View source for Guide to Irish to be, the substantive verb bí, tá & the copula is

{{DISPLAYTITLE:Guide to Irish ''to be'', the substantive verb ''bí, tá'' & the copula ''is''}}
… or how to say ''I am…''?

This is one of the most challenging subjects to learners – this guide aims to explain it in a systematic and relatively comprehensive way. This guide is partially adapted from [[Guide to Scottish Gaelic to be, the linking verbs: substantive bi, tha & the copula is|Guide to Scottish Gaelic ''to be'']].

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First let’s define two terms:

* '''subject''' – the thing or person about whom the given sentence is, it is the main noun phrase in the sentence, eg. in the sentence “'''Tom''' has a cat” '''Tom''' is the subject, in the sentence “'''The people around here''' are very nice” '''the people around here''' are the subject.
* '''predicate''' of a linking or copular verb – the phrase that goes after ''is'' in English, eg. in “a cat is '''an animal'''” '''an animal''' is the predicate, in “the boat is '''on the sea'''” the predicate is '''on the sea''', thus the predicate is the thing that the subject is linked to with ''is''.<ref>The more proper term would be ''predicative'', while the ''predicate'' is generally the whole main verbal phrase of a clause. But ''predicate'' in the sense “information given about the subject in a copular clause” is pretty common in Irish and Gaelic linguistics.</ref>

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Irish has two separate words to translate the English ''to be'' verb depending on context.

The first one is the ''substantive verb '''bí'''''. The second one is the ''copula '''is'''''.

== The substantive verb ''bí'' ==

The form '''bí''' is what you’ll find as a headword in dictionaries, it is the singular imperative command form ''be!''.

In the present tense its independent form is '''tá''' and the dependent form is '''fuil''' – but you will typically see it mutated as ''bhfuil'' or ''fhuil'' more often (more dependent forms later).

You use this verb for stating '''how''', '''where''' or '''when''' something is or what something is '''like''' – for describing something and stating its whereabouts. That means that this verb takes '''only''' ''adverbs'', ''adjectives'', and ''prepositional phrases'' as its predicates:

* '''{{color|red|táim}} {{color|green|go maith}}''' — ''{{color|red|I am}}  {{color|green|well}}'', here an adverb – '''go maith''' ''well'' – is the predicate;
* '''{{color|red|tá}} {{color|blue|an ceapaire}} {{color|green|blasta}}''' — ''{{color|blue|the sandwich}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|tasty}}'', here an adjective – '''blasta''' ''tasty'' – is the predicate;
* '''{{color|red|tá}} {{color|blue|an ceapaire}} {{color|green|ar an mbord}}''' — ''{{color|blue|the sandwich}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|on the table}}'', here a prepositional phrase – '''ar an mbord''' ''on the table'' – is the predicate;
* '''{{color|red|tá}} {{color|blue|sé seo}} {{color|green|salach}}''' — ''{{color|blue|this}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|dirty}}'', again an adjective as the predicate.

When the predicate is an adjective, it stays in the base form – it doesn’t change to agree in number or gender with the subject. Compare:

* '''na cait mhóra''' — ''the big cats'' (with ''mhóra'' ‘big’ having plural form, and lenited after a plural noun formed by slenderization)
* with '''{{color|red|tá}} {{color|blue|na cait}} {{color|green|mór}}''' — ''{{color|blue|the cats}} {{color|red|are}} {{color|green|big}}'' (''mòr'' staying in base unlenited form).

A few adjectives expressing subjective assessment typically get '''go''' before them when they’re predicates of the ''tá'' verb (this might be a remnant of the verb taking only adverbs as its predicates
originally):

* '''Tá an fear go maith''' — ''the man is good'',
* '''Tá an cailín go hálainn''' — ''the girl is beautiful'',
* '''Tá an lá go deas''' — ''the day is nice'',
* '''Tá an aimsir go dona''' — ''the weather is bad'',
* '''Tá an samhradh go haoibhinn''' — ''the summer is splendid'',
* '''Tá an rós go breá''' — ''the rose is pretty'',
* '''Tá sé go holc''' — ''it is evil'',
* '''Tá sí go hiontach''' — ''she is wonderful''.

