When my husband and I were dating he sent me a card. On the front it said:
In! On! Over! Under! Between! Around! Through!
Inside it said:
You’ve just been prepositioned.
(He has a funny sense of humor, my husband.)
Important little words
If you studied grammar in school, you probably remember that prepositions are (usually) little words that describe such things as position or location:
The dog is in the yard.
Put the letter on the table.
Drive around the block.
As indispensible as they are in English, prepositions play an even more vital role in Irish. In addition to their usual function, in Irish, prepositions combine with pronouns to take on the jobs that, in English, are usually handled by verbs.
The Prepositional Pronoun
The prepositional pronoun is a construction we don’t have in English.
You may recall from that grammar class that “pronouns” are words that take the place of a noun: Words such as I/me, you, he/him, she/her, us/we, etc.
In Irish, the pronouns are:
Mé: Me/I
Tú: You (singular)
Sé/é: He/him/it*
Sí/í: She/her/it*
Sinn/muid**: We/us
Sibh: You (plural)
Siad/iad: They/them
* Because all nouns in Irish are either grammatically feminine or grammatically masculine, sé/é and sí/í are also used, with inanimate objects, to mean “it.” Which is used depends on the grammatical gender of the object.
** “Sinn” is most commonly used in the Munster dialect. In other dialects, “muid” is more common. “Sinn,” however, is the basis for the double-n pattern in prepositional pronouns, as you’ll see below.
Combining prepositions with pronouns
Let’s take a look at how these pronouns combine with one of the most commonly used Irish prepositions: Do (to/for):
Do + Mé = Dom: To-me
Do + Tú = Duit: To-you
Do + Sé = Dó: To-him/it
Do + Sí = Di: To-her/it
Do + Sinn = Dúinn: To-us
Do + Sibh = Daoibh: To-you (plural)
Do + Siad = Dóibh: To-them
Here’s how it works with another common pronoun: Ar (on):
Ar + Mé = Orm: On-me
Ar + Tú = Ort: On-you
Ar + Sé = Air: On-him/it
Ar + Sí = Uirthi: On-her/it
Ar + Sinn = Orainn: On-us
Ar + Sibh = Oraibh: On-you (plural)
Ar + Siad = Orthu: On-them
Other prepositions combine with pronouns in a similar pattern, which is generally quite regular.
So Why Does it Matter?
It matters because Irish uses these prepositions and prepositional pronouns to express things that, in English, would require verbs.
Possession
In English, if we own something, we say we “have” it.
In Irish, if we own something, we say it is “at” us. The Irish preposition for “at” is ag:
English: I have a car.
Irish: Tá carr agam. Literally “Is car at-me.”
We can also use “ag/at” to indicate that we are entertaining a particular thought toward another person. For example:
English: I love you.
Irish: Tá grá agam duit. Literally “Is love at-me to-you.”
Physical features and emotions
In English, we say we “have” certain features (red hair, a big nose, etc.) In Irish, these features are “on” us. The Irish preposition for “on” is “ar”:
English: Seán has red hair.
Irish: Tá gruaig rua ar Seán. Literally: “Is hair red on Seán.” (Note: In Irish, adjectives follow the nouns they modify, so we say “gruaig rua” — literally “hair red” — rather than “rua gruaig.”
English: I am sorry.
Irish: Tá brón orm. Literally “Is sorrow on-me.”
What this means for translation
We see this pattern happen over and over in Irish, which is one reason that direct, word-for-word, translations between English and Irish are often impossible.
The use of prepositions is a fundamental difference between the languages, and one of the main reasons why Irish virtually always expresses things somewhat differently than we would in English.
What this means for learners
For people who are learning Irish, this practice can, initially, seem quite confusing and awkward. Remembering which preposition is used for the meaning you want can be a daunting prospect!
With patience, exposure, and most importantly, PRACTICE, however, the system will soon come to feel quite natural.
You’ll know you’re really getting the hang of it when you find these constructions creeping into your English: “My, he’s got red hair on him, hasn’t he?”
Did you find this article helpful?
Have you struggled with the use of prepositions and prepositional pronouns in Irish? Let us know your thoughts below.
23 thoughts on “Prepositions in Irish”
Great article. Good on you, as thru sat down under
Go raibh maith agat – tá sé agam anois!
This was a really thoughtful and accessible breakdown of not just WHAT is happening but HOW (and for learners like myself WHY, I really really need the example of grammar In Usage otherwise it’s just a lot of ‘these are the rules and that’s that’ – doesn’t stick!) so thank you!
Glad it has helped you!
Le beannacht
Emma
This was great help, many thanks!
Glad we could help, Judyta!
Thanks so much for this. It really helped but I’m sure I’ll revisit it many times before I master it. Thanks too for the giggle at the beginning and end! Loving learning Irish! Thanks again.
Fantastic explanation!
Go ribh maith agat!
Hi múinteoir
Go raibh maith agat as do chuid am ag cabhrú liom reamhfocail a úsáidtear in Éirinn a fhoghlaim. Táim buioch diot.
Tá fáilte romhat, Anne. Go raibh maith agat!
Le beannacht
Emma
You article has helped me help understand the whole preposition part of Irish, GRMA Adrian
Go hiontach, Adrian. Glad to hear.
Le meas
Emma
What is of in Irish
Oscar, a chara
That is a broad question as it depends on the context!
Have a look at the dictionary entry https://www.focloir.ie/en/dictionary/ei/of
‘de’ would be ‘of’ in many contexts – https://www.teanglann.ie/en/fgb/de
You have switched a light bulb on for me with these concise explanations . go raibh maith agat
As much as Duolingo has helped me learn I’ve been stuck on prepositions. I wish I’d seen your explanation for “ar” weeks ago. It makes so much more sense now! Thanks!
Tá fáilte romhat!
Táim cinnte go leor gur ‘calque’ é ‘tá fàilte romhat’ sa chiall sin… a tógadh as Béarla…
Teach better than school. Thank you!
GRMA Eoin !!
Learning Irish is becoming much easier day by day.
Your ” Bite Size Irish Gaelic ” is phenomenal and much appreciated !
Thank you for this one. Wish I’d known this information ages ago. I’ve shared it with my Irish conversation group, and I know they’ll find it helpful.
Nice to hear you’re passing on the information to others.
Oops, I messed up. Our newsletter this week linked to this post that wasn’t published, so lots of people must have ended up seeing a “post not available” message.
Tá brón orm, I’m sorry, and here’s Audrey’s article.