Verbs and Prepositions

As in English many verbs in Gàidhlig have an associative preposition. As in other languages the prepositions aren't always equivalent to those in English.

A common problem is deciding which preposition to use where English uses to :
Preposition Verb Usage
a dh'ionnsaigh † rach a dh'ionnsaigh - go to(wards) Chaidh mi a dh'ionnsaigh na h-uinneige - I went to(wards) the window
air tòisich air - start to Thòisich iad air seinn - They started singing
airson † any verb + to ( in order to) Sheas sinn airson seinn - We stood to sing
chun † / gu cuir gu - send to / remit Cò thuige a chuireadh an litir? - Who was the letter sent to?
rach gu - go (up)to Chaidh mi gu mullach na beinne - I went to the top of the mountain

sgrìobh gu - write to

 Sgrìobhaidh mi gu mo charaid-phinn - I'll write to my penfriend
thoir gu - pass to An toir thu thugam an salann? - Can you pass me the salt?
do / dha rach do - go (in)to Thèid sinn dhan bhùth - We'll go into the shop

mìnich do -  explain to

 Cha deach sin a mhìneachadh dhomh -  That wasn't explained to me
seall do - show to Sheall e dhomh an càr ùr aige  - He showed (to) me his new car

teagaisg do / ionnsaich do -  teach to

 Dè dh'ionnsaich iad dhut? - What did they teach (to) you?

thoir do -  give to

 Thoir dhomh do làmh -  Give me your hand
gus any verb + to ( in order to) Thàinig mi gus seinn - I came to sing
ri(s) bruidhinn ri - speak to Cò ris a bha thu a' bruidhinn? - Who were you speaking to?
can ri / abair ri - tell / say to Na can ri duine sam bith sin - Don't tell that to anyone
èist ri - listen to An do dh'èist thu ris an tidsear? - Did you listen to the teacher?
feuch ri - try to Feuchaidh mi ri thighinn - I'll try to come
leugh ri - read to Leugh an sgeul ris - Read him the story
reic ri - sell to Reic i an càr aice ris - She sold her car to him
tòisich ri - start to Thòisich iad ri seinn - They started singing
seinn ri - sing to Sheinn i ris an leanabh - She sang to the baby
verb To Be + ri - need to Tha agam ri dhol dhachaigh - I have to go home

† prepositions taking the genitive case of nouns

Where verbs requiring prepositions can be  followed by another verb then the verbal noun is used. Exceptions in both literature and the spoken language are the verbs To Be (bhith), To Go (dhol) and To Come (thighinn) :

Thòisich i air ràdh ris an duine - She started to say to the man
Dh'fheuch e ri breith air - He tried to catch up on him
Dh'èist mi a-rithist gu bhith cinnteach - I listened again to be sure
Chrom mi gus èisteachd riutha - I stooped to listen to them
A bheil agad ri dhol ann? - Do you have to go there?

Where verbs requiring prepositions can be followed by another verb and direct object then word order reversal takes place. Here the object comes first followed by a + lenited verbal noun. The a is dropped before verbal nouns beginning with vowel or beginning with f + vowel. The noun object should not be declined by the preposition :
Thòisich mi air a' cheist a fhreagairt - I started to answer the question

Dh'fheuch iad ri taigh a thogail an sin - They tried to build a house there
Bha agam ri an dìnnear a dheasachadh - I had to prepare the dinner

Dh'fheuch e ri dealbh fhaicinn - He tried to see a picture
Thòisich i ri am bainne òl - She started to drink the milk
Chaidh mi gus a' chlann a thogail - I went to collect the children

Thàinig e airson càr ùr a cheannach dhì - He came to buy her a car

Sheas mi gus an dealbh fhaicinn na b' fheàrr - I stood to see the picture better

When the object of the sentence is a pronoun then the pronoun is replaced by its possessive adjective placed before the verbal noun. The possessive adjectives mo, do and a (his/its) lenite the following word whenever possible. In a number of cases augmented prepositions can be used (see ) :