And so:
* '''{{color|red|tá}} {{color|blue|an pháirc mhór}} {{color|green|go breá}}''' — ''{{color|blue|the big field}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|pretty}}'' – here ''mhór'' is lenited because it ''attributes'' a feminine noun ''páirc'' directly, but ''breá'' stays in the basic unlenited form because it is a ''predicate'' to the verb and not directly linked to the noun.

<div class="warningbox">'''Remember!''' You '''cannot''' use a noun phrase as a predicate of this verb, so you cannot say something like <s>''*tá sé fear''</s> – this sentence simply doesn’t make any sense in Irish, '''fear''' ''a man'' is a noun and as such cannot be a predicate here.</div>

When describing something with an adjective, it’s more traditional to use the copula. See [[#The copula is and how to say what or who something or someone is|below]] for that.

=== Existentials or ''there is…'' ===

'''Bí''' is also used for existential sentences like ''there is a dog in the house'' – this sentence means that ''a dog'' exists and that dog is located ''in the house''. English (like other Germanic languages) doesn’t like indefinite subjects of such sentences and starts them with a ''dummy subject'' '''there''' a bit as if defining this dummy ''there'' as ''a dog in the house''. Also that’s the reason why the story starts with ''In a hole in the ground '''there lived''' a hobbit'' and not simply <s>''… a hobbit lived''</s>. Many languages don’t do this and just straightforwardly say something like ''a dog is in the house'', that’s what happens in Irish:

* '''tá madra sa teach''' — ''there is a dog in the house'' – it’s a simple sentence with an indefinite subject '''madra''' ''a dog'' and a prepositional predicate '''sa teach''' ''in the house'' stating where the existing dog is.

But '''tá''' always needs ''some'' predicate. In some languages you could say something like ''good people are'' in the meaning ''there are good people, good people generally exist'' – but not in Irish. <ref>Although Old Irish permitted that.</ref> Here enters our friend the ''dummy predicate'' '''ann''' ''there, in general existence''. If you lack a predicate for an existential sentence, you just stick '''ann''' there:

* '''tá dea-dhaoine ann''' — ''there are good people'',
* but '''tá dea-dhaoine in Éirinn''' ''there are good people in Ireland'' without this ''ann'' (because '''in Éirinn''' already works as a predicate).

This '''ann''' might also mean ''here, there, somewhere around'' when the subject is definite as in

* '''tá Séamas ann''' — ''Séamas is here/there'' (Séamas is present and you can find him somewhere around).

=== The dependent form ''fuil'' ===

With some irregular verbs – ''bí'' among them – Irish requires the use of a separate ''dependent'' form after some ''dependent particles'', like the negating ''ní'' ‘not’, interrogative ''an?'' ‘does? is?…’, ''go'' ‘that’ (introducing subordinate clause in reported speech), etc.

The dependent form of '''tá''' ''is'' in present tense is '''fuil''' ''is''. But you’ll rarely, if ever, see this form on it’s own. In most dialects – outside of Munster – it '''always''' appears mutated, either lenited or eclipsed, and thus what you’re see is rather:

* '''níl…''' for ''… is not…'' – it’s an irregular spelling of '''ní fhuil''' ('''ní''' causes lenition), since the ''fh'' is silent and thus the thing is pronounced /n´iːl´/; you’ll sometimes see it written as '''ní’l''' in older texts, and in Ulster dialects it sometimes keeps two syllables: /n´iː.ɪl´/;
* '''an bhfuil…?''' for ''is…?'' in yes-no questions;
* '''nach bhfuil…?''' for ''isn’t…?'', in the negative yes-no questions;
* '''go bhfuil…''' for ''that is…'' in reported speech;
etc.

