Irish Grammar Book
Irish Grammar Book
gc
d nd
f bhf
g ng
P
bp
t
-
dt
The remai ni ng consonants cannot be ecli psed.
Ecl i psi s affects all vowel s in the same way:
a -> n-a
e - n-e
i - n-i
-> n-o
u - n-u
t before VOWELS and s
t (with hy p hen except when fol l owi ng vowel is a cap i tal l etter) can be
prefi xed to i ni ti al vowel s or s (wi thout hy phen):
t-a tA
t-e tE
t-i tl
t-o to
t-u tu
ts
h before VOWELS
h can be prefi xed to i ni ti al vowel s onl y:
ha
he
hi
ho
hu
Duri ng the course of thi s work frequent reference wi ll be made to these
i ni ti al mutati ons and what causes them.
15
BASIC GUIDE TO TERMINOLOGY USED IN IRISH GRAMMAR
Consonants
Broad and Sl ender Consonants
Each consonant has two qual i ti es i n I ri sh: broad (= non-pal atal i zed, leathan
in I ri sh); slender (= pal atal ized, caol in Irish).
General l y speaking, a consonant is said to be broad i f it is preceded or
fol lowed by a broad vowel (a / , / 6 , u / ) and slender if it is preceded
or fol lowed by a slender vowel (e / , i / i):
pg both p and g are broad,
focal f, and 1are all broad,
feoi l both f and 1are sl ender,
dei fi r d, f and r are all sl ender,
bean b is sl ender and n is broad.
Vowels
Long and Short Vowels
Each vowel has two values in Irish: short and long:
short vowel s: a, e, i, o, u
l ong vowel s: , , , ,
Slendering and Broadening
Slendering means maki ng a consonant slender w hi ch normal l y
entai l s si mply inserti ng an - i - before it:
bd - bi d
asal - asai l
Someti mes, however, thi s involv es a change to the precedi ng vowel (s) as well
al ong the fol l owi ng li nes:
(a )
-* ea -
->
- i - f e a r
->
f i r
-* e a - - i - c e a n n c i n n
- i o - - - i - f i o n n f i n n
(b ) - a - - i - a n i n
- a -
-
- i - b al
-
b i l
-* i a - - i - i a s c isc
16
(c) - o - - - s ol - sl
(d) i n p o l y s y l l a b i c w o r d s (a n d s o m e m o n o s y l l a b i c w o r d s ):
- (e)ach - (a)i gh
bacach
aonach
oi fi geach
bacai gh
aonai gh
oi fi gi gh
bei thi gh - i och - - igh bei thi och -i
[ *n o t e : th e r e a r e s o m e e x c e p ti o n s to th e s e r u l e s .]
Broadening m e a n s m a k i n g a c o n s o n a n t broad w h i c h n o r m a l l y e n ta i l s
s i m p l y r e m o v i n g th e -i - b e f o r e i t:
mthai r
abhai nn
mthar
abhann
Someti mes, however, thi s inv ol v es a change to the precedi ng vowel (s), al ong
the fol l owi ng li nes:
- ei -
- - ea - greim greama
- i - - ea - mil meal a
- i -
-
- ea - bi nn beann
- i - - - a - bi ci r - bi cara
- ui - - - cui d coda
- i - - - o - feadail feadai ol a
Syncopation
Syncopation m e a n s s i m p l y r e m o v i n g o n e o r m o r e v o w e l s o r a s y l l a b l e f r o m
th e m i d d l e o f a w o r d f o r s p e ci f i c g r a m m a ti ca l r e a s o n s .
cabhai r
obair
cabhrach
oi bre
17
Word Order i n I ri sh Sentences
General l y speaking, the word order i n a si mple sentence i n I ri sh is:
object
comp l ement
ad v erb phrase
Verb + Su bject + Other - '
mol ann an mi nteoi r an cai l i n
praises the teacher the girl
t an l go deas
is the day nice
thi ni g Sen inn
came J ohn yesterday
bhi Mi re ti nn
was Mary sick
d'i mi gh an bhean
departed the woman
n o t e : i n Engli sh the normal pattern is:
Su bject + Verb + Other
something
lovely
sold the dog yesterday
I
I t
The man
saw
was
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The verb i n Irish is preceded by verbal particl es (e.g. negati ve n i , n ,
i nterrogati v e a n , n a c h ), conju ncti ons (e.g. d , m , n u a i r ), interrogati ve
pronouns (e.g. c, ca d ), i nterrogati ve adjecti v es (e.g. c ), interrogati ve
adverbs (e.g. c a th a i n ), rel ati ve parti cl es (e.g. a(r )) etc:
VERB + SUBJECT + OTHER
n i i th e a n n a n ca i l i n f e o i l
not eats the girl meat
a n d t a n n a n f e a r a m a ch ?
?
goes the man out?
m l a n n a n ca t a n b a i n n e
i f
drinks the cat the milk
n u a i r a g h o i d a n g a d a i a n t-a i r g e a d
when stole the thi ef the money
c a g h o i d a n t- r ?
who stole the gol d?
ca d a d i r t a n t-a m a d n ?
what said the fool?
c a th a i n a th i n i g s a b h a i l e ?
when came he home?
Thi s normal word order can someti mes be altered for special reasons, e.g.
emphasi s:
i n n a th i n i g s!
yesterday came he!
ag m a g a d h a b h i si !
j oki ng VVI.S she!
19
THE DEFINITE ARTICLE
There is no indefinite article i n I ri sh. The noun standi ng al one consti tutes
an i ndefi ni te noun:
fear = (a) man bean = (a) woman bi steach = rain
There are two forms of the definite article i n I rish: an and na.
an
na
- is used onl y i n the si ngular
is used i n nom./acc., gen. and dat. cases wi th mascul i ne nouns
__is used i n nom./acc. and dat. cases wi th femi ni ne nouns
aduai dh
si ar
IARTHAR W
th i a r
a n i a r
- soir
E OIRTHEAR
th o i r
a n o i r
d heas
theas
S
aneas
i *
DEISCEART
Exampl es:
rachai mi d soi r Ghai l l i mh go Bail e tha Cl i ath i nni u agus ti ocfai mi d anoi r
ars amrach
we will go east(wards) from Galway to Dublin today and we will return (li t.
come from the east) again tomorrow
rachai mi d thu ai d h Ghai l l i mh go Sl igeach i nni u agus ti ocfai mi d ad uai dh
ars amrach
we will go north{wards) from Galway to Sligo today and we will return (li t.
come from the north) again tomorrow
rachai mi d si ar Bhai l e tha Cl i ath go Gai l l i mh i nni u agus ti ocfai mi d ani ar
ar s amrach
we will go westwards) from Dubl i n to Galway today and we will return
(l i t. come from the west) again tomorrow
rachai mi d dheas Shl i geach go Corcai gh i nni u agus ti ocfai mi d aneas aris
amrach
we will go southwards) from Sligo to Cork today and we will return (lit.
come from the south) again tomorrow
105
EMPHATIC SUFFIXES
Emp hati c su ffi xes are added to nouns and adjecti v es (when preceded by
possessi ve adjecti v es), preposi ti onal pronouns and sy ntheti c forms of the
verb. The vari ous forms they assume are:
1 sg.
2 sg.
sa / - se
sa / - se
1 pi.
3 sg. masc. - san / - sean 2 pi.
3 sg. fem. - sa / - se 3 pi.
- na / - ne (with verb/
adjecti v e/noun)
- e (wi th 1 pi. prep. pron. and
si nn)
- sa / - se
- san / - sean
The broad suffixes ( - sa / - san / - na) are used when the precedi ng
consonant or vowel is broad.
The sl end er suffixes (- se / - sean / - ne / - e) are used when the precedi ng
consonant or vowel is sl ender.
Exampl es:
mo cheannsa
do cheannsa
a cheannsan
a ceannsa
r gci nn-ne
bhur gci nnse
a gci nnsean
mo chi sti nse
do chi sti nse
a chi sti nsean
a ci sti nse
r gci sti n-ne
bhur gci sti nse
a gci sti nsean
mo chos-sa
do chos-sa
a chos-san
a cos-sa
r gcosana
bhur gcosasa
a gcosasan
More exampl es:
mo theachsa
a athai r mrsan
dramarna
is l i nne
mo chai rdese
a bpi st ci i nesean
rachai mi dne amach
si nne a bhi ann
n o t e : a hy p hen precedes these emphati c suffixes when the precedi ng word
ends i n the same consonant as the emphati c suffix:
mo chs-sa r n-oi l en-na a cui s-se
106
PRONOUNS
PRONOUN AS OBJECT OF VERBAL NOUN
I n I rish, a pronoun cannot be used as the di rect object of a verbal noun e.g.
ag d an amh / doing it, ag mol ad h me / prai si ng me, ag bual ad h i ad /
beati ng them.
I nstead, a di fferent constructi on is used, viz. prep. *do / ag + possessi ve
adjecti v e + verbal noun, wi th appropri ate changes and mutati ons.
*n o t e : the preposi ti ons ag and do can i nterchange except i n 3rd sg./pl .
The pattern is as fol lows:
*do / ag mo mhol adh prai si ng me
*do / ag do mhol adh prai si ng you (sg.)
mhol ad h prai si ng hi m, it
mol adh prai si ng her, it
dr / ag r mol adh prai si ng us
do / ag bhu r mol adh prai si ng you (pi.)
mol adh prai si ng them
*n o t e : do m' / do d' before a verbal noun whi ch begi ns wi th a vowel or f +
vowel :
do m'agai rt i mploring me
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PRONOUN - EA
Thi s is a 3 sg. neuter pronoun w hi ch can only be used wi th the copula.
n o t e : i t does not transl ate the ordi nary it i n Engli sh as that is transl ated by
the mascul i ne or femi ni ne pronouns in Irish.
Usage:
It is often used for purposes of emphasi s, the i nformati on emphasi sed bei ng
pl aced at the head of the sentence fol lowed by the posi ti ve, i ndependent
form of the copul a (i n appropri ate tense), then by ea and then by the subject
(noun, pronoun or other):
mi nteoi r is ea he is a teacher
fal si r is ea na Gaeil the I rish are lazy
thal l i Sasana is ea at s over in Engl and is where he is
It is also used wi th the copul a i n a y es/n o context:
an doras si n? is that a door?
*is ea / ni hea yes / no
an fui nneog i si n? is that a window?
is ea / ni hea yes / no
an amadn Sen? is J ohn a fool?
is ea / ni hea yes / no
an leabhar mai th ? is it a good book?
is ea / ni hea yes / no
*n o t e : is ea is often contracted to sea i n speech.
108
SUBJECT PRONOUNS
The fol l owi ng pronouns are used when they are the su bject of the verb:
m /
t you (sg.)
s he, it (masc.)
si she, it (fem.)
muid / si nn we
si bh you (pi.)
siad they
n o t e : I ri sh does not need a word for it si nce all objects are ei ther mascul i ne
or femi ni ne and are referred to as he or she. n o t e a l s o : the subject pronoun
is not used wi th sy ntheti c forms of the verb:
chual a m an glr is m a thi ni g i steach
ri nne t is t an t-amadn
danann s an obai r n or i th s an bia
d'l si an deoch ni i meoi dh si anois
All the above can be used wi th the cop u l a except s, si and si ad.
OBJECT PRONOUNS
The fol l owi ng pronouns are used when they are the object of the verb:
me
th
mui d / si nn
si bh
iad
I, me
you (sg.)
he, hi m, it (masc.)
she, her, it (fem.)
we, us
you (pi.)
they, them
chual a s m
chonai c m th
fuai r m
phg m
is me a ri nne e
ai thn m th
is a bh ann
is at ag teacht
All the above can be used wi th the cop u l a except th .
109
EMPHATI C SUBJECT PRONOUNS
mise
tusa
seisean
sise
mui dne / si nne
si bhse
siadsan
you (sg.)
he, it (masc.)
she, it (fem.)
we
you (pi.)
they
chual a mi se
ri nne tusa sin
danann sei sean
d'l si se a deoch fi n
is mi se a thi ni g i steach
is si bhse na hamadi n
ni or i th si ad san an bia
ni mu i d ne a ri nne
All the above can be used wi th the cop u l a except sei sean, si se and si adsan.
EMPHATIC OBJECT PRONOUNS
mise
thusa
ei sean
ise
mui dne / si nne
si bhse
iadsan
I , me
you (sg.)
he, hi m, it (masc.)
she, her, it (fem.)
we, us
you (pi.)
they, them
chual a s mi se
chonai c m thu sa
bhuai l m ei sean
ise a dirt
gabh thu sa amach!
is mu i d ne a ri nne
ai thni m thu sa
is i ad san a bhi ann
ni ei sean a ri nne
luigh thu sa sios!
All the above can be used wi th the cop u l a except thusa.
thu sa is also used instead of an emphati c suffix wi th a verb i n the i mperati v e
mood.
110
DEMONSTRATIVES
seo this (pi . these)
si n that (pi . those)
sid / d that, yon(der) (pi. those, yon(der))
They are used as the di rect object of a tr a n s i ti v e verb (but not of a verbal
noun):
dan si n anois! do that now!
i th seo l i threach! eat this immediately!
n crei d si d! don't believe that!
n o te : to make a demonstrati v e the di rect object of a verbal noun (e .g . doing
this, saying that, prai si ng those), use (fol lowed by appropri ate mutati on
after various 3rd sg., masc. and fem., 3rd pi. poss. adj.) + v e r b a l n o u n +
d e m o n s tr a ti v e :
dhanamh seo
mol adh si n
gci neadh si d
doing this (sg., masc.)
prai si ng that (sg., fem.)
fi ndi ng faul t with those
They are used at the begi nni ng of a phrase or sentence wi th the copula
understood, mostl y to i nd i cate peop l e/thi ngs or for purposes of
hi ghl i ghti ng:
seo () mo mhthai r
si n dei readh anoi s
seo () do sheans
si d (i) an fhi ri nne
this is my mother
that is all now
this is your chance
that is the truth
They are most commonl y used preceded by the defi ni te arti cl e and noun:
an fear seo
an bhean si n
n dui ne d *
na fir seo
na mn si n
na daoi ne d *
this man
that woman
from yonder person
these men
those women
yonder people
n o t e : *d is used instead of si d i n thi s case.
I l l
They are used w i th the 3rd sg./pl . preposi ti onal pronouns w hi ch precede
them:
thai r i s seo
ag c a i n t f i thi si n
ta b h a i r d i bh si d !
r oi mhe seo
l ei s si n
ag d r i or thu si d
t b r n o r m faoi si n
past this
talking about that person (fem.)
give it to them!
before this
with that, thereupon
focusi ng on those
I am sorry about that
They are used wi th the 3rd sg./pl . object and subject pronouns (s ) , (s )i ,
(s )i a d :
t s seo r i d h
c h o n a i c m si n
a n b h f u i l si si n ti n n ?
a n b h f a ca t i si n?
c b h f u i l si ad si d?
i ad si d, a n e a?
this is ready
I saw that (one) (masc.)
is she (emph.) / that one (fem.) sick?
di d you see her (emph.) / that one? ( fem.)
where are they (emph.) / those?
do you mean them (emph.) / those ones?
They are commonl y used after the interrogati v e parti cl es c / ca d fol l owed by
the 3rd sg./pl . object pronouns:
c h i s e o ?
ca d s e o ?
c h i a d s i n ?
who is this? (fem.)
what is this?
who are they?
s e o i s c o m m o n l y u s e d i n th e f o l l o w i n g p h r a s e s :
s e o d h u i t
s e o d h a o i b h
here you are (sg.)
here you are (pi .)
n o t e : th e i n i ti a l o f si n is l e n i te d i n th e p h r a s e s h i n = ago:
f a d a s h i n
s e a c h ta i n s h i n
long ago
a week ago
112
h BEFORE VOWELS
NOUNS
h is prefi xed to i ni ti al vowel s of nouns after:
1 the forms of the arti cl e na:
(a) i n the geni ti v e si ngul ar femi ni ne:
trasna na habhann across the river
ag danamh na hoi bre doing the work
(b) i n the nomi nati v e / accusati ve / dativ e pl ural :
t na hi n i na gcodl adh the birds are sleeping
mharai gh m na hi sc I killed the fish
amui gh ar na hoi l ei n out on the islands
2 the preposi ti ons go and le:
it go hi t from pl ace to pl ace
l e hr agus l e hai rgead with gol d and silver
3 the 3rd si ngular, femi ni ne, possessi ve adjecti v e a:
a hathai r her father
a hi ni on her daughter
4 D i n case of Friday:
D hAoi ne on Friday
5 the negati v e form of the copul a ni i n certai n cases:
ni hi onadh it is no wonder
n hamhi n si n not only that
ni hi onann it is not the same thing
6 i n surnames:
Sen hUi gi nn J ohn Higgins
113
7 The i nterrogati ve c:
c h i t where? c h u a i r ? when?
n o t e : c c a n o n l y b e u s e d w i th a f e w n o u n s .
8 ordi nal numbers except c(h)ad:
a n d ara h i t the second pl ace
a n tr h a s a l the thi rd donkey
9 the cardi nal numbers from 3 unti l 6 w hen the pl ural form of the noun is
used:
tr i h u a i n three lambs
cei thr e h u a i r e four times
ci g h i te a n n a five places
ADJECTIVES, NUMBERS, PRONOUNS
h is prefi xed to i ni ti al vowel s
1 of adjecti v es after c, chomh, l e, go:
c hard ? how high is it?
ch omh hl ai nn leo! how beauti ful they are!
le haon chui di with any help
go hard sa spir high in the sky
2 of cardi nal numbers aon and och t after a (the parti cl e used w i th non-
adjecti v al numeral s) and the defi ni te arti cl e na:
a haon a chl og one o' clock
a hocht n a naoi eight or ni ne
na hocht n-asal the eight donkeys
sneachta na haon oi che the one ni ght snow
3 of num. adjecti v e aon after ni :
ni haon i ontaoi bh he is not to be trusted
ni haon ghai sce it is no great achi evement
ni haon di th n it is no joke
114
4 of pronouns , i , i a d , e a * after c , ni , l e :
c h / h i / h i a d ? who is he / she / are they?
ni h / h i / h i a d / h e a * not he / her / them, no
l e h / h i / h i a d a m h a r to kill hi m / her / them
5 i n phrases:
ni h a n s a
ni h a m h i n
ni h i o n a n n
n i h a m h l a i d h
*onl y wi th ni
it is not difficult
not only
is not the same
not so
6 of verb i n i mperati v e mood after negati v e parti cl e n:
n h l s i n ! don't dri nk that!
n h i th a n t-a r n ! don't eat the bread!
115
t BEFORE VOWELS AND s
After the si ngular defi ni te arti cl e an i n the nom./acc. si ngul ar, t- (with
hy phen except before capi tal l etter) is prefi xed to:
(a) i ni ti al vowel s of mascul i ne nouns:
fei ci m an t-asal
t an t-r sa mhl a
i th an t-im!
t an tAi freann thart
I see the donkey
the gol d is in the hag
eat the butter!
the Mass is over
(b) i ni ti al vowel s of aon, aon, *ocht, ocht, ochtd , ocht (except in
a geni ti v e si tuati on):
an t-aon l / bhean (amhi n)
an t-aon fear / hit
an t-ocht fear / bean
an t-ochtd fear / hi t
an t-ocht fear / hi t
cui r i steach an *t-ocht!
the one day / woman
the fi rst man / pl ace
the eighty men / women
the eightieth man / pl ace
the eighth man / pl ace
put in the eight
* Onl y i n special ci rcumstances
2 After the si ngular defi ni te arti cl e an , t (wi thout hy phen) is prefi xed to
i ni ti al s + vowel , si , sn, sr + vowel :
(a) i n the nom./acc. and dat. cases of femi ni ne, si ngular nouns:
an tsi l seo
uair sa tseachtai n
ar an tsrid
this eye
once a week
on the street
(b) i n the gen. case of mascul i ne, si ngul ar nouns:
teach an tsagairt
doras an tsi opa
(c) i n the gen. case of s, seacht:
the priest's house
the shop door
airgead an ts fear / an ts fir the si xth man's money
i ri th an tseacht mi
(d) i n the gen. case of sei sear, seachtar:
airgead an tsei sear ban
obai r an tseachtar mi nteoi r
duri ng the seventh month
the six womens money
the seven teachers' work
116
THE VERB
The I rish verb has four tenses, present, futu re, past and past conti nu ou s /
h abi tu al / progressi v e ( = i mp erfect).
