tuhou, ka whakatairangi.
Williams Dictionary
