Confession: our name has always had a double life. Kōura is the freshwater crayfish hiding under rocks in our awa. It's also the te reo word for gold. As you would expect - gold is what we focus on as a KiwiSaver provider, we aim to create gold for our members!

Money talk can feel like a foreign language at the best of times. So let's learn a few words in the one that belongs here. You don't need to be fluent, and nobody's marking you. Pick one kupu (word) a week, drop it into a conversation, and see who notices.

Karawhiua, give it heaps.

The kupu

Everyday money

Pūtea – money, funds. The workhorse of the list. If you learn one word today, make it this one. Your KiwiSaver is a pūtea with a long-term job to do.

Tahua – budget. It's the word used for the Government's annual Budget. For your household one, try mahere pūtea, literally a money plan. Less glamorous than Budget Day, far more useful.

Take action (hohenga): Write a mahere pūtea for the next month. Rent, kai, fun, savings. Ten minutes, one coffee.

Taurewa – debt or a loan. The word that turns up uninvited. The aim is to see a little less of it each year.

Huamoni – interest. Hua means fruit, so interest is the fruit your money grows. Lovely when you're earning it. Less lovely on a credit card, where it's someone else's fruit, grown from your tree.

Tāke – tax. Sounds a lot like the English, and is about as popular.

Mōkete – mortgage. Also borrowed from English, because no one wanted to invent a nice word for it.

Investing

Haumitanga – investment. What happens when pūtea stops sitting around and starts working.

Tūtanga pakihi – shares. A small slice of a business. Your KiwiSaver probably owns slices of thousands of them.

Tūraru – risk. Every investment carries some. The trick is choosing a level that suits how long until you need the money.

Take action (hohenga): Check your KiwiSaver fund still matches your timeframe. Decades to go? A bit more tūraru now can mean a bigger harvest later.

Tāmi ahumoni – inflation. Tāmi carries the sense of pressing down. That's inflation: quietly squashing what your money can buy. Investing is one way of pushing back.

Taiōhanga – economy. The big weather system your money lives in. You can't control it, but you can dress for it.

Mātauranga – knowledge. The most valuable asset on this list, and the only one that's tax-free.

Pop quiz (no pressure)

Match the kupu to its meaning. Answers below, no peeking.

1. Huamoni
2. Tūraru
3. Tahua
4. Kōura
5. Tāmi ahumoni

A. Budget · B. Inflation · C. Gold (and a crayfish) · D. Risk · E. Interest

Answers: 1E, 2D, 3A, 4C, 5B. Five out of five? Koia kei a koe, you've got this. Fewer? Tūwhitia te hopo and try again next week.

Want more? Te Aka Māori Dictionary has audio for every word, and reomaori.co.nz has heaps of free resources.

And if one of these kupu has you wondering about your own pūtea, patua te whakamā. Our team is here to help.

Ngā mihi nui from all of us at Kōura.

Disclaimer: Please note that the content provided in this article is intended as an overview and as general information only. While care is taken to ensure accuracy and reliability, the information provided is subject to continuous change and may not reflect current developments or address your situation. Before making any decisions based on the information provided in this article, please use your discretion and seek independent guidance.