The I rish verb has three moods (four i f one counts the i nd i cati v e),
i mp erati v e, con d i ti on al and su bju ncti v e.
The I rish verb has three persons and two numbers, 1st sg./pl ., 2nd sg./pl .,
3rd sg./pl .
Person in the verbal form is marked by a sy n th eti c form of the verb, viz. the
subject pronoun is suffixed to the verb, e.g. cui ri m (I put), cui rfi mi d (we will
put), chui rfe (you would put) or by an an al y ti c form of the verb, viz. the
subject pronoun is separate from the verb, e.g. ch u i r i n (I put), cu i r eann
si ad (they put), chu i r fead h si bh (you (pi .) would put).
Sy ntheti c forms of verbs, i n conju ncti on someti mes wi th i ni ti al mutati ons,
i ndi cate person, number and tense. General l y speaking, the anal y ti c forms
of the verb are more wi dely used than the sy ntheti c forms i n Irish and
progressiv ely more so as one proceeds northwards i n I reland.
THE IMPERSONAL FORM OF THE VERB
The I rish verb has an impersonal or passive ( = autonomous) form i n every
tense. Thi s passive form of the verb i ndi cates that somethi ng is done
w i thout speci fyi ng who does it:
l ad h an bai nne ari r the milk was drunk last night
d antar an obai r gach l the work is done every day
THE RELATIVE FORM OF THE VERB
Connaught and Ulster often use a special r el ati v e form of the verb but onl y
i n the present and future tenses.
There are regular verbs i n Irish, ten irregul ar verbs and the two verbs to be,
viz. the substanti v e verb bi and the copul a is.
I rish verbs are usual ly li sted i n di cti onari es under thei r 2nd singular,
i mperati v e forms:
mol bris ith
GENERAL
117
TH E I N DEPEN DEN T AN D DEPEN DEN T FORMS OF TH E V ERB
The independent form of the verb is that w hi ch is used:
(a) when the verb stands al one, i .e. not preceded by any verbal parti cl e:
tar i steach! come i n!
fei ci m I see hi m
thi ni g s i nn he came yesterday
(b) when preceded by (in a posi ti v e context), m, mar (= because), i r
(because), c, cathai n , a (direct rel. part.) etc:
bhi s anseo si nce he was here
m thagann si anoi s i f she conies now
mar t siad ann because they are there
i r d'i mi gh s because he left
The dependent form of the verb is that w hi ch is used after the preverbal
parti cl es ni (or), an / ar, go / gur, nach / nr, sula(r), mura(r), a(r) (indi r. rel.
parti cl e) etc:
n rai bh s anseo
sula dti ocfai dh si
an bhfui l t go mai th?
murar imi gh s
TH E REG U L A R V ERB
There are two conjugations (= categori es) of regular verbs in I rish, viz. the first
conjugati on and the second conjugati on.
The first conjugati on consi sts of verbs:
(a) wi th monosy l l abi c roots:
mol bris
(b) wi th pol ysyl l abi c roots endi ng i n -i l and some other pol ysyl l abi c
verbs:
sbhi l rechti l
he was not here
before she comes
are you well?
unless he left
118
() wi th pol ysyl l abi c roots other than those i n (b):
ti oni l adhl ai c
The second conjugati on consi sts of verbs:
(a) wi th pol ysyl l abi c roots endi ng in - (a)igh:
ceannai gh crui nni gh
(b) wi th pol ysyl l abi c roots endi ng i n- (a)il , - (a)i n, - (a)ir, - (a)i s w hi ch
are syncopated when conjugated:
i mi r i ni s ceangai l
(c) wi th pol ysyl l abi c roots w hi ch are not syncopated when conjugated:
freastai l tarraing
I n the fol l owi ng tabl es, exampl es for each conjugati on consi st of verbs whi ch
end i n broad and sl ender roots:
broad mol ceannai gh
sl ender cui r crui nni gh
119
The Present Tense
F i r s t C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 1 (A )
Broad Sl end er
1 sg. mol ai m cui ri m
2 sg. mol ann t cui reann t
3 sg. mol ann s, si cui reann s, si
l p i . mol ai mi d cui ri mi d
2 pi. mol ann si bh cui reann si bh
3 pi. mol ann siad cui reann siad
Passive mol tar cui rtear
Fi r s t C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 1 (B)
Broad Sl end er
1 sg. rechtl ai m ti omi ni m
2 sg. rechtl ann t ti omi neann t
3 sg. rechtl ann s, si ti omi neann s, s
l p l . rechtl ai mi d ti omi ni mi d
2 pi. rechtl ann si bh ti omi neann si bh
3 pi. rechtl ann siad ti omi neann siad
Passive rechti l tear ti omi ntear
To form the present tense, add - (a)i m, - (a)imi d, - (e)ann t / s / si / si bh /
siad to the root for personal forms and - t(e)ar for the i mpersonal or passive
forms.
There are onl y two sy ntheti c forms of the verb i n the present tense, viz. 1 sg.
- (a)im, 1 pi. - (a)imi d.
not e: the -t- i n rechtiltear is slender.
not e: a rel ati ve endi ng - (e)as (or v ari ant thereof) is wi dely used i n Ulster and
Connaught.
120
The Present Tense
Se c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 (A)
Broad Slender
1 sg. ceannai m crui nni m
2 sg. ceannai onn t cru i nni onn t
3 sg. ceannai onn s, si cru i nni onn s, si
1 pi. ceannai mi d crui nni mi d
2 pi. ceannai onn si bh cru i nni onn si bh
3 pi. ceannai onn siad cru i nni onn siad
Passive ceannai tear cru i nni tear
Se c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 (B)
Broad Slender
1 sg. l abhrai m i mri m
2 sg. l abhrai onn t i mri onn t
3 sg. l abhrai onn s, si i mri onn s, si
1 pi. l abhrai mi d i mri mi d
2 pi. l abhrai onn si bh i mri onn sibh
3 pi. l abhrai onn siad i mri onn siad
Passive l abhrai tear i mri tear
To form the present tense, add - (a)m, - (a)mid, - (a)onn t / s / si / sibh /
siad to the root for personal forms and - (a)itear for the i mpersonal or passive
forms.
There are onl y two sy ntheti c forms of the verb in the present tense, viz. 1 sg.
- (a)im, 1 pi. - (a)imid.
not e: a rel ati ve endi ng - (a)ios (or v ari ant thereof) is wi dely used i n Ulster
and Connaught.
121
The Past Tense
F i r s t C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 1 (A )
Broad Slender
1 sg. mhol m chui r m
2 sg. mhol t chui r tu
3 sg. mhol s, si chui r s, si
l p i . mhol amar chui reamar
2 pi. mhol si bh chui r si bh
3 pi. mhol siad chui r siad
Passive mol adh cui readh
F i r s t C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 1 (B)
Broad Slender
1 sg. rechti l m thi omi n m
2 sg. rechti l t thi omi n t
3 sg. rechti l s, s thi omi n s, s
l p l . rechtl amar thi omi neamar
2 pi. rechti l si bh thi omi n si bh
3 pi. rechti l siad thi omi n siad
Passive rechtl adh ti omi neadh
To form the past tense, l eni te the i ni ti al consonant of the verb and prefi x d'
i f the i ni ti al l etter is f or a vowel , e.g. d'fhg, dl.
The onl y sy ntheti c form of the verb i n the past tense is 1 pi. - (e)amar and
- (e)adh is the passive endi ng.
In the passive forms, the i ni ti al consonant of the regular verb is never l eni ted
and i ni ti al f and vowel s remai n unaffected, e.g. l adh, fgadh.
122
The Past Tense
Se c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 (A )
Broad Slender
1 sg. cheannai gh m chrui nni gh m
2 sg. cheannai gh t chrui nni gh t
3 sg. cheannai gh s, si chrui nni gh s, si
1 pi. cheannai omar chru i nni omar
2 pi. cheannai gh si bh chrui nni gh si bh
3 pi. cheannai gh siad chrui nni gh siad
Passive ceannai od h cru i nni od h
S e c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 (B)
Broad Slender
1 sg. l abhai r m d'i mi r m
2 sg. labhai r t d'i mi r t
3 sg. labhai r s, si d'i mi r s, si
1 pi. l abhrai omar d 'i mri omar
2 pi. l abhai r si bh d'i mi r si bh
3 pi. l abhai r siad d i mi r siad
Passive l abhrai odh i mri odh
The onl y sy ntheti c form of the verb i n the past tense is 1 pi. - (a)i omar and
- (a)i odh is the passive endi ng.
123
The Future I 'ense
F i r s t C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 1 (A)
Broad Slender
1 sg. mol fai d h m cui rfi d h m
2 sg. mol fai d h t cui rfi d h t
3 sg. mol fai d h s, si cui rfi d h s, si
l p l . mol fai mi d cui rfi mi d
2 pi. mol fai d h si bh cui rfi dh sibh
3 pi. mol fai d h siad cui rfi d h siad
Passive mol far cui rfear
F i r s t C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 1 (B)
Broad Slender
1 sg. rechtl fai d h m ti omi nfi d h m
2 sg. rechtl fai d h t ti omi nfi d h t
3 sg. rechtl fai dh s, s ti omi nfi d h s, s
1 pi. rechtl fai mi d ti omi nfi mi d
2 pi. rechtl fai d h si bh ti omi nfi d h si bh
3 pi. rechtl fai d h siad ti omi nfi d h siad
Passive rechtl far ti omi nfear
To form the future tense, add - f(a)idh m / t / s / si / sibh / siad, - f(a)imid
to the root for personal forms and - f(e)ar for the passive forms.
There is onl y one sy ntheti c form of the verb i n the future tense, viz. 1 pi.
- f(a)imid.
not e: a rel ati ve endi ng - f(e)as is used i n Ulster and Connaught.
124
The Future Tense
Se c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 (A)
Broad Slender
1 sg. ceanni d h m crui nneoi d h m
2 sg. ceanni d h t cru i nneoi d h t
3 sg. ceanni d h s, s cru i nneoi d h s, s
1 pi. ceanni mi d crui nneoi mi d
2 pi. ceanni d h si bh crui nneoi d h si bh
3 pi. ceanni d h siad cru i nneoi d h siad
Passive ceannfar crui nneofar
Se c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 (B)
Broad Slender
1 sg. l abhri d h m i mreoi d h m
2 sg. l abhri d h t i mreoi d h t
3 sg. l abhri d h s, s i mreoi d h s, s
1 pi. l abhri mi d i mreoi mi d
2 pi. l abhri d h sibh i mreoi dh si bh
3 pi. l abhri d h siad i mreoi d h siad
Passive l abhrfar i mreofar
To form the future tense, add - i dh m / t / s / si / si bh / siad, - i mi d
(broad) and - eoi dh m / t / s / si / si bh / si ad, - eoi mi d (sl ender) to the root
for personal forms and - far or - eofar for the passive forms.
There is onl y one sy ntheti c form of the verb in the future tense, viz. 1 pi.
- i m i d / - e o i m i d .
n o t e : a rel ati ve endi ng - s or - e o s is used i n Ulster and Connaught.
125
The Con d i ti on al Mood
F i r s t C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 1 (A)
Broad Slender
1sg. mhol fai nn chu i rfi nn
2 sg. mhol f chui rfe
3 sg. mhol fad h s, si chui rfead h s, si
1pi. mhol fai mi s chu i rfi mi s
2 pi. mhol fad h si bh chui rfead h si bh
3 pi. mhol fai d i s chui rfi d i s
Passive mhol fai chui rfi
Fi r s t C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 1 (B)
Broad Slender
1 sg. rechtl fai nn thi omi nfi nn
2 sg. rechtl f thi omi nfe
3 sg. rechtl fadh s, si thi omi nfead h
1 P1
rechtl fai mi s thi omi nfi mi s
2 pi. rechtl fadh si bh thi omi nfead h
3 pi. rechtl fai di s thi omi nfi d i s
Passive rechtl fai thi omi nfi
To form the condi ti onal mood, l eni te the i ni ti al consonant of the verb and
prefi x d' i f the i ni ti al l etter is f or a vowel , e.g. d'fhgfadh, d'l fadh.
The personal endi ngs are - f(a)i nn, - f(e), - f(e)adh s / si / si bh, - f(a)i mi s,
- f(a)idis and - f(a)i for the passive forms.
There are four sy ntheti c forms of the verb i n the condi ti onal mood, viz. 1 sg.
- f(a)i nn, 2 sg. - f(e), 1 pi. - f(a)i mi s, 3 pi. - f(a)idi s.
126
The Con d i ti on al Mood
Se c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 (A)
Broad Slender
1 sg. chean ni nn chru i nneoi nn
2 sg. cheannf chrui nneof
3 sg. cheannd h s, si chrui nneod h s, s
1 pi. cheanni mi s chru i nneoi mi s
2 pi. cheannd h si bh chru i nneod h si bh
3 pi. cheanni d s chrui nneoi d s
Passive cheannfa chru i nneofa
Se c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 ()
Broad Slender
1 sg. l abhri nn d i mreoi nn
2 sg. l abhrf d 'i mreof
3 sg. l abhrdh s, si d i mreodh s, si
l p l . l abhri mi s d'i mreoi mi s
2 pi. l abhrdh si bh d'i mreod h si bh
3 pi. I abhri d s d i mreoi d s
Passive l abhrfa d i mreofa
To form the cond i ti onal mood, add - i n n , - f , - d h s / s i / s i b h , - i m i s ,
- i d s (broad) and - e o i n n , - e o f , - e o d h s / s i / s i b h , - e o i m i s , - e o i d i s
(sl ender) to the root for personal forms and - f a or - e o f a i for the passive
forms.
There are four sy ntheti c forms of the verb in the condi ti onal mood, viz. 1 sg.
- i n n / - e o i n n , 2 sg. - f / - e o f , 1 pi. - i m i s / - e o i m i s , 3 pi. - i d s /
- e o i d i s .
127
The Past H abi tu al Tense
F i r s t C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 1(A )
Broad Slender
1 sg. mhol ai nn chu i ri nn
2 sg. mhol t chui rte
3 sg. mhol ad h s, si chui read h s, si
1 pi. mhol ai mi s chui ri mi s
2 pi. mhol ad h si bh chui read h si bh
3 pi. mhol ai d i s chui ri di s
Passive mhol tai chui rti
F i r s t C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 1 (B)
Broad Slender
1 sg. rechtl ai nn thi omi ni nn
2 sg. rechti l te thi omi nte
3 sg. rechtl adh s, si thi omi nead h
1 Pi
rechtl ai mi s thi omi ni mi s
2 pi. rechtl adh si bh thi omi nead h
3 pi. rechtl ai d s thi omi ni d s
Passive rechti l t thi omi nt
To form the past habi tual tense, l eni te the i ni ti al consonant of the verb and
prefi x d' i f the i ni ti al l etter is f or a vowel , e.g. d 'fhgad h, d 'l ad h.
The personal endi ngs are - (a)i nn, - t(e), - (e)adh s / si / si bh, - (a)imi s,
- (a)idis and - t(a)i for the passive forms.
There are four sy ntheti c forms of the verb i n the past habi tual tense, viz. 1
sg. - (a)inn, 2 sg. - t(e), 1 pi. - (a)imis, 3 pi. - (a)idis.
n o t e : the sl ender - 1 - i n rechti l t .
128
Th e Pas t H a b i tu a l Te n s e
Se c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 (A)
Broad Sl end er
1 sg. cheannai nn chr u i nni nn
2 sg. cheanna te chrui nn te
3 sg. cheanna od h s, si chru i nn od h s, si
1 Pi
cheannai mi s chrui nni mi s
2 pi. cheannai od h si bh chru i nni od h si bh
3 pi. cheannai d i s chrui nni d i s
Passive cheannai ti chru i nni ti
Se c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 (B)
Broad Sl end er
1 sg. l abhrai nn d 'i mri nn
2 sg. l abhra te d 'i mri te
3 sg. l abhrai odh s, si d'i mr od h s, si
1 pi. l abhrai mi s d'i mri mi s
2 pi. l abhrai od h si bh d 'i mri od h si bh
3 pi. l abhrai di s d'i mri di s
Passive l abhrai ti d'i mri ti
To form the past habi tual tense, add - (a)i nn, - (a)ite, - (a)i odh s / si / si bh,
- (a)i mi s, - (a)idis to the root for personal forms and - (a)i ti for the passive
forms.
There are four sy ntheti c forms of the verb in the past habi tual tense, viz. 1
sg. - (a)inn, 2 sg. - (a)te, 1 pi. - (a)imis, 3 pi. - (a)idis.
129
The I mp er ati v e Mood
F i r s t C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y
1 (A)
Broad Slender
1 sg. mol ai m cui ri m
2 sg. mol cui r
3 sg. mol adh s, si cui readh s, si
l p l . mol ai mi s cui ri mi s
2 pi. mol ai gi cui ri gi
3 pi. mol ai di s cui ri di s
Passive mol tar cui rtear
F i r s t C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 1 (B)
Broad Slender
1 sg. rechtl ai m ti omi ni m
2 sg. rechti l ti omi n
3 sg. rechtl adh s, si ti omi nead h s, s
l p l . rechtl ai mi s ti omi ni mi s
2 pi. rechtl ai g ti omi ni g
3 pi. rechtl ai d s ti omi ni d i s
Passive rechti l tear ti omi ntear
To form the i mperati v e mood, add - (a)i m, - (e)adh s / si, - (a)i mi s, - (a)igi,
- (a)idis to the root for personal forms and - t(e)ar for the passive forms.
There are four sy ntheti c forms of the verb i n the imperati v e mood, viz. 1 sg.
- (a)im, 1 pi. - (a)imis, 2 pi . - (a)igi, 3 pi. - (a)idis.
n o t e : the - 1 - i n rechti l tear is sl ender.
130
The I mp erati v e Mood
Se c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 (A)
Broad Slender
1 sg. ceannai m cru i nni m
2 sg. ceannai gh crui nni gh
3 sg. ceanna od h s, si cru i nn od h s, si
l p l . ceannai mi s cru i nni mi s
2 pi. ceannai gi crui nni gi
3 pi. ceannai d i s crui nni di s
Passive ceannai tear cru i nni tear
Se c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 (B)
Broad Slender
1 sg. l abhrai m i mri m
2 sg. l abhai r i mi r
3 sg. l abhrai od h s, si i mr odh s
l pl . l abhrai mi s i mri mi s
2 pi. l abhrai gi i mri gi
3 pi. l abhrai di s i mri di s
Passive l abhrai tear i mri tear
To form the i mperati v e mood, add - (a) m, - (a) odh s / si, - (a)i mi s, - (a)igi ,
- (a)i di s to the root for personal forms and - (a)i tear for the passive forms.
There are four sy ntheti c forms of the verb i n the i mperati v e mood, viz. 1 sg.
- (a)im, 1 pi. - (a)imis, 2 pi . - (a)igi, 3 pi. - (a)idis.
131
The Present Su bju ncti v e Mood
s t C o n j u g a ti o n - C a te g o r y 1 (A )
Broad Sl end er
1 sg. - mol a m - cui re m
2 sg. - mol a t - cui re t
3 sg. - mol a s, si - cui re s, si
l pi. - mol ai mi d - cui ri mi d
2 pi. - mol a si bh - cui re si bh
3 pi. - mol a siad - cui re siad
Passive - mol tar - cui rtear
F i r s t C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 1 (B)
Broad Slender
1 sg. - rechtl a m - ti omi ne m
2 sg. - rechtl a t - ti omi ne t
3 sg. - rechtl a s, s - ti omi ne s, s
l p l . - rechtl ai mi d - ti omi ni mi d
2 pi. - rechtl a si bh - ti omi ne si bh
3 pi. - rechtl a siad - ti omi ne siad
Passive - rechti l tear - ti omi ntear
To form the present subjuncti v e mood, add - a (broad) or - e (sl ender) m /
t / s / si / si bh / si ad, - (a)i mi d to the root for personal forms and - t(e)ar
for the passive forms.
