Ceistean
Asking questions
A handful of question words — who, what, where, when, why, how — open almost every question that is not a yes or a no. The words themselves are quick to learn; what takes practice is the form of the verb that follows each one, where one word, càite, goes its own way.
The question words
Faclan ceiste
A question that asks for information rather than a yes or a no starts with a question word, just as in English. There are only a handful, and each one comes first in its sentence.
| Gaelic | For example | |
|---|---|---|
| who | cò | Cò thusa? — who are you? |
| what | dè | Dè tha seo? — what is this? |
| where | càite | Càite a bheil thu? — where are you? |
| when | cuin | Cuin a tha e? — when is it? |
| why | carson | Carson a tha thu sgìth? — why are you tired? |
| how | ciamar | Ciamar a tha thu? — how are you? |
| how many | cia mheud | Cia mheud bràthair a th' agad? — how many brothers have you? |
- Cò thusa?KOH OO-suhWho are you?With no verb at all: who you? The emphatic thusa does the work.
- Cò
- who
- thusa
- you (emphatic)
- Dè tha seo?jay ha SHAWWhat is this?
- Dè
- what
- tha
- is
- seo
- this
- Ciamar a tha thu?KYEM-ur a ha ooHow are you?
- Ciamar
- how
- a
- that
- tha
- are
- thu
- you
You will also see cuine for cuin, càit' for càite and co mheud for cia mheud. They are spellings of the same words, and every one is right.
Which form of the verb follows
An gnìomhair às dèidh a' cheist
After most question words the verb comes in with a, meaning that or which, and takes the same form it would in a statement: Ciamar a tha thu? is literally how that you are. Cò, dè, cuin, carson, ciamar and cia mheud all work this way.
Càite is the odd one out. It takes the form a yes-or-no question uses — a bheil, not a tha — so where are you is Càite a bheil thu?, never Càite a tha thu? The three tenses of bi show the split; the question forms are the ones on the grammar page.
| After cò, dè, cuin, carson, ciamar | After càite | |
|---|---|---|
| is, are | a tha | a bheil |
| was, were | a bha | an robh |
| will be | a bhios | am bi |
- Càite a bheil thu a' fuireach?KAA-tchuh uh VEL oo uh FOO-ruhkhWhere do you live?
- Càite
- where
- a
- that
- bheil
- are
- thu
- you
- a' fuireach
- living
- Càite an robh thu?KAA-tchuh un ROH ooWhere were you?
- Càite
- where
- an
- that
- robh
- were
- thu
- you
- Cuin a bhios tu deiseil?KOON uh VEES too JESH-alWhen will you be ready?
- Cuin
- when
- a
- that
- bhios
- will-be
- tu
- you
- deiseil
- ready
- Carson a bha thu fadalach?kar-SON uh VA oo FAT-uh-lukhWhy were you late?
- Carson
- why
- a
- that
- bha
- were
- thu
- you
- fadalach
- late
- Càite am bi thu a-màireach?KAA-tchuh um BEE oo uh-MAA-ruhkhWhere will you be tomorrow?
- Càite
- where
- am
- that
- bi
- will-be
- thu
- you
- a-màireach
- tomorrow
The future after a is bhios, not bidh: Cuin a bhios tu ann?, when will you be there. It is the form bidh takes whenever a, meaning that, comes before it.
With other verbs
Le gnìomhairean eile
The same split holds for every verb, not just bi. After cò, dè, cuin, carson and ciamar the verb takes its statement form, softened after a as a past tense is anyway: Cuin a thàinig thu?, when did you come? After càite it takes the question form, with an do in the past: Càite an do chuir thu e?, where did you put it?
- Cuin a thàinig thu?KOON uh HAA-nik ooWhen did you come?
- Cuin
- when
- a
- that
- thàinig
- came
- thu
- you
- Dè a rinn thu?JAY uh RINN ooWhat did you do?
- Dè
- what
- a
- that
- rinn
- did
- thu
- you
- Càite an do chuir thu e?KAA-tchuh un doh KHOOR oo ehWhere did you put it?
- Càite
- where
- an do
- that (past)
- chuir
- put
- thu
- you
- e
- it
Why not?
Carson nach?
A negative question word takes nach in place of a, followed by the same negative form a statement would use: Carson nach eil thu a' tighinn?, why aren't you coming? In the past it is nach robh, and with other verbs nach do.
- Carson nach eil thu a' tighinn?kar-SON nakh EL oo uh TCHEE-inWhy aren't you coming?