Dh'fheuch iad ri freagairt - They tried to answer her

Thòisich i air a bhiadhadh - She started to feed him
Bha agam ri òl - I had to drink it
Thàinig mi gan gluasad - I came to (in order to) move them
Sheas mi ga fhaicinn na b' fheàrr - I stood to see it better
Tha mi a' dol ga choinneachadh - I am going to meet her


Word Order Inversion after an Adjective
Where an infinitive follows an adjective word order reversal takes places with direct nouns. Here the object comes first followed by a + lenited verbal noun. The a is dropped before verbal nouns beginning with vowel or beginning with f + vowel :

Is math mo sheanmhair fhaicinn a-rithist - It's good to see my grandmother again
Bha mi toilichte mo sheanair fhaicinn a-rithist - I was pleased to see my grandfather again
A bheil thu dèonach litir a sgrìobhadh dhomhsa? - Are you willing to write a letter for me?

When the object of the sentence is a pronoun then the pronoun is replaced by its possessive adjective placed before the verbal noun. The possessive adjectives mo, do and a (his/its) lenite the following word whenever possible :

Bhithinn toilichte an cuideachadh - I would be pleased to help them
An robh i èasgaidh a dhèanamh? - Was she keen to do it?


NEW WORDS

Adjectives

èasgaidh - keen

Nouns

bonnach (m) - cake

 salann (m) - salt
cùis (f) - subject, matter, affair

Verbs
crom, cromadh - bend, stoop fuin, fuine - bake

iomair, iomramh - row

 sguir, sgur (de) - stop, desist

tachair, tachairt - happen


EXERCISE 1 Translate into English

1.Thòisich sinn ri am bàta iomramh

 2.Dh'fheuch mi ri iasg a ghlacadh anns an allt sin

3.Bha aice ri bonnaich fhuine airson a' chèilidh

 4.Cuin a thòisich sibh ri Gàidhlig ionnsachadh?

5.An do dh'fheuch thu mullach na beinne a ruigsinn

 6.Bidh agad ri an làr salach a sguabadh

7.Feuchaidh mi ri an rathad dhan bhaile a shealltainn dhaibh

 8.Càit an tòisich mi ri innse dhaibh na thachair

9.Thàinig sinn gus na beanntan fhaicinn

 10.Is math ur faicinn a-rithist

EXERCISE 2 Translate into Gàidhlig

1.She started to scold him because he had broken the plate

 2.The boy tried to hit me with a stone

3.She started knitting when she was quite young

 4.He tried to carry his brother on his shoulders

5.Will you stop deceiving them?

 6.Don't try to build a fire with wet wood

7.Will you try to open this bottle for me

 8.They had to take his advice in the matter

9.I was so pleased to hear her voice

 10.She went to help the children

ANSWERS - EXERCISE 1
1.We started to row the boat 2.I tried to catch a fish in that burn
3.She had to bake some cakes for the ceilidh 4.When did you start learning Gàidhlig?
5.Did you try to reach the top of the mountain 6.I'll need to sweep the dirty floor
7.I'll try to show them the road to town 8.Where can (will) I begin to tell them what happened
9.We came to see the mountains 10.It's good to see you again

ANSWERS - EXERCISE 2
1.Thòisich i ri trod ris a chionn 's gun do bhris e an truinnsear 2.Dh'fheuch am balach ri mo bhualadh le cloich
3.Thòisich i ri fighe nuair a bha i gu math òg 4.Dh'fheuch e ri a bhràthair a ghiùlan air a ghuailnean
5.An sguir thu dem mealladh? 6.Na feuchaibh ri teine a thogail le fiodh fliuch
7.Am feuch sibh ri am botal seo fhosgladh dhomh 8.Bha aca ri a' chomhairle aige a ghabhail anns a' chùis
9.Bha mi cho toilichte an guth aice a chluinntinn 10.Chaidh i gus a' chlann a chuideachadh

This lesson in PDF format

Lessons.gif (1655 bytes)

dm©lelland - Faodar na leasanan seo ath-riochdachadh le aithneachadh dhan ùghdar
dm©lelland - These lessons may be reproduced with credit to the author