There is onl y one sy ntheti c form of the verb i n the present subjuncti v e
mood, viz. 1 pi. - (a)imi d.
n o t e : the - 1 - in rechti l tear is slender.
132
The Present Su bju ncti v e Mood
Se c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 (A )
Broad Sl end er
1 sg. - ceannai m - crui nni m
2 sg. - ceannai t - crui nni t
3 sg. - ceannai s, si - crui nni s, si
1 pi. - ceannai mi d - crui nni mi d
2 pi. - ceannai si bh - crui nni si bh
3 pi. - ceannai siad - crui nni siad
Passive - ceannai tear - cru i nni tear
Se c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 ( B )
Broad Sl end er
1 sg. - l abhra m - i mri m
2 sg. - l abhrai t - i mri t
3 sg. - l abhrai s, si - i mri s, si
1 pi. - l abhrai mi d - i mri mi d
2 pi. - l abhrai si bh - i mri si bh
3 pi. - l abhrai siad - i mri siad
Passive - l abhrai tear - i mri tear
To form the present subjuncti v e mood, add - (a) m / t / s / si / si bh / siad,
- (a)imi d to the root for personal forms and - (a)itear for the passive forms.
There is onl y one sy ntheti c form of the verb i n the present subjuncti v e
mood, viz. 1 pi. - (a)imi d.
133
Verbal A d jecti v e / Past Par ti ci p l e
F i r s t C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 1 (A )
Add - ta / - te to verbs endi ng i n -1, - n, - s, - ch, - d:
61
Broad
l ta buai l
Slender
buai l te
dn -> dnta si n si nte
las lasta bris bri ste
croch crochta goi d goi dte
stad stadta
Wi th verbs endi ng i n - 1 / - th, remov e the - 1 / - th and add - te / - ta:
ri th - ri te cai th -* cai te l oi t - l oi te at -* ata
Add - tha / - the to verbs endi ng i n - b, - c, - g, - m, - p, - r:
Broad Slender
cum cumtha l oi sc - l oi scthe
ceap ceaptha li g -> l i gthe
fg
fgtha l i m l i mthe
glac
-*
gl actha scai p - scai pthe
lb
-*
l btha
n o t e : th e f i n a l c o n s o n a n t i s m a d e b r o a d i n s o m e ca s e s :
cui r -* cu r tha si il - si l ta
Wi th verbs endi ng i n - bh / - mh, remov e the - bh / - mh and add - fa:
scri obh - scri ofa gabh -> gafa lobh - l ofa
There are some irregular formati ons: ini s -> i nste
Se c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 (A)
Remove the fi nal - gh and add - the
Broad Slender
ceannai gh - ceannai the crui nni gh - crui nni the
athrai gh -* athrai the i mi gh -> i mi the
134
The Verbal Noun
The verbal noun i n I ri sh is most frequentl y used preceded by ag to denote
progressi v e/conti nuous acti on (i.e. to transl ate the - ing suffixed to the verb
i n Engli sh):
ag cai nt
ag 01
ag diol
talking
dri nki ng
selling
ag i steacht
ag ceannach
ag sil
listening
buying
walking
I t is used to transl ate the Engl i sh i nfi ni ti v e to.
object, the constru cti on is as fol lows:
When there is no direct
cai thfi dh m i meach t anoi s
t orm fan ach t
ni mr d dul amach
b'i gean di bh snmh
an bhfui l t ag i arraidh fan acht?
ba bhre Horn bu al ad h leis
I have to go now
I have to wait
he has to go out
they had to swim
do you wish to stay?
I d love to meet him
When there is a di rect object, w hether a noun or pronoun, the constructi on
is as fol lows:
oth er + object + a (l eni ti ng) + v erbal nou n
t s ar ti an obai r a d h anamh
ba mhai th l i om an fear a fh ei cei l
is bre l i om a fh ei cei l gach l
cai thfi dh si an carr a th i omi n t
t ort an chi sti n a ghl anad h
ni mr di nn an si opa a d h nad h
b'i gean di an cat a bhu al ad h
di rt s l i om an t-airgead a
ch ai th eamh
he is about to do the work
I would like to see the man
I love to see hi m every day
she has to drive the car
you have to clean the kitchen
we have to close the shop
she had to beat the cat
he told me to spend the money
When a noun is the di rect object of a verbal noun, that noun is usually i n
the geni ti v e case:
ag danamh na hoi bre doing the work
ag i the an d i n n i r eati ng the di nner
ag scri obh na l i tr each writing the letter
When the di rect object of a verbal noun is a pronoun, a constructi on
i nv ol v i ng the possessi ve adjecti v e is used:
do / ag mo mhol adh prai si ng me
do / ag do mhol adh prai si ng you
135
The Verbal Noun
The most common way to form the verbal noun is si mpl y to add - (e)adh to
the root of the verb:
F i r s t C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 1 (A )
Broad
mol
dun
ps
mol adh
dnadh
psadh
Sl end er
bris -
ci n -
doi rt -
(Someti mes broadeni ng of the fi nal consonant takes pl ace.)
buai l - bual adh l oi sc -
Other common ways of formi ng the verbal noun:
The same as the root:
diol
01
diol
01
troid
ri th
Broadeni ng the fi nal consonant of the root:
cui r - cur si il
Adding - 1 to the root:
bai n - bai nt roi nn
Adding - (e)amh:
cai th
seas
Adding - (e)an:
li g ->
Adding - (i )i nt:
creid -
cai theamh
seasamh
li gean
crei di i nt
ligh
leag
lean
bri seadh
ci neadh
doi rteadh
l oscad h
troi d
ri th
si l
roi nnt
l amh
l eagan
l ean i nt
136
Adding various other endings:
fg - fgi l fach -
fan - fanacht
Se c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 (A)
Remove the fi nal - (a)igh and add - (i):
Broad Slender
marai gh - mar crui nni gh -
athrai gh - athr bai l i gh -
tosai gh - tos suimi gh
Remove the fi nal - (a)igh and add - (e)ach(t):
ceannai gh ceannach
imi gh - i meacht
fachai nt
crui nni
bai l i
sui mi
137
A L i s t o f V e r b s
adhl ai c, adhai n, aiseag, ai si oc, alp
bac, bci l , bigh, bai n, baist, base, bearr, bi c, biog, blais, bl i gh, bog, borr,
brai th, breac, brag, bris, bronn, bri gh, brui th, buai l , buai gh
cail l, ci n, cai th, cam, can, caoi n, cardil , cam, cas, cealg, ceap, cas, ceil ,
ci nn, ci ondi l , cor, cl eacht, cli s, cl bhuai l , cl o gh, cl scr obh, cni oti l ,
coi med, coi sri c, comhai r, comhl on, cnasc, cri gh, craobhscaoi l , craol ,
creach, creid, cri th, croch, croi th, crom, cros, cruai gh, cri gh, cui r, cum
dall, daor, dearc, dearg, dearmad, di lei l, diol, d on, doi rt, dracht, dn
ag, i st
fg, fisc, fan, fs, fach, fad, feal l, fei l, feoi gh, fil l, fi gh, fi uch, fl i uch, fir,
fori l, fri othi l , fuai gh
gabh, gair, geal, geall , gearr, gi ll , gei t, gin, glac, glan, gl aoi gh, glas, gluais,
goid, goi l, goi ll , goi n, gri gh, gread, grig, guigh
iarr, i ni ch, i nsteal l , i oc
las, lasc, leag, l eigh, lean, l eath, leigheas, ligh, l i m, l eon, lig, li gh, l i on,
l i osti l , l oi c, loisc, l oi t, lom, luaigh, luasc, luigh
mai gh, mair, mirseil , mai th, marci l , meal l , meas, measc, meath, mei l,
mi l l , mr, mch, mi n
nasc, ni gh, nocht
ofri l, oi l, oir, l
paci l , pi oc, pl ab, pl ane, pl igh, pl ch, pg, pol l , ps, preab, pri onti l ,
promh
rcil , rab, reic, reoi gh, riar, ri gh, ri omh, robil , rol l, , ruaig, risc
sbhil , sai ll, saor, scag, scaip, scaird, scai rt, scal l, scaoi l , scar, sceal p, scei th,
sci nn, sciorr, scir, scoi l t, scoi r, scoi th, scrach, scread, scr ob, scr obh,
scuab, seachai d, san, searg, searr, seas, sid, sei nn, si n, s ob, si oc, sii l,
sl acht, sl ioc, slog, smi d, smol , sni gh, sni omh, si nsei l , spril,
speach, spi on, spreag, sprigh, srac, srann, sroi ch, stad, stn, staon,
steal l, stiall , stiir, stol l, strioc, stri c, suaith, suigh, sigh, sunci l
tacht, tai rg, tirg, tai sc, tai spei n, taom, taosc, tsti l , tacht, teagasc,
teann, teil g, ti gh, teip, tei th, ti omi n, ti onl ai c, ti oni l , ti t, tochai s,
tochrai s, tg, togh, tolg, tomhai s, tost, trcht, tri gh, traoi th, trig, triai l,
trial l, troid, troisc, tui g, tui ll , tum
uaim, url aic, sid
F i r s t C o n j u g a t i o n - Ca t e g o r y 1 (a )
138
Se c o n d C o n j u g a t i o n - C a t e g o r y 2 (a )
achtai gh, adhrai gh, admhai gh, agair, ai fri gh, ai msi gh, ai nmni gh, airi gh,
iri gh, ai si ri gh, aistri gh, ai thi n, ai thri s, i ti gh, al tai gh, aontai gh,
athrai gh
bagair, bai l i gh, bnai gh, bsai gh, beachtai gh, beannai gh, beartaigh,
beathai gh, bei ri gh, bi orai gh, bisi gh, bl thai gh, bodhrai gh, bolai gh,
bragnai gh, breathnai gh, brei thni gh, brostai gh, buanai gh, bunai gh
cabhrai gh, ci l i gh, caomhnai gh, ceadai gh, ceal ai gh, ceangai l , ceannai gh,
ceansai gh, ceartai gh, cei sni gh, cei sti gh, ci al l ai gh, cigi l, ci ontai gh,
ci nai gh, cl aochl ai gh, cl rai gh, cl dai gh, codai l , cogai n, coi gi l ,
coi nni gh, ci ri gh, comhai rl i gh, comhl nai gh, comhordai gh,
comhri ti gh, cnai gh, corrai gh, coscai r, cosai n, cothai gh, cothromai gh,
creathnai gh, cri ochnai gh, crui nni gh, cruthai gh, cuardai gh, cui digh,
cui mhni gh, ci sigh, ci ti gh, cl ai gh, cumhdai gh
damhsai gh, damnai gh, dathai gh, deal aigh, deal raigh, dearbhai gh, dei frigh,
dei mhni gh, deonai gh, dibir, d chi l i gh, diri gh, di ul tai gh, dreasaigh,
di si gh, dnmharai gh
eachtrai gh, eagrai gh, al ai gh, eascair, i l i gh, i ri gh, ei sigh, ei ti gh, ei ti l
fadaigh, fi l ti gh, fei sti gh, fi afrai gh, fi osrai gh, foghl ai m, fgair, foi lsi gh,
fol ai gh, freastai l, ful ai ng
gi orraigh, gnthai gh, gni omhai gh, gnthai gh, gortai gh, greamai gh,
gri osai gh
idi gh, i mi gh, i mpi gh, imi r, i nfhei sti gh, ini s, iobair, i ompai gh, iompair,
iomair, i onsai gh, isli gh
labhair, l aghdai gh, l easaigh, l eathnai gh, l irigh, l i ni gh, l i ostai gh, l i trigh,
l ochtai gh
machnai gh, mai si gh, mai stri gh, mal artai gh, mal l achtai gh, maol ai gh,
maothai gh, marai gh, marcai gh, masl ai gh, meabhrai gh, mi ni gh,
mi onnai gh, mi di gh, moi l l i gh, mothai gh, mui rni gh, mnl ai gh, mscail
ni ri gh, naomhai gh, neadai gh, neartai gh, neodrai gh, oi bri gh, oi ri nai gh,
oi rni gh, ordai gh, oscai l
peacai gh, pl andai gh, pl daigh,
rmhai gh, ramhrai gh, reachtai gh, ri mni gh, ri ti gh, ri anai gh, ri ghni gh,
roghnai gh
si nni gh, sal aigh, samhl ai gh, saoirsi gh, saol ai gh, saothrai gh, srai gh,
ssaigh, satail , scanrai gh, scrdaigh, seachnai gh, salaigh, seal bhai gh,
s ni gh, si ol rai gh, si othl ai gh, sl nai gh, sl eamhnai gh, smachtai gh,
smaoi ni gh, snasai gh, socrai gh, soil sigh, soipri gh, soi rbhi gh, sol thrai gh,
sonrai gh, sruthl ai gh
tabhai gh, tagair, tai thi gh, taobhai gh, tapai gh, tarraing, tthai gh,
teagmhai gh, teastai gh, ti mpeal l ai gh, ti oranai gh, ti omsai gh, ti ontai gh,
tochai l , toi l i gh, trai gh, tosai gh, trasnai gh, trasl ai gh, treorai gh,
tri omai gh, truai l l i gh, tui rsigh
uachtai gh, uai sl i gh, ualaigh, daraigh, ui mhri gh, umhl ai gh
139
TH E I RREG U L A R V ERB
There are twelve irregul ar verbs i n I rish i f we i ncl ude the two verbs to be, viz.
the copul a is and the substanti v e bi . A verb is termed irregul ar i f i t does not
retai n the same root i n all tenses. I n addi ti on, some irregul ar verbs have
di fferent dependent forms when preceded by certai n preverbal particl es.
Some of the irregul ar verbs are onl y margi nal l y irregular.
The fol l owi ng is a li st of the irregul ar verbs excl udi ng the two verbs to be (the
2 sg. imperati ve form of the verb is the one giv en here):
bei r
cl oi s / cl ui n
carry / catch / be bom
hear
do / make dan
abair say
get faigh
fei c
i th
see
eat
give tabhai r
tar
ti gh
come
140
The Present Tense
W i th ei ght o f th e s e v e r b s (a l l e x c e p t a b a i r a n d , to a l e s s e r e x te n t, t i g h ),
s i m p l y ta k e th e p r e s e n t r o o t a n d a d d th e n o r m a l e n d i n g s f o r r e g u l a r v e r b s
Category 1 (a).
Beir Dan Feic
1 sg. bei ri m danai m fei ci m
2 sg. bei reann t d anann t fei ceann t
3 sg. bei reann s, si danann s, s fei ceann s, si
1 pi. bei ri mi d d anai mi d fei ci mi d
2 pi. bei reann si bh danann si bh fei ceann si bh
3 pi. bei reann siad danann siad fei ceann siad
Passive bei rtear dantar fei ctear
Ith Tabhair Tar
1 sg. i thi m tugai m tagai m
2 sg. i theann t tugann t tagann t
3 sg. i theann s, si tugann s, s tagann s, si
l pl . i thi mi d tugai mi d tagai mi d
2 pi. i theann si bh tugann si bh tagann si bh
3 pi. i theann siad tugann siad tagann siad
Passive i tear tugtar tagtar
n o t e : i n case of tar and tabhai r, the present roots are tag- and tug-
Faigh Clois / Cluin
1 sg. fai ghi m cl oi si m / cl u i ni m
2 sg. fai gheann t cl oi seann / cl u i neann t
3 sg. fai gheann s, si cl oi seann / cl u i neann s, si
l p l . fai ghi mi d cl oi si mi d / cl u i ni mi d
2 pi. fai gheann si bh cl oi seann / cl u i neann si bh
3 pi. fai gheann siad cl oi seann / cl u i neann siad
Passive fai ghtear cl oi stear / cl u i ntear
Tigh Abair
1 sg. ti m dei ri m
2 sg. tann t dei r t
3 sg. tann s, si dei r s, si
lpl. ti mi d dei ri mi d
2 pi. tann si bh dei r si bh
3 pi. tann siad dei r siad
Passive ti tear dei rtear
n o te : th e f o r m a ti o n o f t i g h i s slightly d i f f e r e n t f r o m th e p r e v i o u s e i g h t
w h i l e th e f o r m a ti o n o f a b a i r i s completely d i f f e r e n t f r o m th e p r e v i o u s n i n e .
n o te : w h e n p r e ce d e d b y th e n e g a ti v e p a r ti cl e n i o r a n y o th e r l e n i ti n g v e r b a l
p a r ti cl e , th e i n i ti a l l e tte r o f th i s v e r b a b a i r i s n o t l e n i te d i n a n y te n s e .
141
The Past Tense
Tabhair Ith
1 sg. thug m d'i th me
2 sg. thug t d'i th t
3 sg. thug s, si d 'i th s, si
l p l . thugamar d 'i theamar
2 pi. thug si bh d'i th si bh
3 pi. thug siad d'i th siad
Passive tugadh i thead h
These two verbs have the same root as i n the present tense and thei r endi ngs
and preverbal parti cl es i n the past tense are the same as those of the regular
verb, Category 1 (a).
Beir Clois / Cluin Tar
1 sg. rug m chual a m thi ni g m
2 sg. rug t chual a tu thi ni g t
3 sg. rug s, si chual a s, si thi ni g s, s
l p l . rugamar chual amar thngamar
2 pi. rug si bh chual a si bh thi ni g si bh
3 pi. rug siad chual a siad thi ni g siad
Passive rugadh chual athas thngthas
These three verbs do not have the same root as i n the present tense and thei r
preverbal parti cl es i n the past tense are the same as those of the regular verb.
Abair Faigh
1 sg. dirt m fuai r m
2 sg. dirt t fuai r t
3 sg. dirt s, s fuai r s, s
l p l . dramar fuai reamar
2 pl. dirt si bh fuair si bh
3 pl. dirt siad fuai r siad
Passive dradh fuarthas
These two verbs do not have the same root as i n the present tense and thei r
preverbal parti cl es i n the past tense are ni, an, go, nach etc. The negati v e
parti cl e ni or any other l eni ti ng parti cl e do not l eni te any of the di rt forms.
The negati v e parti cl e ni ecli pses the fuai r forms.
142
I nd ep end ent Depend ent
Form Form
Tigh Tigh
1 sg. chuai gh m - deachai gh m
2 sg. chuai gh t - deachai gh t
3 sg. chuai gh s, si - deachai gh s, si
1 pi. chuamar - deachamar
2 pi. chuai gh si bh - deachai gh si bh
3 pi. chuai gh siad - deachai gh siad
Passive chuathas - deachthas
Dan Dan
1 sg. ri nne m - dearna m
2 sg. ri nne t - dearna t
3 sg. ri nne s, si - dearna s, si
l p l . ri nneamar - dearnamar
2 pi. ri nne si bh - dearna si bh
3 pi. ri nne siad - dearna siad
Passive ri nneadh - dearnadh
Feic Feic
1 sg. chonai c m - faca m
2 sg. chonai c tu - faca t
3 sg. chonai c s, si - faca s, si
l p l . chonai ceamar - facamar
2 pi. chonai c si bh - faca si bh
3 pi. chonai c siad - faca siad
Passive chonacthas - facthas
The three verbs abov e do not have the same root as i n the present tense and
thei r preverbal parti cl es i n the past tense are ni, an, go, nach etc.
143
The Future Tense
Beir Dan Feic
1sg. barfai dh m d anfai d h m fei cfi d h m
2 sg. barfai dh t danfai dh t fei cfi d h t
3 sg. barfai dh s, s d anfai d h s, s fei cfi d h s, si
1pl. barfai mi d d anfai mi d fei cfi mi d
2 pl. barfai d h si bh danfai d h si bh fei cfi d h si bh
3 pl. barfai dh siad danfai d h siad fei cfi d h siad
Passive barfar danfar fei cfear
Ith Tabhair Tar
1sg. osfai dh m tabharfai d h m ti ocfai d h m
2 sg. osfai d h t tabharfai d h t ti ocfai d h t
3 sg. osfai dh s, s tabharfai d h s, s ti ocfai d h s, si
l p l . osfai mi d tabharfai mi d ti ocfai mi d
2 pl. osfai d h si bh tabharfai d h si bh ti ocfai d h si bh
3 pl. osfai dh siad tabharfai d h siad ti ocfai d h siad
Passive osfar tabharfar ti ocfar
n o t e: when preceded by the negati v e parti cl e ni or any other l eni ti ng verbal
particl e, the i ni ti al l etter of abair is not leni ted.
