At the Learning of Irish

Typically speaking, though there are always exceptions, when any two of the DNTLS letters meet, the second word will not receive a séímhiú or urú.

This means that if a word ends in D, N, T, L, or S, and the word following it should have a séimhiú according to the rules of grammar, it wil lnot receive one if it, too, starts with D, N, T, L, or S. 

This is most often triggered by the definite article “an” which ends in an “n,” one of the DNTLS.

·         As we know, feminine nouns generally get a séimhiú after the definite article “an.” If those nouns begin with D, N, T, L, or S, they will not get one because of DNTLS:

o   An teocht (f), the temperature

This does not apply 100% of the time every time these two letters meet. We can see that from asking a question in the present tense that we just learned:

·         An ndéannann tú? Do you do it?

But sometimes, it does!

·         An itheann tú? Do you eat?

Why?

We don’t need to say n twice. Irish, like every language, is all about the expediency in speech. We already have the “n” sound there, so we don’t need to say it twice.

At the end of the day, it’s something to keep in mind and to memorize when learning.

abair.ie

teanglann.ie

Substack, Irregular Irish Verbs in the Present Tense

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNRv7L_Fj1M IRISH IRREGULAR VERBS | as gaeilge (PRESENT TENSE), Gaeilge i mo Chroí

There are fewer irregular verbs in Irish than in English. In Irish, there are 11 regular verbs, with 6 of them being super irregular, meaning they are more irregular than the other 5. The super irregulars will behave differently in nearly every tense, but the irregulars may conform at times, or in more ways than the super irregulars.

Super Irregulars

·         to be: bí

·         to say: abair

·         to see: feic

·         to get: faigh

·         to go: téigh

·         to make or do: déan

Irregulars

·         to give: tabhair

·         to catch/grab/birth: beir

·         to eat: ith

·         to hear: clois

·         to come: tar

Let’s look at how they conjugate and negate in the present tense. We’ll start with the irregulars first, then look at the super irregulars.

·         To give, tabhair

o   Conjugation: Tugann. Syncopated form for mé is tugaim.

o   Negation: ní thugann. Syncopated form for mé is ní thugaim.

o   To ask a question: An dtugann? Syncopated for mé is an dtugaim?

·         To catch/grab/bear, beir

o   Conjugation: Beireann. Syncopated for mé is beirim.

o   Negation: Ní bheireann. Syncopated for mé is ní bheirim.

o   To ask a question: An mbeireann? Syncopated for mé is an mbeirim?

·         To eat, ith

o   Conjugation: itheann. Syncopated for mé is ithim.

o   Negation: Ní itheann. Syncopated for mé is ní ithim.

o   To ask a question: An itheann? Syncopated for mé is an ithim?

§  Wait a minute—why no n-? We will cover this in the next episode, but, the short and provocative answer is DNTLS (dentals).

·         To hear, clois

o   Conjugation: cloiseann. Syncopated for mé is cloisim.

o   Negation: ní chloiseann. Syncopated for mé is ní chloisim.

o   To ask a question: an gcloiseann? Syncopated for mé is an gcloisim?

·         To come, tar

o   Conjugation: tagann. Syncopated for mé is tagaim.

o   Negation: Ní thagann. Syncopated for mé is ní thagaim.

o   To ask a quetion: an dtagann. Syncopated for mé is an dtagaim?

Super Irregulars

·         To be, bí

o   Conjugation: tá. Syncopated for mé is táim.

o   Negation: níl. Syncopated for mé is nílim.

o   Question: An bhfuil? Syncopated for mé is An bhfuilim?

·         To say, abair

o   Conjugation: deir. Syncopated for mé is deirim.

o   Negation: ní deir. Syncopated for mé is ní deirim.

o   Question: an ndeir? Syncopated for mé is an ndeirim?

o   Note that there’s no ending attached to present tense abair, deir.

o   Also note, abair does not receive a séimhiú in any of its forms.

·         To see, feic

o   Conjugation: feiceann. Syncopated for mé is feicim.

o   Negation: ní fheiceann. Syncopated for mé is ní fheicim.

o   Question: An bhfeiceann? Syncopated for mé is an bhfeicim?

·         To get, faigh

o   Conjugation: faigheann. Syncopated for mé is faighim.

o   Negation: ní fhaigheann. Syncopated for mé is ní fhaighim.

o   Question: an bhfaigheann? Syncopated for mé is an bhfaighim?

·         To go, téigh

o   Conjugation: téann. Syncopated for mé is téim.

o   Negation: ní théann. Syncopated for mé is ní théim.

o   Question: an dtéann? Syncopated for mé is an dtéim?

