Irish Phrases
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Irish Phrases and Common Expressions
This page contains a table including the following: Irish phrases, expressions and words in Irish, conversation and idioms, Irish greetings, and survival phrases. It also helps if you simply want to know what to say when chatting in Irish!
Most of the sentences below are used for everyday life conversations, so they might come handy if you memorize them.
| English Phrases | Irish Phrases |
|---|---|
| English Greetings | Irish Greetings: |
| Hi! | Hóigh! |
| Good morning! | Dia duit ar maidin! |
| Good evening! | Tráthnóna maith duit! |
| Welcome! (to greet someone) | Fáilte romhat! |
| How are you? | Cad é mar atá tú? / Conas atá tú? |
| I'm fine, thanks! | Tá mé go maith, go raibh maith agat! |
| And you? | Agus tú féin? |
| Good/ So-So. | Go maith / measartha. |
| Thank you (very much)! | Go raibh (míle) maith agat! |
| You're welcome! (for "thank you") | Níl a bhuiochas ort! |
| Hey! Friend! | Hóigh! Cara! |
| I missed you so much! | Chronaigh mé thú an oiread sin! |
| What's new? | Céard atá nuacht? |
| Nothing much | Dada mórán. |
| Good night! | Oíche mhaith duit! |
| See you later! | Feicfidh mé roimh i bhfad thú! |
| Good bye! | Slán! / Slán agat! |
| Asking for Help and Directions | |
| I'm lost | Tá mé caillte. |
| Can I help you? | An bhféadaim cuidiú a thabhairt duit? |
| Can you help me? | An bhféadann tú cuidiú a thabhairt dom? |
| Where is the (bathroom/ pharmacy)? | Cá bhfuil an (leithreas / chógaslann)? |
| Go straight! then turn left/ right! | Téigh go díreach! Ansin cas ar chlé / dheis! |
| I'm looking for john. | Tá mé ar lorg Seáin. |
| One moment please! | Fan bomaite! |
| Hold on please! (phone) | Fan go fóill! |
| How much is this? | Cá mhéad atá air? |
| Excuse me ...! (to ask for something) | Gabhaim pardún agat! |
| Excuse me! ( to pass by) | Gabh mo leithscéal! |
| Come with me! | Tar agam! |
| How to Introduce Yourself | |
|---|---|
| Do you speak (English/ Irish)? | An bhfuil (Béarla / Gaeilge) agat? |
| Just a little. | Go díreach beagán. |
| What's your name? | Cad is aimn duit? |
| My name is ... | Is mise ... |
| Mr.../ Mrs.…/ Miss… | An tUasal ... / Bean ... / Iníon ... |
| Nice to meet you! | Go mbeannaí Dia duit! |
| You're very kind! | Tá tú an-chaoin! |
| Where are you from? | Cárb as duit? |
| I'm from (the U.S/ Ireland) | Is as (na Stáit Aontaithe / Éirinn) mé. |
| I'm (American) | Is (Meiriceánach / Éireannach) mé. |
| Where do you live? | Cá bhfuil tú i do chónaí? |
| I live in (the U.S/ Ireland) | Tá mé i mo chónaí (sna Stáit Aontaithe / in Éirinn). |
| Did you like it here? | Ar mhaith leat é seo? |
| Ireland is a wonderful country | Tá Éire tír iontach. |
| What do you do for a living? | Céard atá do ghairm? |
| I work as a (translator/ businessman) | Tá mé ina (aistritheoir / fhear ghnó). |
| I like Irish | Is maith liom Gaeilge. |
| I've been learning Irish for 1 month | Tá mé ag foghlaim Gaelige le mí amháin. |
| Oh! That's good! | Ó! Is go maith sin! |
| How old are you? | Cén aois atá agat? / Ca haois thú? |
| I'm (twenty, thirty...) years old. | Tá mé (fiche, tríocha ...) mbliana d'aois. |
| I have to go | Ba chóir dom dul. |
| I will be right back! | Beidh mé ar ais láithreach. |
| Wish Someone Something | |
| Good luck! | Ádh mór ort! |
| Happy birthday! | Breithlá shona duit! |
| Happy new year! | Athbhliain shona duit! |
| Merry Christmas! | Nollaig Shona! |
| Congratulations! | Go maire tú! |
| Enjoy! (for meals...) | Goile folláin duit! |
| I'd like to visit Ireland one day | Ba mhaith liom Éire ar cuairt a thabairt uirthi aon lá amháin. |
| Say hi to John for me | Beannaigh do Sheán agam. |
| Bless you (when sneezing) | Dia leat! |
| Good night and sweet dreams! | Oíche mhaith agus brionglóidí milse duit! |
| Solving a Misunderstanding | |
| I'm Sorry! (if you don't hear something) | Gabh mo leithscéal? |
| Sorry (for a mistake) | Gabh mo leithscéal! |
| No Problem! | Fadhb ar bith! |
| Can You Say It Again? | Abair sin arís? |
| Can You Speak Slowly? | An bhféadann tú labhair go mall? |
| Write It Down Please! | Scríobh é síos le do thoil! |
| I Don't Understand! | Ní thuigim! |
| I Don't Know! | Níl a fhios agam! |
| I Have No Idea. | Níl barúil agam. |
| What's That Called In Irish? | Cén t-ainm atá ar "..." i nGaeilge? |
| What Does "gato" Mean In English? | Céard a ciallaigheadh "..." i mBéarla? |
| How Do You Say "Please" In Irish? | Conas a deir tú "..." i nGaeilge? |
| What Is This? | Cad é seo? |
| My Irish is bad. | Tá mo Ghaeilge olc. |
| I need to practice my Irish | Ní mór dom mo Ghaeilge a chleacht. |
| Don't worry! | Ná bí buartha! |
| Irish Expressions and Words | |
| Good/ Bad/ So-So. | Maith / olc / measartha maith. |
| Big/ Small | Mór / beag |
| Today/ Now | Inniu / anois |
| Tomorrow/ Yesterday | Amárach / inné |
| Yes/ No | 1) repeat verb / ní + repeat verb from the question 2) Is ea / Ní hea |
| Here you go! (when giving something) | Seo é! |
| Do you like it? | An mhaith leat é? |
| I really like it! | Is maith liom go fírinneach é! |
| I'm hungry/ thirsty. | Tá ocras / tart orm. \ |
| In The Morning/ Evening/ At Night. | Ar maidin / tráthnóna / san oíche. |
| This/ That. Here/There | Seo / sin. Seo / ann. |
| Me/ You. Him/ Her. | Mise / tusa. Eisean / ise. |
| Really! | Dáiríre! |
| Look! | Féach! |
| Hurry up! | Brostaigh ort! / Déan deifir! |
| What? Where? | Céard? An áit? |
| What time is it? | Cén t-am é? |
| It's 10 o'clock. 07:30pm. | Tá sé a deich a chlog. / Tá sé leath tar éis seacht tráthnóna. |
| Give me this! | Tabhair seo dom! |
| I love you! | Tá mé i ngrá leat! |
| I feel sick. | Tá masmas orm! |
| I need a doctor | Tá dochtúir uaim. |
| One, Two, Three | aon, dó, trí |
| Four, Five, Six | ceathair, cúig, sé |
| Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten | seacht, ocht, naoi, deich |
I hope the content of this page was useful to you, and that you learned some Irish phrases, expressions and words. Make sure to memorize them to be able to use them in your daily conversation.