1 sg.
2 sg.
3 sg.
l p l .
2 pl.
3 pl.
Passive
Tigh
rachai d h m
rachai d h t
rachai dh s, si
rachai mi d
rachai dh si bh
rachai dh siad
rachfar
Clois / Cluin
cl oi sfi dh / cl u i nfi d h m
cl oi sfi dh / cl u i nfi d h t
cl oi sfi dh / cl u i nfi d h s, si
cl oi sfi mi d / cl u i nfi mi d
cl oi sfi dh / cl u i nfi d h si bh
cl oi sfi dh / cl u i nfi d h siad
cl oi sfear / cl ui nfear
Abair
d arfai d h m
d arfai d h t
darfai dh s, s
darfai mi d
darfai dh si bh
darfai dh siad
darfar
not e: onl y the fol l owi ng verb has separate i ndependent and dependent
forms i n the future and onl y the fol l owi ng verb is ecli psed when preceded by
ni .
144
I nd ep end ent Depend ent
Form Form
Faigh Faigh
1 sg. gheobhai d h m - bhfai ghi d h m
2 sg. gheobhai d h t - bhfai ghi d h t
3 sg. gheobhai d h s, si - bhfai ghi d h s, si
l p l . gheobhai mi d - bhfai ghi mi d
2 pi. gheobhai d h si bh - bhfai ghi d h si bh
3 pi. gheobhai d h siad - bhfai ghi d h siad
Passive gheofar - bhfai ghfear
n o t e : all the above irregul ar verbs have the same future endi ngs (except i n
case of rach-, gheobh- and -faigh- w hi ch have no - f - except i n the passive)
as the regular verb, Category 1 (a).
n o t e : the verbs cl oi s / cl ui n, fei c, dan have the same root i n the future as in
the present tense whereas all the other irregular verbs have a di fferent root.
145
The Con d i ti on al Mood
Beir Dan Feic
1sg.
bharfai nn d hanfai nn d 'fhei cfi nn
2 sg.
bharf dhanf d 'fhei cfe
3 sg.
bharfad h s, si d hanfad h s, si d 'fhei cfead h s,
1pl.
bharfai mi s dhanfai mi s d 'fhei cfi mi s
2 pl.
bharfad h si bh d hanfad h si bh d 'fhei cfead h sib
3 pl.
bharfai d s d hanfai di s dfhei cfi di s
Passive
bharfa dhanfai d 'fhei cf
Ith Tabhair Tar
1sg.
d ' osfai nn thabharfai nn th i ocfai nn
2 sg.
d' osf thabharf thi ocf
3 sg.
d' osfadh s, s thabharfad h s, s thi ocfad h s, s
l p l .
d' osfai mi s thabharfai mi s thi ocfai mi s
2 pl.
d' osfadh si bh thabharfad h si bh thi ocfad h si bh
3 pl.
d' osfai d s thabharfai di s thi ocfai d s
Passive
d' osfa thabharfa thi ocfa
n o t e : when preceded by the negati v e parti cl e ni or any other l eni ti ng verbal
parti cl e, the i ni ti al l etter of the verb abair is not l eni ted i n any tense.
Tigh Clois / Cluin Abair
1 sg. r achai nn chl oi sfi nn/ch l u i nfi nn d arfai nn
2 sg. rachf chl oi sfe/ chl u i nfe darf
3 sg. rachadh s, si chl oi sfead h/ chl u i nfead h s, s darfadh s, s
1 pl- rachai mi s chl oi sfi mi s/chl u i nfi mi s darfai mi s
2 pi. rachadh si bh chl oi sfead h/chl u i nfead h si bh darfadh si bh
3 pl. rachai d s chl oi sfi d i s/chl ui nfi d i s darfai di s
Passive rachfa chl oi sfi / chl u i nfi darfai
n o t e : onl y the fol l owi ng verb has separate i ndependent and dependent
forms i n the condi ti onal mood and onl y the fol l owi ng verb is ecl i psed when
preceded by ni.
146
I nd ep end ent Depend ent
Form Form
Faigh Faigh
1 sg. gheobhai nn - bhfai ghi nn
2 sg. gheof - bhfai ghfe
3 sg. gheobhad h s, si - bhfai ghead h s, si
l p l . gheobhai mi s - bhfai ghi mi s
2 pl. gheobhad h si bh - bhfai ghead h si bh
3 pl. gheobhai d i s - bhfai ghi di s
Passive
gheofai - bhfai ghfi
not e: all the abov e irregul ar verbs have the same condi ti onal endi ngs (except
i n case of rach gheobh - and - fai gh - w hi ch have no - f - except i n the 2
sg. and passive) as the regular verb, Category 1 (a).
n o t e : the verbs cl oi s / cluin, fei c, dan have the same root i n the condi ti onal
as i n the present tense whereas all the other irregular verbs have a di fferent
root.
147
The Past H abi tual Tense
Beir Dan Feic
1 sg. bhei ri nn d hanai nn d 'fhei ci nn
2 sg. bhei rte dhant d 'fhei cte
3 sg. bhei readh s, si dhanadh s, s d 'fhei cead h s, si
l p l . bhei ri mi s d hanai mi s d 'fhei ci mi s
2 pl. bhei readh si bh dhanadh si bh d 'fhei cead h si bh
3 pl. bhei ri di s dhanai d s d 'fhei ci d s
Passive bhei rti dhanta d 'fhei ct
Ith Tabhair Tar
1 sg. d 'i thi nn thu gai nn thagai nn
2 sg. d'i te thugt thagt
3 sg. d 'i thead h s, si thugadh s, s thagadh s, s
l p l . d 'i thi mi s thugai mi s thagai mi s
2 pl. d 'i thead h si bh thugadh si bh thagadh si bh
3 pl. d 'i thi di s thugai d s thagai d s
Passive d'i ti thugta thagta
Tigh Clois / Cluin
1 sg. thi nn chl oi si nn / chl ui ni nn
2 sg. thi te chl oi ste / chl u i nte
3 sg. thad h s, s chl oi sead h / chl u i nead h s, s
1 pl. thi mi s chl oi si mi s / chl u i ni mi s
2 pl. thad h si bh chl oi sead h / chl u i nead h si bh
3 pl. thi d s chl oi si d s / chl ui ni d s
Passive thi t chl oi st / chl u i nt
Abair Faigh
1 sg. dei ri nn dfhai ghi nn
2 sg. dei rte d 'fhai ghte
3 sg. dei readh s, s d'fhai gheadh s, si
1 pl. dei ri mi s d'fhai ghi mi s
2 pl. dei readh si bh d 'fhai gheadh si bh
3 pl. dei ri d s d'fhai ghi d s
Passive dei rt d'fhai ght
The past habi tual tense is based on the present root. All of these irregular
verbs, wi th the possible excepti on of ti gh, have the same endi ngs as the
regular verb, Category 1 (a).
n o t e : when preceded by the negati v e parti cl e ni or any other l eni ti ng verbal
parti cl e, the i ni ti al l etter of the verb abair is not l eni ted i n any tense.
148
The I mp erati v e Mood
Beir Dan Feic
1 sg. bei ri m danai m fei ci m
2 sg. beir dan fei c
3 sg. bei readh s, si danadh s, s fei ceadh s, si
1 pl. bei ri mi s danai mi s fei ci mi s
2 pl. bei ri gi danai g fei ci gi
3 pl. bei ri di s danai d s fei ci d s
Passive bei rtear dantar fei ctear
Ith Tabhair
1 sg. i thi m tugai m tagai m
2 sg. i th tabh ai r tar
3 sg. i thead h s, si tugadh s, s tagadh s, si
1 pl. i thi mi s tugai mi s tagai mi s
2 pl. i thi gi
tugai gi tagai gi
3 pl. i thi di s tugai di s tagai d s
Passive i tear tugtar tagtar
: the 2 sg. forms of tar and tabhair.
Tigh Clois / Cluin
1 sg. ti m cl oi si m / cl ui ni i n
2 sg. ti gh cl oi s / cl ui n
3 sg. tad h s, si cl oi seadh / cl u i nead h s, si
l pl . ti mi s cl oi si mi s / cl ui ni mi s
2 pl. ti g cl oi si gi / cl ui ni g
3 pl. ti d s cl oi si di s / cl ui ni di s
Passive ti tear cl oi stear / cl u i ntear
Abair Faigh
1 sg. abrai m fai ghi m
2 sg. abair faigh
3 sg. abradh s, si fai gheadh
l p l . abrai mi s fai ghi mi s
2 pl. abrai gi fai ghi gi
3 pl. abrai di s fai ghi d s
Passive abai rtear fai ghtear
149
The Present Su bju ncti v e Mood
Beir Dan Feic
1 sg.
- bei re m - dana m - fei ce m
2 sg.
- bei re t - dana t - fei ce t
3 sg.
- bei re s, si - dana s, s - fei ce s, si
l p l .
- bei ri mi d - danai mi d - fei ci mi d
2 pl.
- bei re si bh - dana si bh - fei ce si bh
3 pl.
- bei re siad - dana siad - fei ce siad
Passive - bei rtear - dantar - fei ctear
Ith Tabhair Tar
1 sg.
- i the m - tuga m - taga m
2 sg.
- i the t - tuga t - taga t
3 sg.
- i the s, si - tuga s, s - taga s, si
l p l .
- i thi mi d - tugai mi d - tagai mi d
2 pl.
- i the si bh - tuga si bh - taga si bh
3 pl.
- i the siad - tuga siad - taga siad
Passive
- i tear - tugtar - tagtar
Tigh Clois / Cluin
1 sg.
- t m - cl oi se / cl ui ne m
2 sg.
- t t - cl oi se / cl ui ne t
3 sg.
- t s, s - cl oi se / cl ui ne s, si
lpl.
- ti mi d - cl oi si mi d / cl u i ni mi d
2 pl.
- t si bh - cl oi se / cl ui ne si bh
3 pl.
- t siad - cl oi se / cl ui ne siad
Passive
- ti tear - cl oi stear / cl ui ntear
Abair Faigh
1 sg.
- dei re m - fai ghe m
2 sg.
- dei re t - fai ghe t
3 sg.
- dei re s, s - fai ghe s, si
1 pl.
- dei ri mi d - fai ghi mi d
2 pl.
- dei re si bh - fai ghe si bh
3 pl.
- dei re siad - fai ghe siad
Passive
- dei rtear - fai ghtear
n o t e : a l l these irregul ar verbs, wi th the excepti on of ti gh, have the same
endi ngs as the regular verb, Category 1 (a).
150
The I rregu l ar Verb
Verbal Ad jecti v e / Past Parti ci p l e Verbal Noun
abair ri te abair r
beir bei rthe beir brei th
clois cl oi ste clois cl oi stei l
cl ui n - cl ui nte cl ui n cl ui nsti n
dan danta dan danamh
faigh -> fai ghte faigh fi l
fei c fei cthe fei c fei cei l
i th i te ith i the
tabhai r tugtha tabhai r tabhai rt
tar tagtha tar teacht
ti gh d u l ta ti gh dul
151
THE SUBSTANTIVE VERB B (TO BE)
The Present Tense
Posi ti v e Negati v e After parti cl es
an / go / nach etc.
1 sg. ti m / t m n l i m / ni l m - bhfui l i m / - bhfui l m
2 sg. t t ni l t - bhfui l t
3 sg. t s, s ni l s, s - bhfui l s, si
l p l . ti mi d ni l i mi d - bhfui l i mi d
2 pl. t si bh ni l si bh - bhfui l si bh
3 pl. t siad ni l siad - bhfui l siad
Passive tthar n l tear - bhfui l tear
n o t e : th e negati v e parti cl e ni is i ncorp orated i n to th e negati v e forms.
The Habitual Present Tense
The substanti v e verb, uni que among Irish verbs, has a special habi tual
present tense (present conti nuous tense) w hi ch serves to i ndi cate (repeated)
conti nuous acti on i n the present tense:
Posi ti v e Negati v e After parti cl es
an / go / nach etc.
1 sg. bi m - bhi m - mbi m
2 sg. bi onn t - bhi onn t - mbi onn tu
3 sg. bi onn s, si - bhi onn s, si - mbi onn s, si
l p l . bi mi d - bhi mi d - mbi mi d
2 pl. bi onn si bh - bhi onn sibh - mbi onn si bh
3 pl. bi onn siad - bhi onn siad - mbi onn siad
Passive bi tear - bhi tear - mbi tear
n o t e : a rel ati ve, i ndependent endi ng - i o(nn)s is wi dely used in Ulster and
Connaught.
152
The Past Tense
Posi ti v e After particl es
ni / an / g o / nach etc.
1 sg. bh i m - raibh m
2 sg. bh t - raibh t
3 sg. bh s, si - rai bh s, si
l p l . bhi omar - rabhamar
2 pl. bhi si bh - raibh sibh
3 pl. bhi siad - rai bh siad
Passive bhi othas - rabhthas
The Future Tense
Posi ti v e After negati ve After particl es
parti cl e ni an / go / nach etc.
1 sg. bei d h m - bhei d h m - mbei d h ra
2 sg. bei dh t - bhei d h t - mbei d h t
3 sg. bei dh s, si - bhei d h s, si - mbei d h s, si
1 pl. bei mi d - bhei mi d - mbei mi d
2 pl. bei d h si bh - bhei d h si bh - mbei d h si bh
3 pl. bei d h siad - bhei d h siad - mbei d h siad
Passive bei fear - bhei fear - mbei fear
n o t e : a rel ati ve, i ndependent endi ng - e a s is wi dely used i n Ulster and
Connaught.
The Conditional Mood
Posi ti v e After negati v e
parti cl e ni
After parti cl es
an / go / nach etc.
1 sg. bhei nn - bhei nn - i nbei nn
2 sg. bhei fe - bhei fe - mbei fe
3 sg. bhead h s, si - bhead h s, si - mbead h s, si
l p l . bhei mi s - bhei mi s - mbei mi s
2 pl. bhead h si bh - bhead h si bh - mbeadh si bh
3 pl. bhei d i s - bhei d i s - mbei di s
Passive bhei fi - bhei fi - mbei fi
153
The Past H abi tu al Tense
Posi ti v e After negati ve
parti cl e ni
After particl es
an / go / nach
1 sg. bhi nn - bhi nn - mbi nn
2 sg. bh te - bh te - mb te
3 sg. bh odh s, si - bhi odh s, si - mbi odh s, si
1 pl. bhi mi s - bhi mi s - mbi mi s
2 pl. bhi odh si bh - bhi odh si bh - mbi odh si bh
3 pl. bhi di s - bhi di s - mbi dis
Passive bhi ti - bhi ti - mbi ti
The The Present
I mperati v e Su bju ncti v e
Mood Mood
1 sg. bi m - rai bh m
2 sg. bi - raibh t
3 sg. bi od h s, si - rai bh s, si
l p l . bi mi s - rabhai mi d
2 pl. bi gi - rai bh si bh
3 pl. bidis - rai bh siad
Passive bi tear - r abhthar
The Verbal Noun is bheith
154
The Su bstanti v e Verb Bi - Uses
t carr agam I have a car
ni l cat agat you don't have a cat
an bhfui l pi ngi n aige? has he got a penny?
an raibh peann ai ci ? di d she have a pen?
bhi sos fada agai nn we had a long break
ni rai bh saoire agaibh you had no holiday
bei dh beagn airgid acu they will have a little money
bei dh an leabhar ag Sen J ohn will have the book
It is used i di omati cal l y wi th the phrase a fhi os (li t. its knowl edge) + ag to
transl ate the Engli sh verb to know:
t a fhi os agat si n you know that
ni rai bh a fhi os agam faoi I di dn't know about it
I t is used wi th the preposi ti on i fol l owed by the appropriate possessive
adjecti v e to i ndi cate that a noun or pronoun is another noun. Such a use is
someti mes referred to as cl assi fi catory:
t m i mo mhi nteoi r I am a teacher
ni l t i do gharda you are not a guard
bhi Sen i na chl adhai re J ohn was a coward
bhi Mi re i na dochti r Mary was a doctor
t siad ina gcl easai the they are tricksters
I t is used wi th the verbal nou n to denote conti nuous acti on:
It is used al ong wi th the preposi ti on ag to transl ate the Engli sh verb to have:
t s ag obai r he is working
bhi s ag i the he was eati ng
It is used wi th various preposi ti ons to i ndi cate posi ti on or l ocati on:
bhi s ar an mbord it was on the table
ni l s faoi n l eaba it is not under the bed
bei dh siad san abhai nn they will be in the river
I t is used wi th ch omh fol l owed by an adjecti v e to transl ate the equati ve,
i.e. as . . . (adj.) . . . as:
t s chomh mr le cnoc it is as big as a hill
t s chomh ramhar le muc he is as fat as a pig
155
It is used wi th ar fol lowed by noun(s) and the superl ati ve of the adjecti v e to
transl ate the constructi on the +(adj. + - est) + noun, or one of the {adj. +
- est) + noun:
t s ar an duine is cli ste sa rang he is the cleverest in the class
bhi s ar an bpiste ba shalai ansi n he was the dirtiest child there
t s ar (dhui ne de) na daoi ne is he is one of the best people in the class
fearr sa rang
ni l si ar (bhean de) na mn is il le she is not one of the most
beauti ful women
It is used to i ndi cate a poi nt/uni t/speci fi c notati on of ti me, measurement,
wei ght and pri ce:
t s a naoi a chl og it is ni ne o'clock
t si dei ch mbl i ana d'aoi s she is ten years old
t s cl och mhechai n it weighs a stone
t s slat ar lei thead it is a yard in width
bhi s cig pi ngi ne it cost five pence
I t is used wi th go fol lowed by an adjecti v e to form an adverb:
t s go bre i nni u it is fi ne today
bhi s go mai th i nn he w as well yesterday
t an aimsir go dona the weather is awful
It is used w i th vari ous preposi ti onal pronouns fol lowed by the verbal noun
to conv ey a variety of meani ngs:
bhi orthu i meacht they had to leave
t agam le jab a dhanamh I have to do a job
bhi faoi fanacht ann he i ntended to stay there
I t is used wi th the adverb ann to denote exi stence:
bhi fear ann fad there was a man once
t aimsir bhre ann the weather is great
156
ECLI PSI S OF VERBS
The i ni ti al l etter of the verb is ecli psed:
(a) after the fol l owi ng parti cl es and conjuncti ons: an, go,
nach, c, d, mura, sula:
an bhfu i l t go mai th?
abai r l i om go dti ocfai dh t
nach gcl oi seann t m?
c n-i theann t do chui d bia?
d n-i meod h s, bhei nn ssta
mura bhfui l t ssta leis sin,
biodh agat!
cri ochnai gh an obair sula bhfga
t an teach!
are you well?
tell nte that you will come
don't you hear me?
where do you eat your food?
i f he left, I would be happy
i f you're not happy with that, so
be it!
finish the work before you leave
the house!
n o t e : an d o e s n o t e cl i p s e i n i ti a l v o w e l s :
an l ann t bai nne? do you dri nk milk?