·         To make or do, déan

o   Conjugation: déanann. Syncopated for mé is déanaim.

o   Negation: ní dhéanann. Syncopated for mé is ní dhéanaim.

o   Question: an ndéanann. Syncopated for mé is an ndéanaim?

abair.ie

1.      An Ghaeilge (f) – Irish (with definite article)

2.      Tuirseach – tired (adj)

3.      Faoin tuath – in the country

4.      Sásta - happy

5.      Ar meisce – drunk

6.      Ar bís - excited

7.      Madra (m) - dog

8.      Sneachta (m)- snow

9.      Leabhar (m) - book

10. Amhrán (m) - song

11. Ceol (m) - music

12. Mo chara (m) – my friend

13. Aiteach - queer

14. Todhchaí (f) -future

15. Mála (m) - bag

16. Teach (m) - house

17. Uisce (m) - water

18. Planda (m) – plant (noun)

19. Glas – green (unsaturated green, muted green/grey)

20. Rua – red (living red)

21. Buí – yellow (bright, brilliant)

22. Ceart - correct

23. Mícheart - incorrect

24. Gruaig (f) - hair

25. Glan – clean (adj)

26. Mór – big (adj)

27. Ciúin – quiet (adj)

28. Stór (m) – treasure, riches

29. Anseo - here

30. Capall (m) - horse

31. Iasc (m) - fish

32. Aimsir (f) – weather, time

33. Gaoth (f) – wind, an ghaoth

34. Grian (f) – sun, an ghrian

35. Fluich – wet (adj)

36. Scamallach – cloudy (adj)

37. Fómhar (m) – autumn/fall

38. Scéal (m) - story

39. Ainm (m) - name

40. Scríobh – to write

41. Foghlaim – to learn

42. Ceannaigh – to buy

43. Imir – to leave

44. Bus (m) - bus

45. Deoch (f) – drink (noun)

46. Tá – am (ie I am, you are, etc)

47. Siad – they

48. Dún – to close (verb)

49. Oscail – to open

50. Orm – on me

Abair.ie

Transcript on Substack https://julianatticus.substack.com/p/asking-a-question-in-the-present

Eclipse/Urú

·         https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUSfMcEx6Do How to PRONOUNCE ECLIPSIS, Gaeilge i mo chroí

·         https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ky8CQdg6Na8 Irish Eclipsis (Urú), Irish with Rosie

Present Tense

·         https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=su3cPnXPWG0 How to use the PRESENT TENSE in IRISH, Gaeilge i mo Chroí

***

We’ve learned how to conjugate and negate the present tense, now we’ll move on to asking questions.

To ask a question in the present tense, we use a word that signals a question. That word is “an,” or other question phrases (like who, where, when, etc). We will focus on “an” to form a simple question.

An triggers the question in Irish, placed at the beginning of the sentence. The verb will follow “an”. The personal pronoun will follow the verb.

·         An + the conjugated verb+ the personal pronoun+ other

An also triggers the urú, or eclipse, which we first encountered in the posession episode. Urú, like séimhiú, is an initial mutation. This means it changes the beginning of the word that follows it. Recall that only certain letters take an urú, and that the urú changes depending on the letter. Remember that urú will totally eclipse the letter it modifies, silencing it.

·         M eclipses b > ar an mbus (on the bus)

·         G eclipses c > ár gcat (our cat)

·         N eclipses d> naoí ndeoch (nine drinks)

·         D eclipses t> go dtí (to)

·         N eclipses g > Dún na nGall (Donegal)

·         B eclipses p> bhur bpáirc (y’all’s park)

·         Bh together eclipses f > go bhfuil (that is)

·         N- for vowels > ár n-athair (our father)

So, to ask a simple question we will:

1.      Begin the sentence with “an”

2.      Conjugate the present tense verb

3.      Add an urú to the present tense verb

4.      Add our pronoun (the subject of the sentence)

5.      Add any other elements of the sentence we may need, like places, direct objects, etc

Example:

·         Let’s ask if she understands the question:

o   An

o   conjugate tuig, which is the verb for “to understand.” In the present tense this short and slender verb is conjugated as “tuigeann”

o   Identify the appropriate urú and add it. “D” is the urú for “t.” We have “dtuigeann”

o   Sí is the pronoun we use for she

o   “An cheist” means the question. It is feminine, so it gets a séimhiú following the definite article “the”.

§  “an” is both the definite article “the” as well as the question trigger. We know which we’re referring to by context, as well as other clues, like the presence of an urú or verb.

o   So this end result is: “An dtuigeann sí an cheist?” Does she understand the question.

o   How would you answer this? Think back to past episodes (answer will be at the end)

The Verb Bí

Bí is a highly irregular verb. When asking a question using bí, we must use a different, irregular form of the verb. That form is “bhfuil.” This form already has the urú attached to it. We call this the dependent form of the verb, because it cannot stand on its own, since it has a form of initial mutation. This verb form without the urú is not used.

