Irish Conjugation
Irish verb forms are constructed either synthetically or analytically.
Synthetic forms express the information about person and number in the ending: e.g., molaim "I praise", where the ending -aim stands for "1st person singular present". In this case, a pronoun is not allowed: * molaim mé is ungrammatical.
Analytic forms are those whose endings contain no information about person and number, and a pronoun is necessary: e.g., molann sibh "you (pl.) praise", where the ending -ann expresses only the present tense, and the pronoun sibh "you" (pl.) must accompany it in order to express "2nd person plural".
In addition to the three persons, Irish also has an impersonal form (also called the "autonomous" form), which is used in forming passives and can conveniently be translated with "one" or "someone" as the subject. Shown below are the distribution of synthetic and analytic forms in the standard language; in the dialects, other patterns may be found.
See Irish orthography for a discussion of how verb endings are pronounced.
Read more about Irish Conjugation: Regular Verbs, Irregular Verbs, Preverbal Particles, Subjunctive Mood
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“The Irish are often nervous about having the appropriate face for the occasion. They have to be happy at weddings, which is a strain, so they get depressed; they have to be sad at funerals, which is easy, so they get happy.”
—Peggy Noonan (b. 1950)