How to Spot a Masculine Noun

How the heck to you know if a noun is masculine? I'll show you 6 ways to check it.
You don't need to master grammar-speak or linguistic jargon to improve the accuracy of your Gaelic. They're useful in some situations but certainly are NOT the only way to learn Gaelic.
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Thanks for stopping by!
-Jason

[@nevem5010]

The tip about looking for an adjective is spectacular. As a native speaker of a language where nouns aren't gendered, it's so easy to get overwhelmed, picturing endless attempts to remember genders out of context. But words are usually used *in* context, and it really alters perspective to see how we can use that to our advantage, as learners, instead of it being a source of worry. Thank you!

[@GaelicwithJason]

"...how we can use that to our advantage, as learners, instead of it being a source of worry" - I like how you put that, Neve! I agree wholeheartedly.

[@juliegilmore6293]

One of my biggest questions ha been how do i know if it is feminine or masculine. This really helped to understand

[@GaelicwithJason]

Excellent! I'm glad it cleared some things up for you, Julie. :)

[@Tombaz666]

Tapadh leat! This is super useful

[@GaelicwithJason]

'S e do bheatha. I am glad, Tom.

[@lindaloe1974]

Grammar kind of goes hand in hand with the understanding

[@iloveejbgssnoopy]

I agree and learn it

[@TheSmithsIndeed]

Math fhein agus tapadh leat. This is very helpful for beginners and your videos are excellent

[@GaelicwithJason]

Tapadh leibh! If you have any suggestions, let me know and I'll see what I can do.

[@NarleyBrittes]

Tha an sianal agad sgoinnel!!! Would be possible to make a video on Gaelic phonetics. If there is such a thing? Tapadh leibh!!

[@GaelicwithJason]

Tapadh leat gu mòr. I have plans to make a video or two on funky sounds like 'bh' or 'mh'. Would those be helpful?

[@NarleyBrittes]

@@GaelicwithJason that would be great!!

[@alleycatb]

Mòran taing a Jason. Bidh an bhideo seo glè cuideachail. I have a trick for remembering along with using adjectives. I try to associate masculine qualities with the noun such as thinking about the rugged coastlines of islands and them standing up to the crashing waves of the sea for instance

[@GaelicwithJason]

'S e ur beatha, a charaid! Tha mi toilichte gun robh e feumail. :) That sounds like a useful trick. I could see it being very handy, especially to a very visual person (myself included). Thanks for sharing it with us.

[@alleycatb]

@@GaelicwithJason we actually have some concepts of gender in english we just don't pay attention to them because they don't effect the language like how we tend to see cats as female and dogs as male. Or the sea as female which is an easy association when we thing of it as nurturing and feeding us but when we think of a stormy sea we dont think of its power and strength but more to an angry woman and the ways we describe it follow that pattern

[@GaelicwithJason]

@@alleycatb That's a good point, alleycatb. Boats and ships tend to be feminine in English yet we don't really see that outside of very specific contexts. In my eyes, it adds a lot of richness and imagery. Then again, I enjoy that kind of thing. :)

[@tstsullivan]

Question, Jason. Are there separate forms of numbers in Gaelic for masculine and feminine? Obviously, if there are, that would help too.

[@GaelicwithJason]

Ah, great question. No, there aren't. Keeping track of masculine vs feminine is mainly about which form of 'the' comes before the noun and if the adjective after it changes a wee bit.

[@tstsullivan]

@@GaelicwithJason Right. Well, as you say, a dictionary is probably the best option :) Can I sneak in one more random and unrelated question? I studied Irish for a while and they have, as well as lenition, a thing called' eclipsis'. Does this exist in Gaelic too? For example in ' an-t sraid' do you pronounce only the 't' and not the 's'? Thanks for your help - and for the great videos generally :)

[@GaelicwithJason]

@@tstsullivan Thanks very much. :) Yes, you'll see that in Scottish Gaelic too. An t-sraid would sound something like 'ahn trah-tch', just like you pointed out. Ask anything - it's all related if it's part of Gaelic. :)

[@tstsullivan]

@@GaelicwithJason Tapadh leat a-rithist! I'm so pleased to have found this channel, given that there's so little available for Gaelic learners. Could I suggest a video on numbers? They seem complicated in all the Celtic languages, especially when there seem to be different numbers for talking about people and things! Also one on how to translate ' to' in Gaelic? I've come across at least 4 different words already, and there's probably more lurking out there :) Tioraidh!!

[@GaelicwithJason]

Sure, I have a few on numbers that I can add to the Get Started playlist. You're right - the different words for 'to' can be confusing since there are nuances between them. I'll add that to my list of videos to make. Tapadh leat! :)

[@Ms.W529]

Except for “boireannach”. Lol

[@GaelicwithJason]

Yep, that's one of the exceptions - which is why looking it up in a dictionary is fool-proof.

[@alleycatb]

Hmmn uill tha bioreannach am facal fir ged tà. 'S e "ach" a th' ann