So for questions in the present tense with the verb bí:

1.      “an” at the beginning of the sentence to indicate a question

2.      Use the dependent present tense form of the verb, which is bhfuil.

3.      The urú is already added to this form, there is no need to add it again.

4.      Select the pronoun or subject

5.      Add any other elements of the sentence needed.

Example:

·         Is the dog alive?

o   An to trigger the question

o   The dependent form of bí: bhfuil.

o   No need to add an urú, as it’s already there.

o   The subject, an madra. Madra is masculine so there is no need to add a séimhiú after using “the”

o   Beo is the word for alive.

o   Here’s the end result:

§  An bhfuil an madra beo?

o   How would you answer this, both in the affirmative and negative?

**Answers**

Does she understand the question? An dtuigeann sí an cheist?

Yes> Tuigeann sí/tuigeann

No> Ní thuigeann sí/ní thuigeann

Is the dog alive? An bhfuil an madra beo?

Yes> Tá an madra beo/tá

No> Níl an madra beo/níl

Please input all phrases into abair.ie to see how they should sound in your chosen dialect.

Negating in the Present Tense

·         There is no “yes” or “no” in Irish

o   Instead, the reponse to a question is to either conjugate the verb or to negate it

·         With the simple bí in the present tense (present meaning now, ie I am, You are, she goes, we eat)

o   Are you? I am>> Tá mé

o   Are you? I’m not>> Níl mé

§  Níl is the negation for bí

o   Níl madra agam.- I don’t have a dog

o   Níl gruaig orm.- I don’t have hair.

o   Níl siad sásta.- They are not happy.

o   Níl sé ag cur sneachta.- It is not snowing.

·         With the copula, replace “is” with “ní”

o   Copula phrases you know: Is as áit mé, Is mise, Is maith liom, Is fearr liom

o   Is maith liom- I like

o   Ní maith liom- I don’t like

·         With other present tense verbs:

o   Use ní and then the conjugated verb with a séimhiú if possible

§  B c d f g m p s t

o   Ní chaitheann sé tobac. – He doesn’t smoke tobacco. (from caitheann sé, he smokes/consumes)

o   Ní itheann sibh feoil. – Y’all don’t eat meat.

§  There is no séimhiú because the letter doesn’t take one.

o   Ní léann mé leabhair.- I don’t read books.

§  Again, no séimhiú because l doesn’t take them.

o   Ní cheapann sí fút- She doesn’t think about you.

o   Ní dhúnann siad an doras. – They don’t close the door.

·         This method is the same for the future tense and conditional mood

·         The past tense has a different way to negate verbs

Videos on this Subject:

Irish Lesson #4 - The Negative of Tá Speak Irish Now LLC

Rang 3 - An Aimsir Láithreach (The Present Tense): Time stamped at negation. Ionad Teaghlaigh Ghleann Darach

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXy4C5v84QA There is no word for Yes and No in Irish, A Shane Dó Trí (negating, word order, counting changes, word spelling changes, only 11 irregular verbs)(the irregular section may be too advanced at this level)

Please see substack for show notes (they are too lengthy to post here): https://julianatticus.substack.com/p/at-the-learning-of-irish-conjugating

teanglann.ie

abair.ie

·         https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=su3cPnXPWG0 How to use the PRESENT TENSE in IRISH, Gaeilge i mo Chroí

·         https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKFyIXx3iPk 10 Irish Verbs in the Present Tense, Let’s Learn Irish

·         https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNRv7L_Fj1M IRISH IRREGULAR VERBS | as gaeilge (PRESENT TENSE), Gaeilge i mo Chroí

·         Cén chaoi a bhfuil tú? – How are you? (lit: which way are you)(Conemara)

·         An bhfuil tú go maith?/’Bhfuil tú g’maith?-Are you well?

·         Cad é mar atá tú? -How are you (Ulster)

·         Aon scéal?- What’s up? (lit: any story?)

o   Scéal ar bith – No story at all (níl scéal ar bith agam)

o   Diabhal scéal- no stories (lit devil story)

·         Cad is ainm duit? – What is your name? (lit: what is name for you?)

o   .....is ainm dom- ...is my name

·         Cén t-ainm atá ort? – which name is on you?

o   ...an t-ainm atá orm- ....is the name on me/my name is

·         Gabh mo leithscéal- excuse me/I’m sorry

·         Tá brón orm- I’m sorry (lit: there is sadness on me)

·         Fáilte- welcome

·         Tá fáilte romhat- you’re welcome ie welcome to this place (lit there’s a welcome before you)

o   Tá fáilte romhaibh – plural

·         Slán leat- bye (said if you are the one who is not leaving)

·         Slán agat- bye (said you are are the one who is leaving)

·         Slán abhaile- safe going home

·         Slán go fóill- bye for now

·         Céard is brí le... – What does...mean?

