O (preposition)
Gaelic preposition, meaning roughly "from". It can also mean "since". It governs the dative case, and triggers lenition on the following noun.
- For other prepositions see prepositions
- see also Bho (preposition)
Contents
Simple forms
bare form: oL 'from/from a' definite form: on 'from the'
Basic inflected forms
Like most prepositions, o can be inflected for person, number, and gender. For example, to say "from me", we use the single word uam.
| singular | plural | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | uam | uainn | |
| 2nd | uat | uaibh | |
| 3rd | Masc | uaithe | uapa |
| Fem | uaipe | ||
Emphatic Inflected forms
Special emphatic forms are used if we want to emphasize the pronoun in the inflected preposition. (e.g. bhuamsa "from **me**")
| singular | plural | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | uamsa | uainne | |
| 2nd | uatsa | uaibhse | |
| 3rd | Masc | uaithe-san | uapasan |
| Fem | uaipse | ||
Possessive inflected forms:
There are two kinds of forms used when we want to use a preposition with a possessive pronoun. The first form is found primarily in writing, the reduced form is used in speech.
Full forms (Traditionally used in writing)
| singular | plural | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | o moL | o arN | |
| 2nd | o doL | o bhurN | |
| 3rd | Masc | o aL | o anN |
| Fem | bho aH | ||
am is used instead of an "their" in front of words beginning with the labial consonants <b>, <p>, <m>, and <f>
Contracted forms (typically used in speech)
""| singular | plural | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | omL | o arN | |
| 2nd | odL | o 'urN | |
| 3rd | Masc | o aL | o anN |
| Fem | o aH | ||
am is used instead of an "their" in front of words beginning with the labial consonants <b>, <p>, <m>, and <f>
References
Mark, Colin (2004) The Gaelic-English Dictionary/Am Faclair Gàidhlig-Beurla. London: Routledge
Notes
In this document, as elsewhere, L indicates lenition and N indicates eclipsis, (prefixation of an n- before a word beginning with vowels, and a nasalization of the next consonant (not indicated in the orthography) and H indicates Antilenition (the prefixation of <h> before words beginning with vowels).
