Mac Cool's request gave me a thought...how would the beginners out there have a simple conversation with a friend in a pub who is either a native speaker or a fluent learner?

To make this work for everyone, rather than just for the first person who comes along, I'm going to ask each person who responds to respond to one question only, then wait for several hours at least before attempting another one.

I'm also going to ask the more experienced learners to leave the answering to the beginners unless a fair amount of time goes by without a reply.

Please copy the question and the answer in your reply.

You can also post questions about the questions (and the correct answer) in this thread.

Don't worry about making mistakes! It's how you learn, and we've all been there.

Here are the questions:

You walk into a pub and see a friend of yours who is a fluent Irish speaker. You walk over to him/her and the following conversation ensues. How would you answer each question?

Ar mhaith leat deoch?: Would you like a drink? (answer "Yes, thank you" or "No, thank you")

(or s/he may phrase it this way):

An mbeidh deoch agat? Will you have a drink? (answer "yes, thank you" or "no, thank you")

Cad é ba mhaith leat? What would you like? (answer "I would like _______, please")

(when s/he comes back with your drink, s/he may say):

Seo duit! Here you are! (say "thank you very much!")

A big hint:

Remember that Irish has no individual words for "yes" or "no," so you're going to have to look at each question to figure out how to answer it.

Redwolf

Deoch, go raibh maith agat.

(I'm not really sure what part of sentences get the "yes" part attributed to them)

Neat idea, by the way!

This is a great idea, Redwolf! I hope several answer and get the practice.



Is this really the same as the English "Will you have a drink," colloquially meaning "Do you want a drink?" I thought this was something more along the lines of "Will you have a drink in your possession?"

Yes, it's analogous to the English.

Redwolf

Good try! To say "yes," though, you have to repeat the verb you heard in its positive form. "Deoch" is a noun.

Hint: The verb comes at the beginning of the sentence, and may have another word attached to it. in the first option, the verb (a verbal phrase, really) is "Ar mhaith..." In the second option, the verb is "An mbeidh...?"

Another hint: The affirmative answer to "Ar mhaith leat deoch?" is contained in your friend's next question ("what would you like?")

Redwolf

I feel a bit like I'm about to throw things until one sticks, but unfortunately I'm still feeling unsure of how it works, and don't understand what a positive form is supposed to be : /

The first thing that I guess I would try then, is either:

Orm, go raibh maith agat.

But I also saw the leat and am wondering if maybe:

Liom, go raibh maith agat.

If there's supposed to be something attached after orm or liom, I'm not sure.

Those are prepositions. Try looking at the verb itself. Redwolf's hint is really good.

(Here's another hint - well you might even call it a giveaway, but anyway, if you have a look at the previous post that dealt with this subject, you might see an answer or two there). As always, there's never enough time in the evening when you're in good company at the pub - Tá ól, ceol agus craic anseo - or - Tá an chraic go maith anseo anocht. 'A fhear a' tí/A bhean a' tí! Tá tort orm, agus ní maith liom uisce!' - Sláinte an bhradáin, croí laidir agus gob fliuch. But time is running out - you might wish for a last 'deoch an dorais' just before it's too late, when you hear this - 'Caithigí siar iad!'

Cén t-am é?

"Ba mhaith liom, go raibh maith agat." Would "ba mhaith" on its own also be acceptable?

_________________
Is foghlaimeoir mé. Is fearr liom Gaeilge Chonnacht. Corrections always appreciated.

Maith thú! Yes, in fact "ba mhaith" is preferable. When answering yes/no questions, the prepositions are generally omitted.

For those who are still trying to figure out what the verb (or verbal phrase) in these sentences is, in the case of "ar mhaith leat deoch," it's a verbal phrase: "ar mhaith." "Ar" is the conditional form of the copula, and the positive form is "ba." Because "maith" is an essential part of the question, we include it as well, so the positive anser to "ar mhaith leat deoch?" is "ba mhaith."

Can someone out there (beginners only, please!) tell us the negative form?

As far as the "positive" (or "affirmative," if you prefer) and "negative" forms of the verb goes, in this case we're referring to the forms of the verb you would use to make a statement.

For example, most of you are probably familiar with the sentence "Tá Gaeilge agam" (I speak Irish). This is a positive statement (i.e., it's talking about something you CAN do). In that sentence, the verb is "tá" (is)

The reverse (or negative) would be "Níl Gaeilge agam" (I don't speak Irish). In that sentence, the verb is "níl" (is not).

So if someone asks you "An bhfuil Gaeilge agat?" (Do you speak Irish?), the answer in the positive/affirmative (i.e., the "yes" answer) is "tá," and the answer in the negative is "níl."

Another hint: In the other sentence, the verb is "an mbeidh." The question (in English) is WILL you have a drink, so your answer must either be "will" or "won't."

Redwolf