(b) after the i ndi rect rel ati ve parti cl e a:
an fear a bhfu i l an t-airgead aige
cad faoi a mb onn t ag cai nt?
an fear a ndeachai gh a mhac
go Sasana
cn i t a d tann si?
cn chaoi a bhfu i l t?
cn fth a ndearnadh si n?
fan mar a bhfu i l t!
the man who has the money
what do you talk about?
the man whose son went to
Engl and
where does she go?
how are you?
why was that done?
stay where you are!
n o t e : also i ncl uded i n thi s category are a (= all that) and d (< de/do + a):
si n a bhfaca m an oi che sin
an dui ne is crga d bhfui l ann
that is all I saw that night
the bravest person there is
The i ni ti al l etter of the irregul ar verb fai gh is ecli psed after the negati ve
parti cl e ni i n the cond i ti onal mood, the future and past tenses:
ni bhfai ghi d h si
ni bhfai gheadh s
ni bhfuai r m
she won't get
he woul dn't get
1di dn't get
157
LENI TI ON OF VERBS
The i ni ti al consonant of the verb is leni ted:
(a) in i ndependent forms i n the past and past habitual tenses as wel l as
i n the conditional mood:
chui r m chui ri nn chui rfi nn
Excepti ons:
the above menti oned tenses of the verb abair; the past tense of faigh; the past
passive of all verbs except i n the case of the irregul ar forms bhi othas,
chonacthas, chual athas, chuathas, thngthas
di rt m
dei ri nn
darfai nn
fuai r m
mol adh
(b) after the di rect rel ati ve parti cl e a and the fol l owi ng parti cl es and
conjuncti ons, most of w hi ch requi re the di rect rel ati ve parti cl e a:
*cad / card cathai n, *c, cn uair, conas, m, mar (= as, how),
nuaii; :
cad a cheapann t?
cathai n a thi ocfai d h s?
c a dhanann an obair?
cn uair a fhi l l fi d h s?
conas a dhanfai dh s ?
m thagann s i n am
mar a thui gi mi d uil i g
nuai r a fhgann si an bail e
cheapann t sin
Excep ti ons: as i n (a)
n o t e: except when fol l owed i mmedi atel y by a preposi ti onal pronoun.
what do you thi nk?
when will he come?
who does the work?
when will he return?
how will he do it?
i f he comes on time
as we all understand
when she leaves home
si nce you think that
158
(c) after the negati v e parti cl e ni:
ni chui reann / chui rfi dh / chui rfeadh / chui readh
Excepti ons:
all tenses of the verb abair:
ni dei r / dei readh / darfai dh / darfadh / di rt
the future and past tenses and condi ti onal mood of the verb faigh (ecl ipsi s
i nstead):
ni bhfai ghi d h / bhfuai r / bhfai gheadh
(d) after the parti cl es nior, char, ar, gur, nr, cr, murar, sular and the
i ndi rect rel ati ve parti cl e an
ni or
char
ar
gur
nr
cr
murar
sular
chui r
dhn
mharai gh
159
THE COPULA IS
The copul a has two mai n tenses, viz. the present whi ch is also used for the
future and the past whi ch also serves for the conditional mood. There are
also a few present subjunctive forms of the copul a.
Present (and Future) Tense
Affirmative Negative
Interrogative
Affirmative Negative
I ndependent
Dependent
i s n i an n a c h
g u r (*b ) n a c h
Relative
Direct
I ndi rect
i s
a r (*b )
n a c h
n a c h
*n o te : th e f o r m s w h i c h e n d i n b a r e usually u s e d b e f o r e w o r d s b e g i n n i n g
w i th a v o w e l .
n o t e : u n l i k e i n th e ca s e o f o th e r v e r b s , n o s e p a r a te v e r b a l p a r ti cl e s (n e g a ti v e ,
i n te r r o g a ti v e e tc.) a r e u s e d w i th th e co p u l a b u t a r e i n s te a d i n co r p o r a te d i n to
th e v a r i o u s f o r m s o f th e co p u l a .
n o t e : n i p r e f i x e s h to th e p r o n o u n s , i , i ad , e a a n d to a d je cti v e s a n d s o m e
n o u n s w h i c h b e g i n w i th a v o w e l .
160
Forms of Copul a w i th Con ju n cti on s
c cr (*b) crb as ? where is he from?
do d ar(*b) fear darb ai n m Sen a man called J ohn
m
->
ms ms f or i f it is true
mura mu r a(*b) mura mi ste l eat i f you don't mi nd
-*
S s a r i n n e since he di d it
*n o t e : th e f o r m s w h i c h e n d i n b a r e usually u s e d b e f o r e w o r d s b e g i n n i n g
w i th a v o w e l :
t a fhi os agam gurb Samas a dhanann an obair
I know that it is J anies who does the work
161
I ndependent
Dependent
Relative
Di rect
Indi rect
Past Tense and Conditional Mood
Affirmative Negative
Interrogative
Affirmative Negative
ba / b'
gur(bh)
ni or(bh)
nr(bh)
ar(bh) nr(bh)
ba / ab
ar(bh)
nr(bh)
nr(bh)
162
Forms of Copul a w i th Con ju n cti on s
c
-
cr (bh ) cr bh as ? where was he from?
c cr (bh ) cr bh ? who was she?
d d mba d mba l i om i f it were mi ne
do
-
d ar (bh) fear d arbh ai n m Pl a man called Paul
m m ba m b'fh or si n i f that was true
mura
->
mu r ar (bh ) murar bhr ag i f it wasn't a lie
ba b'fh ear r l eat si nce you preferred it
n o t e : th e f o r m s w h i c h e n d i n b h a r e u s e d b e f o r e w o r d s b e g i n n i n g w i th a
v o w e l o r f h f o l l o w e d b y a v o w e l :
t a f h i o s a g a m g u r b h f h e a r r l e i s i m e a c h t
I know that he would prefer to go
n o t e : th e a f f i r m a ti v e , i n d e p e n d e n t f o r m b a - b ' b e f o r e v o w e l s (e x c e p t , i ,
i a d , e a ) o r f h f o l l o w e d b y a v o w e l :
b 'a i t l i o m s i n I thought that strange
b 'f h e a r r l i o m i m e a c h t I would prefer to leave
Th e a f f i r m a ti v e , d i r e ct r e l a ti v e f o r m b a - > a b b e f o r e v o w e l s o r f h f o l l o w e d b y
a v o w e l :
a n b h e a n a b i l l e the most beauti ful woman
a n l a b f h e a r r the best day
n o t e : th e p a s t a n d c o n d i ti o n a l f o r m s o f th e co p u l a l e n i te :
b a / n i o r / ar e tc. b h r e a n d u i n e ?
he was / wasn't, was he e tc. a great person?
163
Present Su bju ncti v e Mood
Affi rmati v e Negati v e
g u r a (*b ) n r a (*b )
n o te : th e f o r m s w h i c h e n d i n b a r e usually u s e d b e f o r e w o r d s b e g i n n i n g
w i th a v o w e l :
g u r a b a m h l a i d h d u i t! the same to you!
164
Usage
The mai n use of the copul a is to i ndi cate that a noun or pronoun is or is not
another noun
cl assi fi catory:
or pronoun. Such a use is someti mes referred to as
is buachai l l (mai th)
ni daoi ne bochta iad
an amadn ?
crei di m gur cl easai
is fei rmeoi ri iad na fir sin
d mba mise thusa
is i reannach
he is a (good) boy
they are not poor people
is he a fool?
I believe he is a trickster
those men are farmers
i f I were you
he is an I ri shman
When fol l owed i mmedi atel y by the preposi ti on le, i t is used to i ndi cate
ownershi p:
an leat an l eabhar?
ni l i om an t-airgead
nach le Mi re ?
do you own the book?
the money is not mi ne
isn't it Mary's?
It is used to emphasi se any part of a sentence. I n such cases, the i nformati on
emphasi sed is pl aced at the start of the sentence i mmedi atel y after the
copul a:
is Sen a chuai gh amach J ohn went out
an abhai l e a chuai gh s?
nach t a ri nne ?
nach ti nn at si?
ni leatsa an t-airgead
ba bhre an fear
di d he go home?
di dn't you do it?
i sn't she sick?
the money isn't yours
he was a fi ne man
It is used i n comparati v e and superl ati ve constructi ons:
is fearr Sen n Samas
is Mi re is ige
ba iad ab fhearr
J ohn is better than J anies
Mary is the youngest
they were the best
It is used w i th a vari ety of words (nouns, adjecti v es, substantiv es) fol lowed
by the preposi ti on le to transl ate a great range of meani ngs:
is cui mhi n l i om
is mai th l i om
is cuma l i om
is mi an li om
is di gh l i om
is oth li om
is fuath li om
I remember
I like
I don't care
I wish
I think
I regret
I hate
165
When c is used wi thout a verb, the copul a is understood but not wri tten
when i t is fol l owed i mmedi atel y by an object pronoun, the defi ni te arti cl e or
seo, si n, sid:
c (h) si n? who is that?
cn bhean (i) seo? who is this woman?
c hiad na daoi ne si n? who are those peopl e?
When cad is used w i thout a verb, the copul a is understood but not wri tten
when i t is fol lowed i mmedi atel y by ;
what is that?
what time is it?
what good is it?
cad si n?
cad an t-am ?
cad an mhai th ?
166
CONJUNCTIONS AND VERBAL PARTICLES
M
I t is used mainly wi th the present and past i ndi cati v e tenses. When one
wi shes to express a future meani ng after m, the present form of the verb is
used:
m thagann s amrach i f he comes tomorrow
When one wi shes to express the future tense of the substanti v e verb after m,
the present habi tual form of the verb is used:
m bh onn s i l thai r amrach i f he is present tomorrow
It l eni tes excep t:
(a) t: m t an ceart aige
(b) those forms of the irregul ar verb abair w hi ch begi n wi th d:
m deir / dei readh / di rt s
(c) fuai r: m fuair s (i.e. past tense only of faigh)
(d) the past passive of all the regular verbs and of some of the
irregular verbs:
m cui readh, m mol adh, m fgadh, m tugadh
It is fol lowed by the i ndependent form of the verb and, i n the case of those
verbs begi nni ng w i th a vowel or f w hi ch are preceded by d' i n the past tenses,
the d' remai ns unaffected:
m d 'l /d'l ad h s m d'fhan/d'fhanad h s
m chui reann/chui readh/chui r s m d hnann/d hnad h/dhn s
I t combi nes w i th the copul a is to give ms:
ms mai th l eat ms fi or
167
D
I t is used onl y wi th the condi ti onal or past subjuncti v e. I t ecli pses and is
fol l owed by the dependent form of the verb:
d mbeadh s i f he were
d gceanndh s i f he bought / were to buy
d n-l fadh s i f he drank / were to drink
d bhfgfadh s i f he left / were to leave
SIMPLE CONJUNCTIONS
The fol l owi ng is a l i st of conju ncti ons commonl y used i n I ri sh:
mar / n / i r for
i r is t a ri nne for it is you who di d it
n ti ocfai dh an l sa dei readh for the day will finally come
mar d bhfei cfi nn for i f I had seen him
POSITIVE VERBAL PARTICLES
An
I t is used wi th all verbs i n all tenses excep t:
(a) the imperati ve and present subjuncti v e moods
(b) the past tense of all regular verbs and the irregul ar verbs beir, cl oi s /
cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar.
I t ecli pses and takes the dependent form of the verb:
an gcui reann / gcui rfi dh / gcui readh / gcui rfeadh s?
an ndanann / ndanfai dh / ndanadh / ndanfadh / ndearna s?
an bhfgann / bhfgfai dh / bhfgadh / bhfgfadh s?
an l ann / l fai dh / l adh / l fadh s?
n o t e: an does not ecli pse verbs whose i ni ti al is a vowel :
an l ann t? an i mreoi dh t?
168
Ar
I t l eni tes and takes the dependent form of the verb:
a r chui r si ? a r fhg si? a r l si? a r i th si?
n o t e : i t d o e s n o t l e n i te th e i n i ti a l c o n s o n a n t o f th e p a s t p a s s i v e o f r e g u l a r
v e r b s o r o f th e i r r e g u l a r v e r b tabhai r:
a r cui readh? a r tugadh?
I t is used only i n the past tense wi th all regular verbs and wi th the irregul ar
verbs beir, cl oi s / cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar.
Go
I t is used w i th all verbs i n all tenses excep t:
(a ) the i mperati v e mood
(b) the past tense of all regular verbs and the irregular verbs beir, cl oi s /
cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar.
It ecl i pses and takes the dependent form of the verb:
go gcui reann / gcui rfi dh / gcui readh / gcui rfeadh / gcui re s
go ndanann / ndanfai dh / ndanadh / ndanfadh / ndearna / ndana s
go bhfgann / bhfgfai dh / bhfgadh / bhfgfadh / bhfga s
go n-l ann / n-l fai dh / n-l adh / n-l fadh / n-l a s
Gur
I t is used only i n the past tense wi th all regular verbs and wi th the irregul ar
verbs beir, cl oi s / cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar.
I t l eni tes and takes the dependent form of the verb:
gur chui r si gur fhg si gur l si gur ith si
n o t e : it does not l eni te the i ni ti al consonant of the past passive of regular
verbs or of the irregular verb tabhai r:
gur cui readh gur tugadh
169
Sula
(a) the imperati ve mood
(b) the past tense of all regular verbs and the irregul ar verbs beir, cl oi s /
cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar.
I t ecli pses and takes the dependent form of the verb:
sul a gcui reann / gcui rfi dh / gcui readh / gcui rfeadh / gcui re s
sul a ndanann / ndanfai dh / ndanadh / ndanfadh / ndearna / ndana s
sul a bhfgann / bhfgfai dh / bhfgadh / bhfgfadh / bhfga s
sul a n-l ann / n-l fai dh / n-l adh / n-l fadh / n-l a s
I t is used wi th all verbs i n all tenses excep t:
Sular
I t is used only i n the past tense w i th all regular verbs and wi th the irregular
verbs beir, cl oi s / cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar.
I t l eni tes and takes the dependent form of the verb:
su l ar chui r si sul ar fhg si sul ar 61 si su l ar i th si
n o t e : i t d o e s n o t l e n i te th e i n i ti a l c o n s o n a n t o f th e p a s t p a s s i v e o f r e g u l a r
v e r b s o r o f th e i r r e g u l a r v e r b ta b h a i r :
sul ar cui readh su l ar tugadh
170
C
(a) the imperati v e and the present subjuncti v e moods
(b) the past tense of all regular verbs and the irregular verbs beir, cl oi s /
cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar.
I t ecl i pses and takes the dependent form of the verb:
c gcui reann / gcui rfi dh / gcui readh / gcui rfeadh s?
c nd anann / ndanfai dh / ndanadh / ndanfadh / ndearna s?
c bhfgann / bhfgfai dh / bhfgadh / bhfgfadh s?
c n-l ann / n-l fai dh / n-l adh / n-l fadh s?
I t is used wi th all verbs i n all tenses excep t:
Cr
It is used only i n the past tense wi th all regular verbs and wi th the irregul ar
verbs beir, cl oi s / cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar.
It l eni tes and takes the dependent form of the verb:
cr chui r si? cr fhg si? cr l si? cr i th si?
n o t e : i t d o e s n o t l e n i te th e i n i ti a l c o n s o n a n t o f th e p a s t p a s s i v e o f r e g u l a r
v e r b s o r o f th e i r r e g u l a r v e r b ta b h a i r :
cr cui readh? cr tugadh?
171
N
I t is used only w i th the imperati v e mood.
I t prefi xes h to i ni ti al vowel s.
n mol ! don't prai se! n fg! don't leave!
n hi th! don't eat!
N i
It is used w i th all verbs i n all tenses excep t:
(a) the i mperati v e and present subjuncti v e moods
(b) the past tense of all regular verbs and the irregul ar verbs beir, cl oi s /
cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar.
It l eni tes and takes the dependent form of the verb:
ni chui reann / chui rfi dh / chui readh / chui rfeadh s
ni d hanann / dhanfai dh / dhanadh / dhanfadh / dhearna s
n fhgann / fhgfai dh / fhgadh / fhgfadh s
ni l ann / l fai dh / l adh / l fadh s
Excepti ons:
I t ecli pses the irregul ar verb faigh i n the future, condi ti onal and past tenses:
ni bhfai ghi dh / bhfai gheadh / bhfuai r s
I t does not affect those forms of the irregular verb abair w hi ch begi n wi th d:
ni deir / darfai dh / dei readh / darfadh / di rt s
NEGATI VE VERBAL PARTI CLES
172
Nor
It l eni tes and takes the dependent form of the verb:
n i o r c h u i r si n o r f h g si n o r l si n i o r i th si
n o t e : i t d o e s n o t l e n i te th e i n i ti a l c o n s o n a n t o f th e p a s t p a s s i v e o f r e g u l a r
v e r b s o r o f th e i r r e g u l a r v e r b ta b h a i r :
n i o r m o l a d h n i o r tu g a d h
It is used only i n the past tense wi th all regular verbs and wi th the irregul ar
verbs beir, cl oi s / cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar.
Cha
There exi sts i n Ulster I ri sh, most frequentl y nowadays i n North and West
Donegal , a negati v e parti cl e cha.
It is used wi th all verbs i n all tenses excep t:
(a ) the i mperati v e and the present subjuncti v e moods
(b) the past tense of all regular verbs and the irregul ar verbs beir, cl oi s /
cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar.
(c) the future tense. To transl ate a future meani ng, the present tense
of the verb is used and, in the case of the substanti v e verb, the
present habi tual tense.
It l eni tes i ni ti al b, c, f, g, m, p, s. It becomes chan before i ni ti al vowel s or f.
It takes the dependent form of the verb:
ch a chui reann / chui readh / chui rfeadh s
ch an fhgann / fhgadh / fhgfadh s
ch an l ann / l adh / l fadh s
n o t e : i t must be stressed here that i n the various Ulster di al ects i n w hi ch cha
is used, di fferent rules often appl y concerni ng i ni ti al mutati ons fol l owi ng it.
173
Char
I t l eni tes and takes the dependent form of the verb:
c h a r c h u i r si c h a r f h g si c h a r 61 si c h a r i th si
n o t e : i t d o e s n o t l e n i te th e i n i ti a l c o n s o n a n t o f th e p a s t p a s s i v e o f r e g u l a r
v e r b s o r o f th e i r r e g u l a r v e r b ta b h a i r .
c h a r m o l a d h c h a r tu g a d h
I t is used only i n the past tense wi th all regular verbs and w i th the irregul ar
verbs beir, cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar.
Nach
I t is used wi th all verbs i n all tenses excep t:
(a) the imperati ve and present subjuncti v e moods
(b) the past tense of all regular verbs and the irregul ar verbs beir, cl oi s /
cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar.
It ecli pses and takes the dependent form of the verb:
n ach gcui reann / gcui rfi dh / gcui readh / gcui rfeadh s
n ach ndanann / ndanfai dh / ndanadh / ndanfadh / ndearna s
n ach bhfgann / bhfgfai dh / bhfgad h / bhfgfadh s
n ach n-l ann / n-l fai dh / n-l adh / n-l fadh s
Nr
I t is used i n the past tense wi th all regular verbs and w i th the irregular verbs
beir, cl oi s / cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar. I t is also used wi th the present subjuncti v e
mood. It l eni tes and takes the dependent form of the verb:
n r chui r si n r fhg si nr l si n r i th si nr fhei ce t!
n o t e : i t does not l eni te the i ni ti al consonant of the past passive of regular
verbs or of the irregular verb tabhai r:
nr cui readh nr tugadh
174
Mura
(a) th e i m p e r a ti v e m o o d
(b) th e p a s t te n s e o f a l l r e g u l a r v e r b s a n d th e i r r e g u l a r v e r b s b e i r , cl o i s /
c l u i n , i th , ta b h a i r , tar .
It ecli pses and takes the dependent form of the verb:
mu r a g c u i r e a n n / g cu i r f i d h / g cu i r e a d h / g cu i r f e a d h / g cu i r e s
mura n d a n a n n /n d a n f a i d h /n d a n a d h /n d a n f a d h /n d e a r n a /n d a n a s
mu r a b h f g a n n / b h f g f a i d h / b h f g a d h / b h f g f a d h / b h f g a s
mura n - l a n n / n - l f a i d h / n - l a d h / n - l f a d h / n - l a s
n o t e : i t c o m b i n e s w i th th e co p u l a to b e c o m e m u r a (m u r a b b e f o r e v o w e l s ) i n
th e p r e s ./f u t. te n s e s a n d m u r a r (m u r a r b h b e f o r e v o w e l s ) i n th e co n d . m o o d
a n d p a s t te n s e .
It is used w i th all verbs i n all tenses excep t:
Murar
I t is used only i n the past tense wi th all regular verbs and wi th the irregular
verbs beir, cl oi s / cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar.
