Hello and welcome to our course for visitors to Ireland where we speak a language unknown elsewhere in the English-speaking world. It is also the case here that apparently obvious meanings for some words may be heavily nuanced by the context/sentence in which uttered, so be slow to assume ... to be sure to be sure!
Or, as we put it in Ireland, “to be shure to be shure”, derived from how the ‘s’ letter is pronounced in our almost extinct Irish language which can carry over into the syntax and pronunciation with which we peculiar people insist on speaking the King’s English (even as some suggest he is half-Greek, half German).
In those repeats of sitcom Father Ted you will have noticed the ever-insistent Mrs Doyle serving tea with a repeated “gwan, gwan, gwan”... It means “go on”, or “you will, you will, you will”.
[ In a Word... WordOpens in new window ]
An English person in Ireland may be described as a “dryshite” (boring) who would not be going around “effing and blinding” (swearing) or “on the lash” (drinking). They are unlikely to do anything “arseways” (wrong) but still might have a “gaff” (house) in Ireland.
The Big Irish Times Quiz of 2024
Nanci Griffith: From a Distance review – harrowing account of the country music star’s life that ended in isolation and alcoholism
Róisín Ingle: My profound, challenging, surprisingly joyful, life-changing year
Dancing with the Stars 2025: Who are the contestants, when is it on and more
Being English and probably heathen you’ll never hear them exclaim “Jesus, Mary and Joseph” in stress or say “I will, yeah” while meaning the opposite. Of course they will never be “gas” (funny) or “scuttered” (drunk) or end up “in rag order” (very bad condition), being so moderate (as breeds contempt).
For those who may be visiting Border areas in Ireland the phrase “suckin’ diesel” may prove problematic in that, while throughout the rest of the island it can mean “doing well”, it can have more literal significance in those borderlands. Not recommended (besides, the taste is terrible).
The often-used Irish phrase “how’s she cutting?” is not a question and has nothing to do with clippers, lawnmowers or hairdressers, but is a casual greeting of the how are you? variety as, for instance, can also apply to “how’s the craic?”
[ In a Word... IronyOpens in new window ]
Don’t be confused when someone or something is described in Ireland as “sound”. It has nothing to do with hearing but means someone or something is trustworthy. And don’t be alarmed when you are told someone is “in bits”. They are indeed intact, but “in a bad way”.
Separated by a common language, indeed.
Language, from Latin lingua for “tongue”, “speech”