·         Céard é an Ghaeilge ar...? – What is ....in Irish?

·         Níos moille, le do thoil – Slower, please

·         Abair é sin arís- Say that again

·         An dtuigeann tú? – Do you understand?

o   Tuigeann mé- I understand

o   Ní thuigeann mé- I don’t understand

New Words

Ach- but

Anois- now

Sin fíor- it’s true

I rith an tsamhraidh- during summer

air- on him/it

é- him (a form of sé)

Irish Text

Dia duit. Is mise Julian. Is as Minnesota mé ach tá mé i mo chónaí i Virginia anois. Deas bualadh leat.

Is maith liom Virginia ach is fearr liom Minnesota. Ní maith liom an sneachta i Minnesota, sin fíor, ach ní maith liom an teocht i rith an tsamhraidh i Virginia. Tá sé te!

Tá madra agam. Tá sé beag agus deas. Tá gruaig dhonn air. Tá sé clúmhach. Is buachaill maith é.

Tá sé ag cur báistí inniu. Bhí an ghrian ag scoilteadh na gcloch inné.

Translation (not literal)

Hi. I’m Julian. I am from Minnesota but I am living in Virginia now. Nice to meet you.

I like Virginia but I prefer Minnesota. I don’t like the snow in Minnesota, it’s true, but I don’t like the temperature during summer in Virginia. It is hot!

I have a dog. He is small and nice. He has brown hair. He is fluffy. He’s a good boy.

It is raining today. The sun was splitting the rocks yesterday.

aimsir (f)- weather (an aimsir)

·         Can also mean “time” or “a period of service”

·         Aimsir mhaith- good weather

·         Tá bun ar an aimsir- The weather is settled

Gaoth (f)- wind (an ghaoth)

·         Lá gaoithe- windy day

·         Gaoth chórach-favorable wind

·         Many words describing kinds of wind

Teocht (f)- temperature (an teocht)

Fuacht (m)- cold (an fuacht)

·         Fuacht an gheimhridh- the winter cold

Grian (f)- sun (an ghrian)

·         Tá an ghrian ag scoilteadh na gcloch- the sun is splitting the rocks (it is very bright and sunny)

·         Lá gréine- sunny day

Using “tá sé...inniu” It is...today/ ”Bhí sé...inné” It was...yesterday

·         Ag cur báistí – raining

o   Ag cur fearthainne- raining

·         Ag cur sneachta- snowing

·         Gaofar- windy

·         Fluich- wet

·         Tais- damp or humid

·         Te- hot

·         Fuar-cold

·         Grianmhar- sunny

·         Dorcha- dark

·         Scamallach-cloudy

Seasons

Fómhar (m)- autumn/fall (an fómhar)

Geimhreadh (m)- winter (an geimhreadh)

Earrach (m)- spring (an t-earrach)

Samhradh (m)- summer (an samhradh)

Videos:

·         https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNmk-6GdSzs Common Irish weather sayings, Gaelscoil Online

·         https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLTBB8b7I5c How to Describe the Weather in Irish, Gaeilge i mo Chroí

Words for animals

Madra (m)- dog

Cat (m)- cat

Capall (m)- horse

Caora (f)- an ewe

Iasc (m)- fish

Here are some things you may want to say to your dog, or any pet!

·         Is cailín maith thú. - You’re a good girl

·         Is buachaill maith thú- You’re a good boy

·         Ná bí dona!- Don’t be bad

·         Suí síos- sit down (to one animal[or person])

·         Suígí síos- sit down (to more than one animals[or people])

·         Tar liom- come with me

·         Tar anseo- come here

·         Fan anseo- stay/wait here

·         Nach bhfuil tú gleoite- aren’t you cute

·         Nach bhfuil tú gleoite ar fad- aren’t you cute entirely

·         Mo ghrá thú- you’re my love/I love you

·         Mo chroí thú- I love you (you’re my heart)

·         Is stór thú- you’re a treasure

·         Mo stór- my treasure

·         Mo  stórín- my little treasure

·         Mo stórín beag- my tiny little treasure

·         Stór mo chroí- treasure of my heart

·         An-mhaith- very good

·         Bí i do shuaimhneas- be peaceful, be at peace (be in your peace)

·         Go socair leat! – be quiet

Teach Your Dog Irish by Anne Cakebread