I t l eni tes and takes the dependent form of the verb:
mu r ar chui r si mu r ar fhg si murar l si murar i th si
n o t e : i t does not l eni te the i ni ti al consonant of the past passive of regular
verbs or of the irregul ar verb tabhai r:
mu r ar cui readh murar tugadh
175
RELATIVE CLAUSES
DI RECT RELATI VE CLAUSE
A direct rel ati ve clause occurs when the noun at the begi nni ng of the
sentence (= the anteced ent) is the subject of the verb in the fol l owi ng
rel ati ve clause.
nou n (subj.) + dir. rel . part. + v erb + (other):
a n f e a r a b h u a i l a n c a t the man who hi t the cat
a n b h e a n a l a n n a n ta e the woman who dri nks the tea
n a d a o i n e a i m i o n n a b h a i l e the people who go home early
g o l u a th
A direct rel ati ve clause occurs when the noun at the begi nni ng of the
sentence (= the anteced ent) is the di rect object of the verb i n the
fol l owi ng rel ati ve clause.
nou n (obj.) + dir. rel . part. + v erb + subj. + (other):
a n ch u l a i th a c h e a n n a i g h m the suit (which) I bought
a n t-a i r g e a d a c h a i th i m g a ch l the money (which) I spend every
day
a n cl u i ch e a f h e i cf i m i d a m r a ch the game (that) we will see
tomorrow
3 After a m , l , o i c h e , b l i a i n or other nouns denoti ng ti me,* ei ther an
i ndi rect or di rect rel ati ve clause can be used:
cn l a th a g a n n / d ta g a n n s? (on) which day does he come?
cn bhl i ai n a / ar th a r l a s s i n ? (in) what year did that happen?
cn t-am a ch o n a i c / b h f a ca t ? when did you see hi m?
*n o t e : a f te r u ai r , a d i r e ct r e l a ti v e cl a u s e i s al w ay s u s e d :
cn u ai r a th i o c f a i d h s ? when will he come?
176
4 After c / c mhad, c fhad, cathai n, cn uair, conas, nuai r and mar
(like, how, as), the fol l owi ng rel ati ve clause is direct:
c mhad dui ne a bhi ann? how many people were there?
cath ai n a thi ocfai d h s anseo? when will he come here?
cn u ai r a fhei cfi dh t ? when will you see hi m?
conas a dhanfai dh s si n? how will he do that?
n u ai r a cheapai m an l i athri d when I catch the hall
ri th s mar a bhead h capall ann he ran like a horse
c fhad a chai theann t ansi n how long do you spend there
gach l? every day?
5 When the i nterrogati v e parti cl es c, cad / card are fol l ow ed
i mmedi atel y by a rel ati ve parti cl e, the fol l owi ng rel ati ve clause is direct.
c a chuai gh amach anois beag? who went out a while ago?
cad a d hanfai dh s leis an what will he do with the money?
airgead?
c a bhri s an fhui nneog? who broke the window?
6 After an abstract noun, the fol l owi ng rel ati ve clause is usually direct:
bhi i ontas orm a l aghad obai r a r i nn e s
I was amazed at the little amount of work (that) he did
chui r s eagl a orm a u ai gni a bh i an ch oi l l
it fri ghtened me how lonely the wood was
t a fhi os agam a fheabhas a d 'i r i gh l eo
I know how well they got on
c mh i n i ce a th an n t ann?
how often do you go there?
is i onadh l i om a d heacra at s
I am amazed at how di ffi cul t it is
177
Di r ect Rel ati v e Par ti cl e (Posi ti v e)
a
I t is used i n all tenses (except pres. subj. & impv.) w i th all verbs. I t l eni tes
the i ni ti al consonant of all verbs excep t:
(a ) t (n o t e : a i s j o i n e d to th e p r e s e n t te n s e o f th i s v e r b , e .g . at)
(b) all tenses of verb abair
(c) the past tense of the verb faigh
(d) the past passi v e of all v erbs except the i rregul ar bhi othas,
chonacthas, chual athas, chuathas, thngthas
(e) verbs preceded by d' i n the past tenses and i n the cond i ti onal mood.
an fear at i na chna anseo
an t a d ei r / d ei read h / d ar fai d h / d arfad h / d i rt si n
an bhean a fu ai r an t-airgead
an madra a bu ai l ead h i nn
an pi ste a d 'fhg / d 'fhg(f)ad h an teach go l uath
an cat a d 'i th (ead h ) / d 'i osfad h a dhi nnar
n o t e : After cad () / card fol l owed by t and dei r, the dir. rel . part, a is
dropped:
After conas, fol lowed by t, the dir. rel . part, a is also dropped:
cad () t aige?
cad () dei r t?
card t ort?
what has he?
what do you say?
what is wrong with you?
conas t si bh? how are you (pl.).7
178
Di r ect Rel ati v e Par ti cl e (Negati v e)
Nach
I t is used i n all tenses (except pres. subj. & i mpv.) wi th all verbs except the
past tense of all regular verbs and the irregular verbs beir, cl oi s / cl ui n, i th,
tabhai r, tar.
I t ecl i pses and takes the dependent form of the verb:
an fear n ach gcui reann / gcui rfi dh / gcui readh / gcui rfeadh an madra amach
an mi sti r n ach ndanann / ndanfai dh / ndanadh / ndanfadh / ndearna
an obai r
na daoi ne n ach bhfgann / bhfgfai dh / bhfgadh / bhfgfadh an teach
na pi st n ach n-l ann / n-l fai dh / n-l adh / n-l fadh an bai nne
Nr
I t is used only i n the past tense wi th all regular verbs and wi th the irregul ar
verbs bei r, cl oi s / cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar. I t l eni tes and takes the dependent
form of the verb:
an piste dna nr chui r si amach
an scoi l nr fhg si nuai r a bhi si g
an bai nne nr l siad
an di nnar nr i th t
n o t e : i t does not l eni te the i ni ti al consonant of the past passive of regul ar
verbs or of the irregul ar verb tabhai r.
an t-airgead nr cai theadh sa si opa
ni fi i steacht leis an bhfear nr mol adh
chai th m amach an bi a nr tugadh do na madrai
179
Di rect Rel ati v e Forms of th e Copul a
n o t e : th e r e i s n o r e l a ti v e p a r ti cl e f o r a n y f o r m o f th e co p u l a i n a n y te n s e .
Pr e s e n t / F u t u r e T e n s e
Affi rmativ e Negative
is nach
sin () an rud is mai th l i om si n rud n ach ceart a r
sin ceacht is furasta a dhanamh si n scal n ach ceart a lua
si n fear i s si ne n si n dn n ach cui mhi n l i om
Mi re is ai nm dom
dan ceacht ar bi th i s mi an leat
is Peadar an buachai l l is dna
fei ci m an t is athai r dui t
Pa s t T e n s e / C o n d i t i o n a l M o o d
Affirmativ e Negative
ba / *ab nr(bh)
si n rud ba mhai th l i om a fhei cei l rud nr cheart a lua
an rud ab fhusa a dhanamh scal nr bh fh or
an t ab athai r di
n o t e : the affi rmati ve, di rect rel ati ve form ba -> ab and negati v e nr -* nrbh
before vowel s or fh fol lowed by a vowel :
an bhean ab i l l e, an l ab fhearr, an rud n r bh fhi or.
n o t e : the past and condi ti onal forms of the copul a also l eni te:
ba / ab / nr(bh) srl. rud nr cheart a r
180
I N DI RECT RELATI VE CLAUSE
1 When the interrogati v e parti cl es c, cad / card are fol lowed immediately
by a preposi ti onal pronoun or compound preposi ti on, the fol l owi ng
rel ati ve clause is i ndi rect.
c d a d tu gtar an t-airgead?
cad / card l ei s a n gl antar ?
cad / card faoi a mbi onn si bh
ag magadh?
c l ei s a rai bh t ag damhsa?
c i n a aghai d h a mbei d h si bh
ag i mi rt?
to whom is the money gi ven?
with what is it cl eaned?
about what do you j oke? / are
you j oking?
with whom were you danci ng?
agai nst whom will you play / be
pl ayi ng?
When the rel ati ve parti cl e expresses the meani ng all that, the fol l owi ng
rel ati ve clause is i ndi rect:
si n a bhfu i l le r agam leat
d'l s a bhfu ai r s arir
cai thfi dh m a bhfai ghi d h m
uaidh
tar is a nd earna m ar do shon!
that is all I have to say to you
he drank all he got last night
I 'll spend all I 'll get from him
after all I did for you!
n o t e : gach s ta n d i n g a l o n e c a n a l s o p r e ce d e th e r e l a ti v e p a r ti cl e w i th n o
c h a n g e o f s ta tu s o f th e i n d i r e c t r e l a ti v e cl a u s e b u t i f gach i s f o l l o w e d b y a
n o u n , th e r e l a ti v e cl a u s e th e n b e co m e s d i r e ct, e x c e p t w h e n f o l l o w e d b y
d a(r ):
gach a bhfu i l le r aige
(gach rud at le r aige)
gach a bhfai ghi d h t
(gach rud a gheobhai d h t)
gach ar 61 m
(gach rud a d 'l m)
gach pi ngi n d bhfu ai r s
all he has to say
all you will get
all I drank
every penny he got
gach uai r dr chu i mhni gh s air every time he remembered it
181
3 After the phrases a n i t / c n i t / c h i t a (r ), a n c h a o i / c n c h a o i a(r ),
a n d i g h / c n d i g h a(r ), a n f th / c n f th a (r ), ca d ch u i g e / tu i g e a (r ),
the fol l owi ng rel ati ve clause is usually i ndi rect:
s i n ( ) an it a bhfuil a n d o ch a r
cn it a bhfuil a n d e a cr a c h t?
c hit ar chaill s i a n f i n n e ?
an chaoi a ndeirtear s i n
cn chaoi a bhfuil t?
an digh a ndantar a n
o b a i r a n s e o
cn digh ar irigh leis
sa s cr d ?
cn fth nach ndanf s i n ?
cad chuige a bhfuil t ag r i th ?
that is where the harm is
where is the difficulty?
where di d she lose the ring?
the way that is said
how are you?
the way the work is done here
how did he perform in the
exam?
why woul dn't you do that?
why are you runni ng?
After a m , l , o i c h e , b l i a i n or other nouns denoti ng ti me/
i ndi rect or direct rel ati ve clause can be used:
ei ther an
cn l a thagann / dtagann s ? (on) which day does he come?
cn bhliain a / ar tharla s s i n ? (in) what year did that happen?
cn t-am a chonaic / bhfaca t ? when did you see hi m?
not e: * after u a i r , a direct relative clause is always used:
cn uair a thiocfaidh s ? when will he come?
5 An i ndi rect rel ati ve clause occurs i n the fol l owi ng si tuati on in an Irish
sentence:
noun +ind. rel. part. +verb + poss. adj. +noun +other
an fear a bhfuil a i n i o n s a n o th a r l a n n
the man whose daughter is in the hospital
s i n (i ) an bhean a ndeachaigh a m a c l e l e i g h e a s
that is the woman whose son studi ed medi ci ne
c b h f u i l a n s c a n n n a bhfaca m a th s ?
where is the film, the begi nni ng of which I saw?
a n b u a c h a i l l ar maraiodh a a th a i r
the boy whose father was killed
not e: the poss. adj. agrees in number and gender with the noun at the
begi nni ng of the sentence (= the anteced ent).
Thi s type of rel ati ve clause is i ntroduced i n Engli sh by whose, of which.
182
6 An i ndi rect rel ati ve clause occurs i n the fol l owi ng si tuati on i n an I ri sh
sentence:
nou n + i nd . rel . part. + v erb + nou n + prep, pron:
an fear a d tu gai m an t-airgead d
the man to whom I give the money
na poi l l a d tagann na coi ni ni astu
the holes out of which the rabbits come
an bhean a r ai bh m ag cai nt li
the woman with whom I was talking
an chi sti n a mbi on n na pi st i n ti
the kitchen in which the chi l dren are
n o t e : the prep. pron. at the end of the sentence agrees i n number and gender
wi th the nou n at the begi nni ng of the sentence (= the anteced ent).
A v ari ant of thi s i ndi rect rel ati ve cl ause is also used:
nou n + {* prep. + i nd .r el .p ar t.) + v erb + nou n + other:
na fir l ena r ai bh m ag cai nt
the men with whom I was talking
an chi sti n as a d tagann na pi st
the kitchen out of which the chi l dren come
an t-stn i n a mbi on n siad ag l
the hotel in which they drink
an bord ar a bhfu i l an cupn
the table on which the cup is
* Someti mes the prep, and indi r. rel. part, merge e.g. lena(r), i na(r),
someti mes not, e.g. as a(r), ar a(r) etc.
183
7 When an object pronoun referri ng to the noun at the begi nni ng of the
sentence is i nserted at the end of the sentence to avoid ambi guity, the
rel ati ve clause is i ndi rect:
an gasr ar bhu ai l an mi nteoi r
the boy whom the teacher beat
an mol ti r a gci neann go l eor daoi ne
the referee whom many people bl ame
8 An i ndi rect rel ati ve clause fol lows the adverb mar w hen i t means where:
fan mar a bhfu i l t!
stay where you are!
gheobhai dh t iad mar ar ch u i r t iad
you'll get them where you put them
184
I n d i r ect Rel ati v e Par ti cl e (Posi ti v e)
a
I t is used i n all tenses (except pres. subj. and impv.) wi th all verbs except the
past tense of all regular verbs and the irregular verbs beir, cl oi s / cl ui n, i th,
tabhai r, tar.
I t ecl i pses and takes the dependent form of the verb:
an bata a mbuai l i m / mbu ai l i nn / mbuai l fi d h m / mbu ai l fi nn an madra leis
an dui ne a nd anann / nd anad h / ndanfai d h / nd anfad h s coi nne l eis
an cupn a n -l an n / n-l ad h / n-l fai d h / n-l fad h si an bai nne as
ar
It is used only in the past tense wi th all regular verbs and wi th the irregul ar
verbs beir, cl oi s / cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar.
I t l eni tes and takes the dependent form of the verb:
an bosca ar ch u i r m i bhfol ach ann
the box in which I hi d it
an fear ar mhar ai gh a mhac an capall
the man whose son killed the horse
an mhthai r ar i th a hi ni on a cui d mi l sen
the mother whose daughter ate her sweets
na daoi ne ga ar fhg a dtui smi theoi ri an tal amh acu
the young people whose parents left them the land
185
not e: it does not lenite the initial consonant of the past passive of either
the regular verb or of the irregular verb tabhair.
an fear ar maraiodh a mhac
the man whose son was killed
an cupn ar ladh an t-uisce as
the cup out of which the water was drunk
an bhean ar tugadh drochde d fear
the woman whose husband was abused
186
I n d i r ect Rel ati v e Parti cl e (Negati v e)
nach
It is used i n all tenses (except pres. subj. and impv.) wi th all verbs except the
past tense of all regular verbs and the irregular verbs beir, cl oi s / cl ui n, i th,
tabhai r, tar.
It ecl i pses and takes the dependent form of the verb:
an fear nach mol tar / mol tai / mol far / mol fai a mhac
an mi sti r n ach d tu gann / dtugad h / d tabhar fai d h /
d tabhar fad h na pi st a cheart d
na daoi ne nach bhfanann / bhfanad h / bhfanfai d h / bhfanfad h si leo
an seomra n ach n -i th i m / n -i th i n n / n-i osfai d h m / n-i osfai nn
an bi a ann
nr
It is used only i n the past tense wi th all regular verbs and wi th the irregul ar
verbs beir, cl oi s / cl ui n, i th, tabhai r, tar.
It l eni tes and takes the dependent form of the verb:
an pi ste dna nr chui mhni gh si air
the bold chi l d whom she di dn't remember
an scoi l nr fhg si a cui d fui nneog ar oscai l t
the school whose windows she di dn't leave open
an cupn n r l siad aon deoch as
the cup out of which they di dn't drink
n o t e : i t does not l eni te the i ni ti al consonant of the past passive of regular
verbs or of the irregul ar verb tabhair.
an teach nr fgadh solas lasta ann
the house which was left unl i t
an bh nr marai odh a lao
the cow whose cal f wasn't killed
an fear bocht nr tugadh cabhai r d
the poor man who wasn't hel ped
187
n o te : th e r e i s no r e l a ti v e p a r ti cl e f o r a n y f o r m o f th e co p u l a i n a n y te n s e .
Pr e s e n t / F u t u r e T e n s e
I nd i r ect Rel ati v e Forms of th e Copul a
Affirmative
ar(*b)
sin fear ar fuath leis a chl ann
sin bean arb amhrna i a hi ni on
sin gasr ar pei leadir mai th
Negative
nach
sin mi nteoi r nach mai th leis a
ghlr fi n
sin fear nach Sasanai gh iad a
mhui nti r
seo imreoir arb eol d na rialacha
n o t e : th e f o r m e n d i n g i n b i s th e o n e u s e d b e f o r e w o r d s b e g i n n i n g w i th a
v o w e l .
Pa s t T e n s e / C o n d i t i o n a l M o o d
Affirmative
ar(*bh)
si n deacracht ar cheart dri
ui rthi
si n bean arbh amhrna i a
hi ni on i na hi ge
an t arbh eol d an fhi ri nne
Negative
nr(*bh)
fear nr Shasanai gh iad a
ghaol ta go lir
fil e nrbh fhi a chui d
fi l i ochta a fhoghl ai m
n o t e : th e f o r m s w h i c h e n d i n bh a r e u s e d b e f o r e w o r d s b e g i n n i n g w i th a
v o w e l o r fh f o l l o w e d b y a v o w e l .
188
NUMBERS
CARDINAL NUMBERS
The fol l owi ng are the forms of numeral s used when they are not fol lowed
(i mmedi atel y) by a noun:
1 a haon 11 a haon dag
2 a d 12 a d dhag
3 a tri 13 a tri dag
4 a ceathai r 14 a ceathai r dag
5 a ci g 15 a ci g dag
6 a s 16 a s dag
7 a seacht 17 a seacht dag
8 a hocht 18 a hocht dag
9 a naoi 19 a naoi dag
10 a dei ch
n o t e : a precedes all those numbers and prefi xes h to aon and ocht. The
i ni ti al of d a g is l eni ted after d.
20 fi che 21 fi che a haon
22 fi che a d 23 fi che a tri
30 tri ocha 31
tri ocha a haon
40 dai chead 41 dai chead a haon
50 caoga 51 caoga a haon
60 seasca 61 seasca a haon
70 seacht 71 seacht a haon
80 ocht 81 ocht a haon
90 ncha 91 ncha a haon
100
cad 101 cad a haon
1,000 mil e 1,001 mi l e a haon
1,000,000 mi l l i n
189
['he fol l owi ng are the forms of numeral s used when they are fol lowed
i mmedi atel y by a noun:
1 aon bhd amhi n
aon l eni tes i ni ti al b, c, f, g, m, p. It does not l eni te i ni ti al d, t, s.
2 dh bhd
Leni tes and is fol l owed by si ngular noun.
Card i nal Numbers Fol l ow ed by Nouns
3 tri
4 cei thre
5 ci g
6 s
bhd / uan
bi d / huai n
These nu mbe^ can be fol lowed by si ngular or plural of noun except i n case
of bl i ai n, ceann, cl oi geann, fi che, uaii^ pi ngi i i , sci l l i ng, seachtai n, ubh whi ch
require thei r (special) pl ural forms to be used: -Se* 4Loi /c
tri bl i an a, cei thre ci n n , ci g cl oi gne, s fi ch i d etc.
If the si ngular noun is used, the i ni ti al consonant is l eni ted. If the plural
noun is used, there is no l eni ti on but h is prefi xed to i ni ti al vowel s:
7 seacht
8 ocht
9 naoi
10 dei ch
mbd / n-uan
mbi d / n-uai n
These numbers can be fol lowed by si ngular or plural of noun except in case
of bl i ai n, ceann, cl oi geann, fi che, uair, pi ngi n, sci l l i ng, seachtai n, ubh whi ch
require thei r (special) plural forms to be used:
seacht n-uai re, ocht bp i ngi ne, naoi sci l l i nge,
dei ch seachtai ne, dei ch n-u i bhe etc.
I ni ti al consonants and vowel s are always ecli psed w hether the si ngul ar or
plural noun is used.
