English Explanatory Dictionary

Irish

English dictionary entry

Meanings

name
  1. The Gaelic language indigenous to Ireland, also known as Irish Gaelic.
  2. The Irish people.
  3. A surname originating as an ethnonym.
  4. A female given name of chiefly Philippine usage.
noun
  1. A board game of the tables family.
  2. Temper; anger, passion.
  3. Whiskey, or whisky, elaborated in Ireland.
adj
  1. Pertaining to or originating from Ireland or the Irish people.
  2. Pertaining to the Irish language.

Pronunciation

En-us-Irish.ogg ī'rĭsh /ˈaɪɹɪʃ/ īə'rĭsh /ˈaɪəɹɪʃ/ /ˈaɪɹəʃ/

Word forms

Irish Irishes more Irish most Irish

Etymology

From Middle English Irish (12th c.), from Old English *Īrisċ, from Old English Īras (“Irishmen”), from Old Norse Írar, from Old Irish Ériu (modern Irish Éire (“Ireland”)), further origin heavily debated but probably from Proto-Celtic *Φīweriyū (“fat land, fertile”), from Proto-Indo-European *péyh₂wr̥ (“fat, swelling”), from *peyh₂- (“to swell; to be fat”), akin to Ancient Greek πίειρα (píeira, “fertile land”), Sanskrit पीवरी (pīvarī, “fat”).

Related words

Erse Gaelic Wiktionary’s coverage of Irish terms

Derived words

Anglo-Irish black Irish Connacht Irish Irish English Munster Irish Scotch Irish Scotch-Irish Scots-Irish smoked Irish Ulster Irish bicycle Irish full Irish full Irish breakfast Irish bacon Irish blight Irish Blue Irish Blue Terrier Irish bouzouki Irish coffee Irish cream Irish diamond Irish exit Irish goodbye Irish harp Irish hint Irish Hobby Irish horse Irish hospitality Irish joke Irish linen Irishly Irish mile Irish nacho Irish pub Irish question Irish soda bread Irishtown Irish twin Irish up Irish water spaniel Irish wolfhound Northern Irish weep Irish
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