"Do I go to him?"
Translation:An dtéim chuige?
16 Comments
an in this case is the question particle - it signifies the sentence as a question. It's dt because an here triggers eclipses
Yes. Shall implies that your asking permission, and that's not covered by this sentence.
Linguists call this an an interrogative particle.
Particles occur before the verb which is otherwise at the start of a sentence, and change the way that sentence is interpreted. An interrogative particle turns a statement into a question, a negative particle negates a statement.
Téim chuige - "I go to him".
An dtéim chuige - "Do I go to him?".
Ni théim chuige - "I don't go to him."
Is this only literally asking "am I going towards him"/"do I usually go to him"? Because in English the equivalent sentence would probably be asking for advice, something like "should I go to him"/"in this situation, is he the one I should go to?"
An dtéim chuige? is the Irish for "do I go to(wards) him?"
An bhfuil mé ag dul chuige? is the Irish for "Am I going to(wards) him?"
Ar chóir dom dul chuige? is the Irish for "Should I go to(wards) him?"
If you feel that in a particular context you could use any one of these sentences in English, then you could probably make the same choice in Irish, but it doesn't change the fact that An dtéim chuige? is the Irish for "do I go to(wards) him?", it isn't the Irish for "Am I going to(wards) him?" or "Should I go to(wards) him?"
The interrogative particle an eclipses the verb that it is applied to. That's why you say an bhfuil rather than an fuil.