11-19 The pattern is the same as for 1- 10 except that dag is pl aced
after the noun:
aon bhd dag, dh bhd dag, tr bhd dag, cei thre uan dag etc.
n o t e : th e i n i ti a l o f dag i s l e n i te d w h e n th e p r e ce d i n g n o u n i s s i n g u l a r a n d
e n d s i n a v o w e l o r i s p l u r a l a n d e n d s i n a s l e n d e r c o n s o n a n t (e x ce p t c i n n ):
tri chl ui che dhag seacht n-uai n
20 fi che
30 tri ocha
40 dai chead
50 caoga
60 seasca
70 seacht
80 ocht
90 ncha
100 cad
1,000 mil e
1,000,(0
mi l l i i 'rn
21 l eabhar is fi che
22 dh l eabhar is fi che
23 tri l eabhar is fi che
34 cei thre leabhar is tri ocha
45 ci g l eabhar is dai chead
capall
teach
Genitive Case and Cardinal Numbers
1 l uach aon bhi d amhi n 11 l uach aon bhi d dag
2 l uach dh bhd 20 l uach fi che bd
3
l uach tri bhd 30 l uach tri ocha bd
4 l uach cei thre bhd 100
l uach cad bd
5 l uach cig bhd 1,000 l uach mi l e bd
6 l uach s bhd 1,000,000 l uach mi l l i n bd
7 l uach seacht mbd
8 l uach ocht mbd
9 luach naoi mbd
10 l uach dei ch mbd
n o t e : onl y in the case of 1 , 1 1 , 2 1 etc. is the noun put i n the geni ti ve case.
191
The Defi ni te Arti cl e and Card i nal Numbers
1 an t-aon bhd / chi sti n / asal amhi n
2 an d bhd / chi sti n / asal
3 na tri bhd / chi sti n / asal
4 na cei thre bhd / chi sti n / asal
5 na ci g bhd / chi sti n / asal
6 na s bhd / chi sti n / asal
7 na seacht mbd / gci sti n / n-asal
8 na hocht mbd / gci sti n / n-asal
9 na naoi mbd / gci sti n / n-asal
10 na dei ch mbd / gci sti n / n-asal
20 an fi che fear / ci sti n / asal
30 an tri ocha fear / ci sti n / asal
100 an cad fear / ci sti n / asal
1,000 an mi l e fear / ci sti n / asal
Genitive Case and Definite Article and Cardinal Numbers
1 airgead an aon fhi r / na haon mhn amhi n
2 l uach an d chapal l / an d bh
3 l uach na dtri chapal l / bh
4 l uach na gcei thre chapal l / bh
5 l uach na gcig chapal l / bh
6 luach na s chapal l / bh
7 l uach na seacht gcapal l / mb
8 l uach na n-ocht gcapal l / mb
9 l uach na naoi gcapal l / mb
10 l uach na ndei ch gcapal l / mb
20 l uach an fi che capall / b
30 l uach an tri ocha capall / b
70 l uach an seacht capal l / b
100 l uach an chad capal l / b
1,000 l uach an mhi l e capall / b
1,000,000 luach an mhi l l i n capall / b
n o t e : i ni ti al f and s are not l eni ted.
192
Card i nal Numbers and Ad jecti v es
1 aon chapal l mr / bh mhr amhi n
2 dh chapal l mhra / bh mhra
3 tri chapal l mhra / bh mhra
4 cei thre chapal l mhra / bh mhra
5 ci g chapal l mhra / bh mhra
6 s chapal l mhra / bh mhra
7 seacht gcapal l mhra / mb mhra
8 ocht gcapal l mhra / mb mhra
9 naoi gcapal l mhra / mb mhra
10 dei ch gcapal l mhra / mb mhra
n o t e : w h e n th e p l . f o r m o f th e n o u n i s u s e d i n a b o v e , th e u s u a l r u l e s f o r
l e n i ti o n o f a d je cti v e s i n p l . a p p l y :
s cl ui chi gearra naoi gcapai ll mhra
11 aon chapal l dag mhra / bh dhag mhra
20 fi che capal l mr / b mhr
100 cad capal l mr / b mhr
193
PERSONAL NUMBERS
1 dui ne amhi n
2 bei rt bhan / fhear / phi st
Lenites and is followed by the genitive plural.
3 trir
4 ceathrar
5 ci gear
6 seisear
7 seachtar
8 ochtar
9 naonr
10 dei chni r
No lenition but is followed by the genitive plural.
11 aon dui ne dhag
12 dhrag
13 tri dhui ne dhag
14 cei thre dhui ne dhag
15 ci g dhui ne dhag
16 s dhui ne dhag
17 seacht ndui ne dhag
18 ocht ndui ne dhag
19 naoi ndui ne dhag
20 fi che dui ne
fear
ban
pi st
194
The Defi ni te Arti cl e and Personal Numbers
1 an dui ne amhi n
2 an bhei rt bhan / fhear / phi st
Leni tes and is fol l ow ed by th e geni ti v e pl ural .
3 an triur
4 an ceathrar
5 an ci gear fear
6 an seisear ban
7 an seachtar pi st
8 an t-ochtar
9 an naonr
1 ar H m r h n i r i r
No l en i ti on but is fol l ow ed by the geni ti v e pl ural .
The Genitive Case of Personal Numbers
1 mla (an) dui ne
2 achrann (na) beirte
3 si th (an) triir
4 diol (an) c(h)eathrai r
5 i t (an) c(h)i gi r
6 coi ste (an) (t)seisir
7 teach (an) (t)seachtai r
8 cor (an) ochtai r
9 dthai n (an) naoni r
10 le haghai dh (an) dei chni ui r
The personal number is always i n the geni ti v e case and subject to the normal
rules gov erni ng a noun i n the geni ti v e case w hen preceded by another
defi ni te or i ndefi ni te noun or geni ti v e i ntroduci ng word or phrase.
195
ORDI NAL NUMBERS
1st an chad bhean / chat / asal [pl. na chad daoi ne]
cad is leni ted after the def. art. i n all cases, sg. and pl ., except someti mes
in the dat. sg. when i t is ecli psed. I t l eni tes i ni ti al b, c, f, g, m, p.
2nd an dara bean / cat / hasal
3rd an tri bean / cat / hasal
4th an ceathr bean / cat / hasal
5th an ci gi bean / cat / hasal
6th an s bean / cat / hasal
7th an seacht bean / cat / hasal
8th an t-ocht bean / cat / hasal
9th an nao bean / cat / hasal
10th an dei chi bean / cat / hasal
The i ni ti al consonant of the noun is not l eni ted but h is prefi xed to i ni ti al
vowel s
11th an t-aon bean / cat / hasal dag
12th an dara bean / cat / hasal dag
196
Geni ti v e Case and Ord i nal Numbers
1st hata an chad fhi r / na chad mhn
pl. l uach na chad uan
cad is l eni ted after the def. art. in all cases, sg. and pl ., except someti mes
i n the dat. sg. when i t is ecli psed. I t l eni tes i ni ti al b, c, f, g, m, p.
2nd teach an
teach an
3rd teach an
teach an
4th teach an
teach an
5th teach an
teach an
6th teach an
teach an
7th teach an
teach an
8th teach an
teach an
9th teach an
teach an
10th teach an
teach an
197
VARIA
FORENAMES
Like other nouns, forenames of men and women are ei ther mascul i ne or
femi ni ne and bel ong to the various decl ensi ons:
Masc. Sen J ohn Peadar Peter
Brian Brian Samas J ames
Fem. Mi re Mary Brid Bridget
There are usual ly onl y two possible i n fl ected forms of forenames, i .e. the
v ocati v e and the geni ti v e.
Vocative Case
The v ocati v e case is preceded by the v ocati v e parti cl e a whi ch l eni tes:
a Mhi re! a Shei n! a Eoghain!
The endi ng of the v ocati v e case of forenames is the same as i n the
nomi nati v e case except wi th 1st decl ensi on names. I n the case of the latter,
the v ocati v e endi ng is the same as the geni ti ve si ngul ar endi ng:
a Shei n! a Pheadai r! a Bhri ai n! a Shamai s!
a Mhire! a Bhrid! a Chr osti r!
Geni ti v e Case
The geni ti v e endi ngs of forenames fol l ow the usual pattern for geni ti v e case
endi ngs i n the vari ous decl ensi ons:
teach Pheadai r
si opa Shamai s
l mh Bhr de
l eabhar Chr ostra
b Laoi s
cos Liam
cta N i mhe
Peter's house
J ames's shop
Bridget's hand
Christopher's book
Lucy's cow
William's foot
Niamh's coat
198
SURNAMES
The most common surnames i n I ri sh are those i ntroduced by and Mac.
The most frequentl y used forms of mascul i ne and femi ni ne surnames are the
v ocati v e and geni ti ve forms.
A few exampl es of and Mac surnames, mascul i ne and femi ni ne, in the
vari ous cases will i l l ustrate thei r treatment:
Masculi ne
Sen Briain
a Shei n Ui Bhriai n! (voc.)
teach Shei n Ui Bhri ai n (gen.)
Peadar hAodha
a Pheadair Ui Aodha! (voc.)
teach Pheadair Ui Aodha (gen.)
Femi ni ne
Mire Ni Bhriain
a Mhire Ni Bhriain! (voc.)
teach Mhire Ni Bhriain (gen.)
Mire Ni Aodha
a Mhire Ni Aodha! (voc.)
teach Mhire Ni Aodha (gen.)
Peadar Mac Coi nni gh Mire Nic Coinnigh
a Pheadair Mhi c Coi nni gh! (voc.) a Mhire Nic Coinnigh! (voc.)
teach Pheadai r Mhi c Coi nni gh (gen.) teach Mhire Nic Coinnigh (gen.)
does not affect a fol l owi ng consonant but prefi xes h to vowel s.
Ui and Ni do not affect a fol l owi ng vowel but l eni te a fol l owi ng consonant.
Nic and Mhi c do not affect a fol l owi ng vowel but l eni te a fol l owi ng
consonant (except and g).
n o t e : th e f o l l o w i n g u s a g e w i th ti tl e s :
an Dochti r Briai n an Dochti r Sen Briain
teach an Dochtra Ui Bhriain (gen.) teach an Dochtra Sen Briain (gen.)
a Dhochti r Ui Bhriain! (voc.) a Dhochti r Sen Briain! (voc.)
When one wants to refer to someone by surname, w i thout usi ng a ti tl e or
forename e.g. O'Bri en, the MacMahons, one common way of doi ng thi s is
to use a special form of the surname, usual ly preceded by the defi ni te article.
To get thi s form, add - (e)(a)ch / - och (sg.) to the nomi nati v e form of those
surnames w hi ch are preceded by or Mac wi th necessary adjustments where
required:
Conai re - an Conai reach
Cadhai n - an Cadhnach
Mui rcheartai gh -* an Mui rcheartach
199
The same formati on is used wi th surnames endi ng i n - i r / - i l or preceded
by de except that the de is dropped and broadeni ng of the fi nal consonant
usual ly occurs:
de Brn -* an Brnach
de Bui tl i r -* an Bui tl arach
Ruisil -> an Ruisalach
Ris an Riseach
Those surnames w hi ch are preceded by nothi ng and have an adjecti v al
endi ng undergo no change:
Breathnach -> an Breathnach
Caomhnach -* an Caomhnach
200
DAYS OF TH E WEEK
an Luan Monday D Luain
an Mhi rt Tuesday D Mi rt
an Chadaoi n Wednesday D Cadaoi n
an Dardaoi n Thursday Dardaoin
an Aoi ne Friday D hAoi ne
an Satharn Saturday D Sathai rn
an Domhnach Sunday D Domhnai gh
n o t e : D i s always f o l l o w e d b y th e g e n i ti v e ca s e , i s nei
i ncorporated i nto the noun i n the case of Dardaoin
Usage:
Preceded by article: when si mpl y l i sti ng day(s): an Luan, an Mhirt:
ar an Luan
i nni u an Luan
an Luan i na dhi ai dh sin
on a I the Monday, on Mondays
today is Monday
the following Monday
Preceded by D: (on is understood):
D Luain (seo chugai nn / seo cai te / seo a chuai gh thart)
(on) Monday (next / last)
ar mai di n D Luai n
oi che D Cadaoi n
Wi thout article or D:
fan go Cadaoi n
o che Chadaoi n
Luan Csca
Aoi ne (an) Chasta
Luan go Domhnach
on Monday morni ng
on Wednesday night
wait unti l Wednesday
Wednesday night
Easter Monday
Good Friday
from Monday unti l Sunday
n o t e : i t c a n b e s e e n f r o m th e a b o v e th a t th e r e c a n s o m e ti m e s b e a n o v e r l a p
o f u s a g e .
201
MONTHS OF TH E YEAR
Eanir (m) J anuary mi Eani r
Feabhra (f) February mi Feabhra
Mrta (m) March mi an Mhrta
Aibren (m) April mi Aibrei n
Beal tai ne (f) May mi na Beal tai ne
Mei theamh (m) J une mi an Mhei thi mh
I i l (m) J uly mi Mil
Lnasa (m) August mi Lnasa
Men Fmhai r (m) September mi Mhen Fmhai r
Deireadh Fmhai r (m) October mi Dhei readh Fmhai r
Samhai n (f) November mi na Samhna
Noll aig (f) December mi na Nol l ag
n o te : March, May, J une, November a n d December h a v e a ttr a cte d th e
definite article w h e n u s e d i n th e g e n i ti v e ca s e a b o v e .
Dates wri tten i n Engli sh as: 1st J anuary, 4th May etc. are transl ated i n I rish
as: 1 Eanir, 4 Beal tai ne. The name of the month remai ns unaffected. I t is
not necessary to i ncl ude after the number except i n statutory i nstruments:
an 2 l seo de Bheal tai ne, 2004
202
PLACE-NAMES
COUNTRIES, CONTINENTS
Eire (f) I rel and mui nti r n a hi reann
Albai n (f) Scotl and mui nti r na hAlban
Sasana (m) Engl and mui nti r Shasana
an Bhreatai n Bheag (f) Wales mui nti r n a Breatai ne Bige
n o t e : I rel and and Scotl and hav e attracted the defi ni te arti cl e when used i n
the geni ti v e case above. The defi ni te arti cl e is not used wi th these countri es
i n any other case.
An Fhrai nc (f) France
An Eorai p (f) Europe
An Ghearmi n (f) Germany
An Afrai c (f) Africa
An Spi nn (f) Spain
An Ris (f) Russia
An I odi l (f) I taly
Mei ri ce (m) America
An si l ti r (f) Netherl ands
Na Sti t Aontai the (m.pl .) The United States
An Danmhai rg (f) Denmark
n o t e : the names of most countri es and conti nents are femi ni ne and most of
them are preceded by the defi ni te arti cl e i n al l i nstances.
PROVINCES, COUNTIES, CITIES AND TOWNS
ci ge Chonnacht
ci ge Laighean
ci ge Mumhan
ci ge Uladh
ci ge (m)
contae (m)
cathai r (f)
gs. ~
gs. -
gs. - thrach
(the province of) Connanght
(the province of) Leinster
(the province of) Munster
(the province of) Ulster
~ pl. - gi province
~pl. - tha county
~ pl. - thracha city
203
Cige Chonnacht:
Contae na Gai l l i mhe
Contae Liatroma
Contae Mhai gh Eo
Contae Ros Comi n
Contae Shl igi gh
County Galway
County Leitrim
County Mayo
County Roscommon
County Sligo
Cuige Laighean:
Contae Bhai l e tha Cl i ath
Contae Cheatharl ach
Contae Chi l l Chai nni gh
Contae Chi l l Dara
Contae Chi l l Mhanti n
Contae na hl armhi
Contae Laoi se
Contae Loch Carman
Contae an Longfoi rt
Contae L
Contae na Mi
Contae Ui bh Fhail i
County
County
County
County
County
County
County
County
County
County
County
County
Dubl i n
Carlow
Kilkenny
Kildare
Wicklow
Westmeath
Laois
Wexford
Longford
Louth
Meath
Offaly
Cige Mumhan:
Contae Chi arrai
Contae an Chl i r
Contae Chorcai
Contae Lui mni gh
Contae Phort Lirge
Contae Thi obrai d rann
County Kerry
County Clare
County Cork
County Limerick
County Waterford
County Tipperary
Cige Uladh:
Contae
Contae
Contae
Contae
Contae
Contae
Contae
Contae
Contae
Aontroma
Ard Mhacha
an Chabhi n
Dhoi re
an Din
Dhn na nGal l
Fhear Manach
Mhui neachi n
Thi r Eoghain
County
County
County
County
County
County
County
County
County
Antri m
Armagh
Cavan
Derry'
Down
Donegal
Fermanagh
Monaghan
Tyrone
204
Some pl ace-names (counti es, ci ti es, towns, rivers) are always preceded by
the defi ni te arti cl e:
an Dai ngean Dingle
an mai gh Omagh
an tSi onai nn the Shannon
an Cabhn Cavan
na Gl eannta (pl.) Glenties
Some pl ace-names are preceded by the defini te article onl y in the genitive case:
Gai l l i mh Galway
mui nti r na Gai l l i mhe the people of Galway
n o t e : c o n ta e and c a th a i r are both fol lowed by l eni ti on and the geni ti ve case
where appl i cabl e. Nouns or adjecti v es d enoti ng nati onal i ty or other
rel ati onshi p wi th conti nents, countri es, provi nces and someti mes counti es
and towns are often formed from the names of the pl aces (often wi th certai n
adjustments to the endi ng of the pl ace-names), always end i n - (e )(a )ch /
- o c h and, where a noun is i nvol ved, are mascu l i ne.
Adjecti v es Nouns
I rish i reannach an I rish person
French Francach a French person
Spanish Spi nneach a Spani ard
English Sasanach an English person
European Eorpach a European
Asian iseach an Asian
Ulster Ul tach an Ulster person
Munster Mui mhneach a Munster person
Galway Gai l l mheach a Galway person
Kerry Ci arrai och a Kerry person
THE GENITIVE CASE OF PLACE-NAMES
I f the pl ace-name is preceded by the defi ni te arti cl e, the normal rules for a
defi ni te noun i n the geni ti v e case apply:
an tl ml each Mr - gs. pobal an I ml i gh Mhi r
na Gl eannta - gpl. pobal na nGl eanntach
an Ri nn - gs. pobal na Ri nne
an Chi l l Mhr -* gs. pobal na Ci l l e Mi re
205
PREFIXES
Prefixes are affi xed to words (nouns, adjecti v es and verbs) in order to change
or modi fy thei r meani ng.
Some prefi xes are used to negate the ori gi nal meani ng:
meas respect d i mheas disrespect
aontas uni on easaontas disuni on
cl reputation mi chl u bad reputation
Some prefi xes are used to emphasi se or i ntensi fy the ori gi nal meani ng:
mai th good an-mhai th very good
mol adh prai se ard mhol ad h great prai se
bocht poor fi or bhocht very poor
Some prefi xes are used to conv ey the meani ng reasonable, moderately,
somewhat:
sl i nte heal th breacshl i nte fai r heal th
mei sce inebriation bogmhei sce slight inebriation
Other prefi xes are used to transl ate very speci fi c meani ngs:
ban femal e banti ar na lady (i.e. femal e lord)
ri king ri theaghl ach royal househol d
n o t e : th e s e p r e f i x e s u s u a l l y l e n i te th e i n i ti a l c o n s o n a n t o f th e w o r d to w h i c h
th e y ar e a f f i x e d e x c e p t w h e n th e p r e f i x e n d s i n d , n , t, 1, s a n d th e f o l l o w i n g
w o r d s ta r ts w i th d , t, s:
an-dui ne seandui ne banti arna i ndanta
caol droi m ard trthnna i osteocht
Some prefi xes hav e thei r fi nal consonants made broad or slender
dependi ng on the qual i ty of the i ni ti al of the fol l owi ng word:
anai thni d but ai neol ach
deasl mhach but dei sbhal ach
206
Some prefi xes undergo other changes dependi ng on the fi nal qual i ty of the
prefi x and the i ni ti al qual i ty of the fol l owi ng word:
ati ti m = ath + thi ti m (-th + th- -* t)
cnasc = comh + nasc (comh + n- -* c(i ))
dbhu = dubh + bhui
(dubh - d except before vowel & fh + vowel )
Common Intensive Prefixes an-, sean(-) and r(-)
an- meani ng very, great is prefi xed to nouns or adjecti v es.
sean(-) meani ng old, great is prefi xed to nouns, adjecti v es and verbs.
r(-) meani ng over, too, is prefi xed to nouns, adjecti v es and verbs.
There is always a hy phen between an- and the fol l owi ng word.
