Irish: Food phrases
Posted: Tue Nov 18, 2003 3:25 pm
Alright, lads, lassies and Scott, today weÂ’re covering something more mundane. WeÂ’ll cover a little of the words you need for eating and drinking, basic stuff really, national school material. Just bear with me and weÂ’ll be fine.Righto, first off, the verbs. Now, this is the first time weÂ’ll really be encountering these animals, so pay close attention. First, we have the verb “to eat”.Ith – To Eat(Infinitive)/Eat! (Order)DÂ’ith – AteItheann – EatIosfaidh – Will EatThatÂ’s basically all you need to know for this verb. In Irish, the verb comes first, and the pronoun afterwards. The pronouns are as follows:Mé - ITú - YouSé - HeSà - SheSinn - WeSibh – Ye (you plural, there is no formal you in Irish)Siad – ThemSo in a sentence, if you wanted to say “I ate”, you would say “DÂ’ith mé”. Important note no. 1 – In the present tense, the mé pronoun is contracted into the verb. For example, with a “slender” verb like Ith, this would become “Ithim” while with a “broad” verb like Ól, this would became “Ólaim”.Important note no. 2 – The word “sinn” is only used when listing the pronouns. Elsewhere, it is converted into “muid” or conjugated with a preposition. So, if you wanted to say “We eat” you said “Itheann muid”. There is also some messy contractions, but we donÂ’t have to do them, and I canÂ’t remember them anyway.Onward, friends! To the verb “to drink”, which is “Ól”.Ól – To Drink(Infinitive)/Drink!(Order)D'ól – DrankÓlann – DrinkÓlfaidh – Will DrinkSo these two verbs will be your main weapons in dealing with the battle of eating, wining and dining, sure as muc is pig. Next, we will look at how you reference “yesterday, today and tomorrow”Inné – YesterdayInniú – TodayAmárach – TomorrowSimple as that. Badda-bing badda-boom. Now, food, lots and lots of food.Arán – BreadCás – CheeseLiamhás – HamCeapaire – SandwichIspÃn – SausageBagún – BaconLeite – PorridgeÚl – AppleOráiste – OrangeBanana – Artichoke (nah, just kidding, itÂ’s Banana really)Cnó – NutCnóna – Nuts (because whoÂ’s ever had just one nut?)Arán Tósta – ToastSubh – JamIm – ButterUachtar reoite – Ice creamPrataà – PotatoesTrataà – Tomatoes (You say tomatoes, and I saw traw-tee)Bainne – MilkMeacán dearg – CarrotCabáiste – CabbageCupán tae – Cup of teaCupán caife – Cup of coffeeSú – JuiceSú oráiste – Orange juiceFÃonn dearg/bán – Red/white wineBeoir/Leann – BeerLeann dubh – Stout (like Guinness)Uisce – WaterUisce Beatha – WhiskeyPoitÃn – Poteen (like vodka, made out of potatoes, something like 80% alcohol, would sear the hairs off your nostrils) If thereÂ’s any other food or drink words you wish to know, please ask in the Translations Thread and IÂ’ll be happy to give them to you, but thatÂ’s all I can think of for now.Alright, now how to use these. If you want to say “I eat toast with butter and jam, and porridge with milk for breakfast”, you say “Ithim arán tósta le subh agus im, agus leite le mbainne, do mo bhricfeasta (bricfeasta for the girls)” or alternatively “Do mo bhricfeasta (again, bricfeasta for the girls), ithim arán tósta le subh agus im, agus leite le mbainne.” It doesnÂ’t matter really where the time bit is, so long as the sentence would make sense in English, it usually makes sense in Irish.The words for breakfast, dinner, etc. are:Bricfeasta – BreakfastLón – LunchDinnéar – DinnerSuipéar - SupperSneaic – SnackSneaic mean-oÃche – Midnight snackSo itÂ’ll usually be “do mo bhricfeasta” or “do mo dhinnéar”, which mean “for my breakfast” and “for my dinner”. Or, if its more general, you say “Do sneaic mean-oÃche” for “For a midnight snack”.Some other words you might need:Bialann – Restaurant/Cafeteria/Canteen, almost any place where food is bought and eaten.Caife – CaféDearbhán lóin - Lunch voucherPláta – PlateCistin – KitchenProinnseomra – Dining roomWell, thatÂ’s all I can think of for things to do with food. I hope itÂ’s been instructive, if not so intensive as the last lesson. Go now, in pieces. ZirandorthelThe Golden DarknessBelde of the Far Reaches.Niirus Tinenetuwar"In order to find his equal, an Irishman is forced to talk to God."-Stephen Braveheart