Tha mi a ‘sgrìobhadh leabhar.
(Tha sibh etc…..)
Tràth Caithte
Bha mi a ’sgrìobhadh leabhar.
(Bha sibh etc……..)
The above examples show the most common and easiest ways to create the present tense and past, using the continuous of the verb “to be” . To use the simple present (instead of the Continuous present) there is a construction, unusual in Gaelic, using the future tense.
Sgriobhadh mi or bidh mi a´sgriobhadh
The future tense used as the present simple is more common when we talk about things we do habitually and things which happen a lot or are generally true. Practice will make this clearer. Please try to use the continuous until you have more practice with this.
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H is added to create the simple past, here is a chart of imperatives. Notice the irregular form of “DH” with vowels” and “F”. It is also interesting to notice that nothing happens to “SG” and “R”
| Imperative | English Translation | Past Tense | English Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| fàg! | leave! | dh’fhàg | left |
| ionnsaich! | learn! | dh’ionnsaich | learnt |
| pòg! | kiss! | phòg | kissed |
| obair! | work! | dh’obair | worked |
| sabaid! | fight! | shabaid | fought |
| sgrìobh! | write! | sgrìobh | wrote |
| ruith! | run! | ruith | run |
| seas! | sit! | sheas | sat |
| teasgaisg! | teach! | theagaisg | taught |
| tog! | lift! | thog | lifted |
dh´ionnsaich e
Dè dh‘ionnsaich thu anns an obair sin?
It is formed by exactly the same rules as the continuous present tense.
Questions etc and how to ask them will be shown later
tha mi trang an dugh / present
bha mi sgith an dè / past
bha an duine glè ard / past
bidh iad uil aig an taigh a-nochd / future tense / they will all be…..
Imperfect form
bhithinn I would be
bhiodh / bhitheadh tu you would be
bhiodh / bhitheadh e, i he she it would be
bhiomaid / bhitheamaid we would be