It l eni tes except i n case of d, t, s.
There is usual ly no hy phen between sean(-) and the fol l owi ng word.
I t l eni tes except i n case of d, t, s.
There is no hy phen after r(-) except when the fol l owi ng word begi ns wi th
a vowel . It l eni tes.
Exampl es:
an-mhai th very good an-ghaofar very windy
an-fhear a great man an-l a great day
an-dna very bold an-ti ne a great fire
seanbhean an old woman seandi cheal l best effort
seanchai te anti quated seanaoi s old age
rdhchas presumption rghearr over-cut (vb.)
rbheag too small r- seal too low
Excep ti ons are:
sean-ai nti n sean-Ghal l
sean-am sean-ghai neamhchl och
sean-ancai re sean-ns
sean-ard sean-Samhai n
sean-Bheal tai ne sean-Ti omna
207
IDIOMS
I DI OMS I NVOLVING SUBSTANTI VE VERB + PREPOSI TI ONAL PHRASE
t amhras orm I am doubtful
t thas ort you are happy
t brd air he is proud
t brn ui rthi she is sorry
t dei fi r orai nn we are in a hurry
t ad orai bh you (pE) are j ealous
t eagl a orthu they are afrai d
t fai t os orm I am afrai d
t fearg ort you are angry
t i mn air he is worried
t i ontas ui rthi she is surpri sed
t ni re orai nn we are ashamed
t ocras orai bh you (pl .) are hungry
t tart orthu they are thirsty
t ti nneas orm I am sick
t a fhi os agam I know
t bari l agat you have an idea
t di l aige he likes
t sil ai ci she hopes
I DIOMS I NVOLVING COPULA AND PREPOSI TI ONAL PHRASE
is aoi bhi nn li om I love
is bre leat you like, you love
is ceart d he should, it is right for him
is ci r di she shoul d, it is right for her
is deacair l i nn we fi nd it diffi cul t
is fidir l i bh you (pl.) can
is mai th leo they like
is mi an l i om I wish (to) / 1 i ntend (to)
is oth leat you regret
208
BLESSINGS, FAREWELLS, GREETINGS
AND OTHER OCCASIONAL SAYINGS
It has l ong been recogni sed that the Irish language is parti cul arl y ri ch in
formal blessings, greeti ngs, curses etc., w hi ch are used on every possible
occasi on. Many of them i l l ustrate a strong rel igi ous ori gi n and, for that
reason, cannot be easi l y transl ated. The fol l owi ng is a l i st of the most
common and the occasi ons w hen they are used. I n many i nstances, the verb
w hi ch expresses the wi sh is dropped i n col l oqui al speech for the sake of
brevity.
When one meets someone, the form of address general l y used is:
(go mbeannai ) Dia *dui t (sg.) / *daoi bh (pl.)!
Hello! li t. (May) God bless you!
bail Dhia ort!
God prosper you!
* not e: i n speech thi s i ni ti al d is pronounced as i f i t were l eni ted.
The reply to thi s greeti ng is general ly:
(go mbeannai ) Dia is Muire *dui t (sg.) / *daoi bh (pl.)!
Hello! l i t. (May) God and Mary bless you!
gurab duit! the same to you!
When enteri ng a house/pl ace, the enteri ng address can be any of the
fol l owi ng:
(go mbeannai ) Dia anseo! God bless (all) here!
bai l Dhi a anseo! God bless (all) here!
Dia sa teach! God bless all in this house!
When departi ng, the farewell di rected at those remai ni ng is:
sl n agat (sg.) / agaibh (pl .)! Good-bye!
The farewell di rected at those departi ng is:
sln l eat (sg.) / sl n l i bh (pl .)! Good-bye!
209
The normal greeti ng di rected at someone engaged i n work is:
bai l Dhi a ar an obair! God bless the work!
General greeti ngs or expressi ons of goodwil l i ncl ude:
sl i nte (mhr) / seo do shl i nte /
sl i nte agus saol (chugat)!
heal th (and long l ife) to you! / Cheers!
nr lagai Dia thu / si bh!
dh mr ort / orai bh!
go n-i r an t-dh leat!
go soi rbhi Dia dui t / daoi bh!
Dia l i om / leat / l i nn!
go ngntha Dia dui t / daoi bh!
rath D ort / rath Dhia ort /
go gcuire Dia (an) rath ort / orai bh!
more power to you!
good luck to you!
good luck be with you!
I wish you Godspeed!
God bless me / you / us!
may God prosper you!
- (sayi ng goodbye to someone)
God prosper you!
The greeti ng expressed to someone who has just acqui red/purchased
somethi ng whi ch is new to hi m / her e.g. a car, a suit, a di sti ncti on:
go maire t (is go gcai the t) ! may you live to enjoy (and wear)
it!
Other sayi ngs or expressi ons i ncl ude:
beannacht D ort / orai bh!
beannacht D l eat / l i bh!
Di a r sbhil !
le do thoi l / ms do thoi l
go rai bh mai th agat / agaibh!
God bless you!
God speed you!
God save us!
please / i f you please
thank you!
The reply to thi s last expressi on of thanks is:
go ndana a mhai th dui t / daoi bh! you are welcome!
The expressi on used on heari ng of a death is:
go ndana Dia a mhai th air! (may) God rest his soul!
210
The normal Engli sh greeti ng How are you? is rendered i n the various Irish
di al ects as fol lows:
Cad e mar ta tu? Ulster
Cn chaoi a bhfui l t? Connaught
Conas t t? Munster
There are even further v ari ati ons of the above i n the vari ous dial ects.
Answer:
t m go mai th, sl n a bhei dh /
bheas t
Other popul ar phrases i ncl ude:
fi l te romhat!
cad mi l e fi l te romhat!
bui ochas do Dhia / le Dia!
I am fi ne, thanks
you are welcome!
a hundred thousand welcomes to you!
thanks be to God!
211
FIN
When fi n is used after pronouns, preposi ti onal pronouns, nouns or verbs,
i t means -sel f I -selves.'
m fi n / t fi n
fi n a ri nne
t a fhi os acu fi n
di rt s fi n
tabhai r di bh fi n
an gasr fi n a d 'i th
danfai mi d fi n
mysel f/ yoursel f
she hersel f di d it
they themselves know it
she hersel f said it
give it to themselves
the boy hi msel f ate it
we ourselves will do it
Fin nev er undergoes any change.
When fi n is preceded by a possessi ve adjecti v e + noun, i t means own:
mo chl ann fi n
i mo theach fi n
tri mo choi r fi n
is mo bhari l fi n
my own family
in my own house
through my own faul t
it is my own opinion
When used adverbiall y, i t means even, only:
m thagann s anoi s fi n
m t an t-airgead fi n aige
ag Dia fi n at a fhi os
d ndarfa si n fi n l i om
i f he comes even now
even i f he has the money
God only knows
i f I were only told that
212
CUID
By i tsel f cu i d is a femi ni ne nou n meani ng a part, portion or share.
When used i n conju ncti on wi th the si mpl e preposi ti on d e i t transl ates a part
of, some of:
cu i d d e n o b a i r some of the work
cu i d d e n a d a o i n e some of the people
cu i d d e n a m some of the time
cu i d d e n a i r g e a d some of the money
not e: to translate some of+ pron., use cu i d + correct prepositional pronoun
form of ag:
cu i d a g a i n n / a cu some of us / them
When preceded by a possessi ve adjecti v e and fol l owed by the geni ti v e case,
i t serves as a form of possessi ve adjecti v e:
m o ch u i d o i b r e my work
d o ch u i d a d a i g h your clothes
a g cu i d a i r g i d thei r money
d o ch u i d c a i n te your talk
b h u r g cu i d a m a your (pl .) time
not e: wi th some nouns, one may not use the poss. adj. al one but the poss.
adj. + cu i d :
m o ch u i d a i r g i d my money
GO LEOR
Thi s phrase, meani ng enough, plenty, a lot of can be used al one, before or
after a noun*, after an adjecti v e etc:
f a d a g o l e o r long enough
g g o l e o r young enough
g o l e o r o i b r e * enough / a lot of work
g o l e o r a m a * enough / a lot of time
a i r g e a d g o l e o r enough money
t g o l e o r d a n ta enough / a lot is done
* note: when a noun follows g o l eo r , it is in the gen. case.
213
WAYS OF TRANSLATING TO KNOW
When one wi shes to say that one knows someone or is acquai nted wi th
someone, the constructi on is as fol lows:
t ai thne ag A ar A knows
t ai thne mhai th agam ar Shen I know J ohn well
When one wi shes to say that one knows a l anguage or how to perform
certai n skills, the constructi on is as fol lows:
t Gaeil ge / Barl a / Frai nci s agam I know I rish / English / French
t snmh agam I know how to swim
When one si mpl y wants to say that one knows somethi ng i n general , the
usual constructi on is:
su bstanti v e v erb + poss. adj. a (3rd sg. masc. l eni ti ng) + fhi os + ag:
t a fhi os agam si n I know that
an bhfuil a fhios agat go bhfuil s ti nn? do you know that he is sick?
ni l a fhi os aige aon rud faoi si n he knows nothi ng about that
When one wi shes to say that one knows or has detail ed knowl edge of
somethi ng, the constructi on commonl y used is:
t eol as ag A ar rud i gi n A knows somethi ng
t eol as ar an gci nel si n oi bre agam I know that ki nd of work
an bhfuil aon eolas ar an gcathai r agat? do you know the city at all?
The constructi on: t m eol ach ar an gci nel si n oi bre / an bhfui l t eol ach
ar an gcathai r? can be used as wel l.
214
ABSTRACT NOUNS FORMED
FROM ADJECTIVES
Many abstract nouns hav e one form w hi ch is the same as the
comparati v e/superl ati v e form (= gen.
adjecti v e from whi ch it is formed:
direach
gear
gorm
dubh
ci r
is i onadh l i om a d hi ri at an
bthar seo
d ghi re an sci an is amhl ai dh
is i feachta i
is cuma li om a ghoi rme at an spir
si ng. fem. form, usual ly) of the
diri
gi re
goi rme
d ui bhe
cra
I am surprised at how
straight this road is
the sharper the kni fe is,
the more effective it is
1don't care how bl ue the sky is
Many other abstract nouns have two forms, one of whi ch is the same as the
comparati ve/superl ati ve form (= gen. si ng. fem. form, usuall y) of the adjectiv e
from w hi ch it is formed and the other is that same comparativ e/superl ati ve
form wi th endings, usually, - (a)cht / - ocht suffixed:
fearil
->
fearl acht
uasal u ai sl eacht
mi sni i l
-*
mi sni l acht
cal ma cal macht
te
-
teocht
Many abstract nouns have the form w hi ch is the same as the gen. si ng. fem.
form of the adjecti v e from whi ch i t is formed to whi ch is added the endings
- (a)s:
mai th mai theas
crua -> cruas
bi nn -* bi nneas
Some abstract nouns have compl etel y irregular forms and the most common
of these are:
beag
->
l aghad
fada
-
fad
iomai l i acht
maith feabhas
mr
->
rnad
215
YES AND NO IN IRISH
Unl i ke Engli sh and many other languages, there are no si mple words i n Irish
for yes and no whi ch can be used i n every context. I n I ri sh, to transl ate these
one normal l y repeats the posi ti v e (to express yes) or negati v e (to express no)
form of the verb used i n aski ng the questi on except i n the case of the copul a:
an rachai dh t ann?
will you go there?
r achai d h / ni rachai d h
yes / no
ar cheannai gh s ?
di d he buy it?
ch eannai gh / ni or chean nai gh
yes / no
nach bhfui l s ann?
isn't he there?
t / ni l
yes / no
nach n-i theann siad lla?
don't they eat apples?
i theann / ni i th ean n
yes / no
an dti ocf l i om?
would you come with me?
th i ocfai n n / ni th i ocfai n n
yes / no
an i mri onn si bh pei l?
do you pl ay football?
i mr i mi d / ni i mri mi d
yes / no
an gcna onn t anseo?
do you live here?
cn a m / n i ch n a m
yes / no
I f the verb used i n the answer to express y es/no has a speci al sy ntheti c form,
that is the form whi ch is normal l y used. I f not, the anal y ti c form wi thout a
p ronou n is used.
n o t e : th e co p u l a i s o n e v e r b w h i c h c a n n e v e r s ta n d a l o n e to tr a n s l a te y es/no:
an mai th leat tae?
do you like tea?
is mai th / ni mai th
yes / no
nach cui mhi n leat si n?
don't you remember that?
is cu i mhi n / ni cu i mhi n
yes / no
216
n o t e : th e f o l l o w i n g e x a m p l e s w i th th e co p u l a w h i c h a l w a y s r e q u i r e a
p r o n o u n ( / i / ea / iad) i n th e r e p l y i n th e f o l l o w i n g c o n te x ts :
an mi nteoi r (Sen)?
is he (J ohn) a teacher?
i s e a / n i h e a
yes / no
an ceol ti r (mai th) i?
is she a (good) musi ci an?
i s e a / n i h e a
yes / no
nrbh amhrnai the mai the iad?
weren't they good singers?
b a e a / n i o r b h e a
yes / no
bean mhai th is ea i, nach ea?
she is a good woman, isn't she?
i s e a / n i h e a
yes / no
an Sen an mi nteoi r?
is J ohn the teacher?
i s / n i h
yes / no
arbh i Mi re an t-amhrna ?
was Mary the singer?
b a i / n i o r b h i
yes / no
an doras si n?
is that a door?
i s e a / n i h e a
yes / no
an fui nneog i si n?
is that a window?
i s e a / n i h e a
yes / no
217
WAYS OF TRANSLATING CAN, BE ABLE
[ABILITY, CAPABILITY]
The set phrase in ann used wi th the substanti v e verb bi can often transl ate
can, be able:
t m i n ann an obair a dhanamh I can do the work
t Sen i n ann aire a thabhai rt d fi n J ohn is able to look after hi msel f
The word balta used wi th the substanti v e verb bi can often transl ate can, be
abl e:
t m bal ta an obai r a dhanamh I can do the work
t Sen bal ta an chl och a thgi l J ohn is abl e to lift the stone
Vari ati ons of the phrase tagann le / tig le fol l owed by the appropri ate subject
can often transl ate can, be abl e:
ni th i g l i om sil go d reach I cannot walk straight
ni thi ocfad h le Sen sin a dhanamh J ohn would not be able to do that
The word fidir used w i th the cop u l a and often le + subject can be used to
transl ate can, be able v eeri ng towards possibility:
is fi di r sin a dhanamh gan mhoi l l that can be done without delay
is fi d i r si n a chruth go hasca that can easily be proved
is fi d i r li om sin a dhanamh I can do that
When one wi shes to express that one can read/wri te a l anguage or is abl e to
perform certai n skills, the constructi on is as fol lows:
t Gaeil ge / Barla / Frai nci s agam I can speak / write I rish /
English / French
t snmh agam I can swim
t radharc na sl agam I can see
218
WAYS OF TRANSLATING MUST, HAVE TO
[NECESSITY, OBLIGATION]
One can use the substanti v e verb bi (with appropri ate tense) fol lowed by the
appropri ate form of the preposi ti on ar to transl ate must, have to:
t orm i meacht I have to go
bhi ar na pist dul a lui go luath the children had to go to bed early
ni bhei dh ui rthi ioc as an mbil e she will not have to pay for the meal
The auxi li ary verb cai th (used al most enti rel y i n the present and future
tenses) is used to transl ate must, have to:
cai th fi d h t fanacht anseo you must remai n here
cai th fi d h siad an doras a they must close the door after them
dhnadh i na ndi ai dh
The phrase n mr (with appropri ate tense) fol lowed by the appropriate form
of the preposi ti on do (where subject is required) is used to transl ate must,
have to:
ni mr d i bh an madra a choi nnei l sa teach
they have to keep the dog in the house
ni mr do dhui ne a bhei th cramach
one must be careful
The phrase is i gean (with appropriate tense) fol lowed by the appropriate
form of the preposi ti on do (where subject is required) is used to transl ate
must, have to:
b'i gean d i meacht go luath he had to leave early
is i gean d om an obai r a dhanamh I have to do the work now
anoi s
n o t e : many of the above constructi ons are i nterchangeabl e.
219
TIME
When desi gnati ng uni ts of ti me, the cardi nal numbers are used:
1 a haon a chl og one o'clock
2 a d a chl og two o'clock
3 a tri a chl og three o'clock
4 a ceathai r a chl og four o'clock
5 a ci g a chl og five o'clock
6 a s a chl og six o'clock
7 a seacht a chl og seven o'clock
8 a hocht a chl og eight o'clock
9 a naoi a chl og ni ne o'clock
10 a dei ch a chl og ten o'clock
11 a haon dag a chl og eleven o'clock
12 a d dhag a chl og twelve o'clock
t s a tr i a c h l o g a n o i s it is three o'clock now
th i n i g s ag / ar a c i g (a c h l o g ) he came at five (o'clock)
n o t e : one can use ei ther ag or a r to transl ate the Engli sh at when referring
to ti me.
As i n Engli sh, the a c h l o g meani ng o'clock may be omi tted:
c e a th r c h u n / g o d ti a c i g
l e a th u a i r ta r i s / i n d i a i d h a s
c n t-a m / ca d a n t-a m a t s?
b e i d h m a n n ar m a i d i n
th i n i g s i tr th n n a
b h i s i ad a n n a r i r
ar a n m e n o i c h e
u m n i n
u m th r th n n a
n o t e : more adverbs of ti me.
a quarter to five
hal f past six
what time is it?
I 'll be there in the morni ng
she came in the eveni ng
they were there last night
at mi dni ght
at noon
in the eveni ng
cn u ai r a d 'i m i g h s i b h ?
cn l a t a n n ?
cn bh l i ai n a r u g a d h ?
when di d you leave?
what day is it?
what year was she born?
n o t e : for i nformati on on what type of clause fol lows desi gnati ons of ti me,
consul t secti on on rel ati ve clauses i n thi s grammar.
220
SIMILES
chomh haoi bhi nn le l samhraidh
chomh haosta leis an gceo
chomh hai geanta le meannn gabhai r
chomh haerach le geal bhan
chomh bn le bai nne
chomh beo le breac
chomh bodhar le cl och
chomh bragach leis an di abhal
chomh bi nn le cl i rseach
chomh bu le buachal n
chomh ci i n le l uch
chomh cosil le dh scadn
chomh crua le hadharc rei the
chomh ci ortha le ceann sagai rt
chomh crui nn le fi nne
chomh caol le ri be do chi nn
chomh cro i l le fui seog
chomh domhai n leis an bhfarrai ge
chomh dubh le si che
chomh dearg le fui l
chomh deas le bl th
chomh di onmhar le buidal
chomh do-mharai the le cat
chomh hadrom le cl ei te
chomh heol ach le saoi
chomh fabhtach leis an bhfarrai ge
chomh fada le l samhrai dh
chomh fai rsi ng le seangi n
chomh fi i n le fia
chomh fl i rseach le gai neamh na tr
chomh fal sa le hasal
chomh foi ghneach le cat
chomh fol amh le feadg
chomh fol l i n le bradn
chomh fuar le si oc
chomh fi or leis an soiscal
chomh geal leis an sneachta
chomh gasta leis an ngaoth
chomh gar le creamh
chomh gli c le fear dli
chomh glan le hui sce
chomh goi rt leis an bhfarrai ge
chomh hi onrai c leis an ngrian
221
chomh hi nneal ta le bean iarl a
chomh li dir le capall
chomh l i gthe le c
chomh ln le teach faire
chomh l uath le giorria
chomh lfar le breac
chomh macnta le hai ngeal
chomh marbh le corp
chomh mil is le mil
chomh mi n le si oda
chomh neamhchoi reach le l eanbh baiste
chomh ndrtha le hui sce an tsruthi n
chomh pol l ta le grta
chomh ramhar le muc
chomh ri ghi n le seanasal
chomh saothrach le beach
chomh ssta le pi obai re
chomh sean leis na cnoi c
chomh searbh le searbhn
chomh sl eamhai n le heascann
chomh stuama le sagart
chomh suai mhneach le rei lig
chomh te le ti ne
chomh ti ubh le cl ocha sneachta
chomh ti ri m le snaoi s
chomh huasal le ri
222