Gaeltacht Minnesota: Will’s Class
November 25, 2013
Noun Review #4
Forms for Well-Behaved Strong Plurals
A couple of weeks ago, we met some of the best behaved nouns in terms of gender. And we reviewed
how gender drives some mutations.
Now we'll look at singular and plural genitive forms, but just for the ones that had strong plurals,
which were these (from the earlier handout):
Fem
Masc
Singular Ending
Plural Ending
Examples
-ín
-íní
cailín, cailíní
coinín, coiníní
-óir, eoir, -éir
-óirí, eoirí, -éirí
aisteoir, aisteoirí
búistéir, búistéirí
-acht
multi-syllable!
-achtaí
Gaeltacht, Gaeltachtaí
beannacht, beannachtaí
-íocht
-íochtaí
cáilíocht, cáilíochtaí
eolaíocht, eolaíochtaí
I'll just mention in passing that there are very few nouns ending in –acht or –íocht that actually have
plurals at all! Most nouns with those endings are derived from verb or adjective forms, and end up as
mass or abstract nouns (múiteoireacht, teaching, cothromaíocht, evenness) that simply don't make
sense in the plural.
Anyway, the nice thing about strong plurals is that to cover the common and genitive forms in the
singular and plural, you only need three forms, not four. The rest is handled with mutations. The
pattern for the noun forms is:
Fem
Masc
Common
Singular
Genitive
Singular
Plural: All Cases
-ín
-ín
-íní
cailín
cailín
cailíní
-óir, eoir, -éir
-óra, eora, -éra
-oirí, -eoirí, -éirí
aisteoir
aisteora
aisteoirí
-acht
multisyllable!
-achta
-achtaí
Gaeltachta
Gaeltachtaí
-íocht
-íochta
-íochtaí
cáilíocht
cáilíochta
cáilíochtaí
Gaeltacht
Below you will find the complete pattern for forms with the definite, using as many strong plurals as I
can. (I can't find an –acht word that begins with s and has a real plural …)
Noun Review #4
Forms for Well-Behaved Strong Plurals
P. 1
Gaeltacht Minnesota: Will’s Class
November 25, 2013
Masc
Gender
Context
Common
Singular
Genitive
Singular
Common
Plural
Genitive
Plural
Fem
Begins with
vowel
Prefix tan t-aisteoir
No prefix
an aisteora
Prefix h-
Úrú
na haisteoirí
na n-aisteoirí
Begins with s
followed by
vowel, l, n, or r
No mutation
an seanadóir
t before s
an tseanadóra
No mutation
Begins with
other
consonants
No Mutation
an cailín
Séimhiú
an chailín
Begins with
vowel
No prefix
an aidiacht
Prefix h
na haidiachta
Begins with s
followed by
vowel, l, n, or r
t before s
an tseachtain
No change
na seachtaine
Begins with
other
consonants
Séimhiú
No mutation
an cháilíocht
na cáilíochta
an Ghaeltacht
na Gaeltachta
na seanadóirí
na seanadóirí
na cailíní
na gcailíní
Same Rules As Above,
No Gender in the Plural
na haidiachtaí
na n-aidiachtaí
na seachtainí
na seachtainí
na cáilíochtaí
na gcáilíochtaí
na Gaeltachtaí
na nGaeltachtaí
As you can see, the forms of the plural noun are the same for our "strong plurals", it is just a matter of
what happens at the front of the noun, due to the article.
And Without the article?
Well, nobody wants to talk about using genitives, following other nouns, except in the typical verbal
noun construction: ag déanamh bád ("making boats", plural genitive). It is really hard to find
information in the usual grammar books that talks about genitives when the definite article isn't used,
and we'll come back to it later.
But in the meantime, think of those genitive uses much like an adjective. Indeed, that's usually how
they are used, without the article, as a adjective-like qualifier. If the adjective would be lenited, do the
same for the singular genitive, at least, and probably for plural genitives if they are truly used as
adjectives. But I have some more work to do with that.
Anyway, if you think of little LEGO people, you could have a fear plaistigh and a bean phlaistigh in
your set of toys.
Noun Review #4
Forms for Well-Behaved Strong Plurals
P. 2
Gaeltacht Minnesota: Will’s Class
November 25, 2013
HOMEWORK
For each of the nouns below, all of which have strong plurals, write four sentences, representing
common and genitive forms in the singular and plural, all with the deifnite article. For example:
Feicim an t-aisteoir.
Feicim peann an aisteora.
Feicim na haisteoirí.
Feicim bus na n-aisteoirí.
Don't get too creative or literary, use the same basic words again and again to save time and to let you
focus on the noun forms rather than what it means, whether it makes sense as a sentence.
LICÍN small flat stone
AGUISÍN appendix
AINTÍN aunt
BAILLÍN bubble
CAILÍN girl
CEIRNÍN platter, record
CROIFÍN cane or crutch
DREOILÍN wren
LAIDHRICÍN little finger
MÍN level, arable land
NÓINÍN daisy
PRÁISCÍN apron (with many
pockets)
SICÍN chicken
SLÍBÍN a sly fellow
ABHLÓIR jester
BÁDÓIR boatman
CEOLTÓIR musician
DÉANTÓIR maker
(manufacturer, creator)
EOCHRÓIR keymaker
IARRTHÓIR candidate
RÉALTÓIR astronomer
SEANADÓIR senator
AISTEOIR actor
CÁIREOIR cheesemonger
ÉILICEOIR thatcher or
plasterer
TINCÉIR tinker
BALBHACHT a mute
BEANNACHT blessing
CUMHACHT power
GAELTACHT
MALLACHT curse
BÓLACHT herd of cows
CÁILÍOCHT quality
EAGRAÍOCHT organization
EOLAÍOCHT science
AIDIACHT adjective
Noun Review #4
Forms for Well-Behaved Strong Plurals
P. 3