How To Say Kitten in Irish

Let’s take a bitesized look at how to say ‘kitten’ and some other cat-related terms in Irish!

There are two common terms for kitten in Irish.

The first is piscín /pish-keen/

A second and similar term is puisín /pwish-een/

The Irish word for cat is simply cat /koth/

The term for tomcat is cat fireann /koth fyr-un/. This simply means male cat.

Talking of stray cats we have, again, a choice of two term: cat strae /koth ss-trray/ or cat fiáin /koth fee-aw-in/.

The word ‘fiáin’ is an adjective that means ‘wild’, but when we say ‘cat fiáin’ we are not referring to, say, the wild-cat of Scotland, but a feral or stray cat.

The term feline (adjective: ‘relating to cats’) in irish is féilíneach /fay-leen-ukh/

The Irish for meow is meamhlach /myow-lukh/.

So, if we wanted to say “the cat was meowing” we would say bhí an cat ag meamhlach /vee un khot eg meow-lukh/

The Irish for a cat’s claws is ingne cait /ing-en-ah kwit/.

The words ingne here is the plural of the Irish word ionga /ung-uh/ which can mean variously claw, nail, talon and even clove (garlic) or quid (tobacco) depending on how you use it.

One of mankind’s greatest inventions must surely be the catflap! The Irish term is comhla chait /koh-la khwit/.

Lets wrap things up with a cat-related ‘seanfhocal’ or proverb:
Cad a dhéanfadh mac an chait ach luch a mharú? /Kod a yen-ukh mok un khwit okh lukh a vor-oo?/
Simply put, this means ‘what would the cat’s son do but kill a mouse?’
As is said in English, like father like son..