- Carson
- why
- nach
- that-not
- eil
- are
- thu
- you
- a' tighinn
- coming
- Carson nach do dh'fhalbh thu?kar-SON nakh doh GHAL-av ooWhy didn't you go?
- Carson
- why
- nach do
- that-not (past)
- dh'fhalbh
- left
- thu
- you
The short forms you will hear
Na cruthan goirid
The a is barely said, and in writing it is often dropped before tha: Dè tha seo? as well as Dè a tha seo? At the end of a question, a tha usually shortens to a th': Dè an t-ainm a th' ort?, what is your name?
- Dè an t-ainm a th' ort?JAY un TAN-am uh HORSHTWhat's your name?
- Dè
- what
- an
- the
- t-ainm
- name
- a
- that
- th'
- is
- ort
- on-you
- Cò tha sin?KOH ha SHINWho is that?
- Cò
- who
- tha
- is
- sin
- that
What time, what age, what day
Dè an …?
Where English puts a noun after what — what time, what age — Gaelic puts the noun after dè with the article: Dè an uair?, what the hour? The noun takes whatever form an gives it, so the article is the one from the grammar page.
| Gaelic | |
|---|---|
| What time is it? | Dè an uair a tha e? |
| What's your name? | Dè an t-ainm a th' ort? |
| How old are you? | Dè an aois a tha thu? |
| What day is it? | Dè an latha a th' ann? |
- Dè an aois a tha thu?JAY un OOSH uh HA ooHow old are you?Literally what the age that you are.
- Dè
- what
- an
- the
- aois
- age
- a
- that
- tha
- are
- thu
- you
- Dè an latha a th' ann?JAY un LAA-uh uh HOWNWhat day is it?
- Dè
- what
- an
- the
- latha
- day
- a
- that
- th'
- is
- ann
- in-it
The time and the date have pages of their own: telling the time.
How many, how much, how big
Cia mheud is dè cho
Cia mheud, how many, takes a singular noun: Cia mheud bràthair a th' agad? is literally how many brother have you. Money is asked with Dè na tha e?, how much is it?
How with an adjective — how big, how far, how old — is dè cho, what so, followed by the adjective and then 's a with the verb: Dè cho fada 's a tha e?, how far is it?
- Cia mheud bràthair a th' agad?kya VEE-ut BRAA-hir uh HAK-utHow many brothers do you have?
- Cia mheud
- how many
- bràthair
- brother
- a
- that
- th'
- is
- agad
- at-you
- Dè cho fada 's a tha e?JAY khoh FAT-uh suh HA ehHow far is it?fada is both far and long, so this also asks how long it is.
- Dè
- what
- cho
- as
- fada
- far
- 's
- and
- a
- that
- tha
- is
- e
- it
- Dè na tha e?jay na ha ehHow much is it?
- Dè
- what
- na
- amount-that
- tha
- is
- e
- it
Whose, from where, to whom
Cò às, cò leis
Where English moves the preposition to the end — who are you talking to? — Gaelic puts it straight after cò, in the form it takes with him: Cò ris a tha thu a' bruidhinn?, literally who to-him that you are talking?
| Gaelic | For example | |
|---|---|---|
| from where | cò às | Cò às a tha thu? — where are you from? |
| whose, with whom | cò leis | Cò leis a tha seo? — whose is this? |
| to whom | cò ris | Cò ris a tha thu a' bruidhinn? — who are you talking to? |
- Cò às a tha thu?koh ASS a ha ooWhere are you from?
- Cò
- who
- às
- out-of
- a
- that
- tha
- are
- thu
- you
- Cò leis a tha seo?KOH LESH uh ha SHAWWhose is this?
- Cò
- who
- leis
- with
- a
- that
- tha
- is
- seo
- this
Answering
A' freagairt
These questions ask for information, so they are answered with it, not with the verb the way a yes-or-no question is: Càite a bheil thu a' fuireach? gets Ann an Glaschu, in Glasgow. The verb only comes back in a full sentence, and then in its statement form: Tha mi a' fuireach ann an Glaschu.
- Tha mi a' fuireach ann an Glaschuha mee uh FOO-ruhkh un-un GLAS-uh-khooI live in Glasgow
- Tha
- am
- mi
- I
- a' fuireach
- living
- ann an
- in
- Glaschu
- Glasgow
- Chan eil fhios agamkhan yel iss AK-umI don't know
- Chan eil
- is not
- fhios
- knowledge
- agam
- at-me
Answering a yes-or-no question is a different thing altogether: see answering yes and no.