"He is the engineer."
Translation:Is é an t-innealtóir é.
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You actually dont need to use the "é" twice even though you can. It is perfectly acceptable to say: Is é an t-innealtóir
You do need it, actually. Unless you're speaking Ulster Irish. You can drop them both, however, and use eisean.
http://www.nualeargais.ie/gnag/kopul5.htm#bestimmtes Prädikat (ctrl-f "He is the" for the relevant section).
So you can have:
Is é an t-innealtóir é (Standard) Is é an t-innealtóir (Ulster Irish only) Is eisean an t-innealtóir (Perhaps more colloquial, emphasis form)
No. The first é in Is é an t-innealtóir é is a sub-predicate that is required to separate the copula is from the positive predicate (an t-innealtóir), and the é is at the end (the subject).
With a 1st or 2nd person pronoun as the subject, the subject actually comes first - Is mé an t-innealtóir - "I am the engineer". When the 1st/2nd person pronoun is the predicate, you use the emphatic form - Is mise an t-innealtóir - "I am the engineer.
To say "I am the engineer, with the emphasis on "the engineer", you say Is mé an t-innealtóir*
While im pretty sure you are not able to say Is an t-innealtóir é, as this would translate as the engineer he is, you are able to say Is innealtóir é, He is an engineer. Note: You are not able to say Is é innealtóir é, as far as i know
If you have a definite noun in the copula, you must have a pronoun indicating a sub-predicate before it. You can't have a definite noun following the copula. And, no, you can't say Is é innealtóir é, either.
Read this with interest, why not a definate noun? Does it change the meaning? Or is it that's its just not good "Irish". grma
Cheers you may have actually explained the copula to me with explaination. Ive struggled with it to be frank
I still have no idea what you mean when you talk about this "copula" and I'm very well educated... I thought. I have no clue what the copula is and when to know it's involved or why it matters. I'm beyond frustrated, thinking there's no hope for me with Irish. Physics is easier than Irish!
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In reply to Stacey: check out https://forum.duolingo.com/comment/7068975 for a great explanation of said copula. It is admittedly a complex topic for such a short word.
I guess we have to keep in mind that we are talking to a computer and have to give the "right" answer in order to move on.
Yes, I was going to ask in which situations you use the "t". It doesn't seem consistent, but I'll bet there is a rule.
It is quite consistent. Masculine nouns in the nominative case that start with a vowels get a t-prefix after the singular definite article an.
Masculine nouns:
an t-innealtóir, an t-arán, an t-úll, an t-éan
Feminine nouns:
an ubh, an áit, an eala, an ordóg
I'm still having a lot of trouble working out which constructions should go "ta se X" etc or "is X e" (and especially when its not a he/she/it phrase but like a paul is an enginer" phrase) - anyone have some pointers on this? GMA
I'm getting a little irritated and frustrated that my Ulster Irish is frequently not accepted.