So for example:

* '''{{color|red|níl}} {{color|blue|Tadhg}} {{color|green|sa teach}}''' — ''{{color|blue|Tadhg}} {{color|red|is not}} {{color|green|in the house}}'',
* '''{{color|red|nach bhfuil}} {{color|blue|sé sin}} {{color|green|go deas}}?''' — ''{{color|red|isn’t}} {{color|blue|that}} {{color|green|nice}}?'',
* '''is dóigh liom {{color|red|go bhfuil}} {{color|blue|brón}} {{color|green|air}}''' — ''I think that he is sad'' (lit. ''… {{color|red|that}} {{color|blue|sadness/sorrow}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|on him}}''),
etc.

In Munster dialects '''ná''' is used instead of '''nach''' before verbs for negative questions and in relative clauses, and it doesn’t cause any mutation, thus you will find '''fuil''' in Munster texts:
* '''{{color|red|ná fuil}} {{color|blue|sé sin}} {{color|green|go deas}}?''' — ''{{color|red|isn’t}} {{color|blue|that}} {{color|green|nice}}?''.

The ''fuil'' form in general can also be inflected for persons, like ''tá'' can, so you’ll find '''nílim''' for ''I am not'', '''go bhfuilimid''' (or often in Munster texts '''go bhfuilimíd''') for ''that we are not'', etc. (and in older, especially Munster, texts '''fuilir''' for ''you (sg.) are, thou art'', '''fuilid (siad)''' for ''they are'', and sometimes '''fuileann tú, fuileann sibh''' for ''thou art, ye are'' are used too; but they’re rare or nonexistent in other dialects and are not part of the standard Irish).

<div class="warningbox">'''Remember!''' The '''níl''' (&lt; '''ní fhuil''') and '''bhfuil''' forms are used in dependent position where you’d use '''tá''' in independent positions. You can’t use them for copular meanings. See [[#TODO|below]] for more about dependent forms and the dependent forms
of the copula.</div>

So, having that out of the way – how do you say ''he is a man''? Or ''you are the high king of Ireland''? Well… let’s look at the copula, shall we?

== The copula ''is'' and how to say ''what'' or ''who'' something or someone is ==

I intentionally avoid the word ''verb'' when writing about the copula, although you’ll often see it called ''the copula verb'' or ''the assertive verb'' or something like that. That’s because it has its own syntax and doesn’t really behave like a verb (and has fewer forms) so it is a bit of its own grammatical category in the Gaelic languages.

The present form is '''is''' and there is no imperative (so you’ll find it under '''is''' in dictionaries). This is sometimes shortened to '''’s''' after or before vowels.

You '''have to''' use the copula if you want to create a simple ''X is Y'' sentence and the predicate is a noun phrase (there are some idiomatic phrases without the copula but they don’t translate literally, we’ll look at them later).

There are quite a few different patterns involving the copula – sorry, I don’t think I can make it any shorter.

=== General remarks and syntax ===

Irish copula is an unstressed element that '''is not''' a separate word in its own right – it '''cannot''' exist separate from its predicate. Thus it will always be followed by ''something''.

And the general syntax of the copua is:

<blockquote>is {{smallcaps|⟨predicate⟩}} {{smallcaps|⟨subject⟩}}</blockquote>

but in identification sentences additional pronouns are inserted, see [[#Identification – definite predicates|below]].

=== Classification – indefinite predicates ===

When the predicate is indefinite – you want to state ''what kind of thing'' something or someone is, like in ''he is '''a doctor''''', ''I am '''a student''''', ''Irish is '''a Celtic language''''', ''cats are '''animals''''', then there are a few different ways. The most straightforward is to use the copula directly:

==== is {{smallcaps|⟨predicate⟩}} {{smallcaps|⟨subject⟩}} (VPS) ====

This is basically the basic syntax of the copula, {{smallcaps|V[erb] P[redicate] S[ubject]}}, as mentioned above.

* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|ceapaire}} {{color|blue|é}}''' — ''{{color|blue|it}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|a sandwich}}'',
* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|múinteoir}} {{color|blue|mé}}''' — ''{{color|blue|I}} {{color|red|am}} {{color|green|a teacher}}'',
* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|iasc}} {{color|blue|breac}}''' — ''{{color|blue|a trout}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|a fish}}''.

When the subject is definite, a “subsubject” pronoun is often added before it:

* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|cailín cróga}} {{color|blue|Síle}}''' or '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|cailín cróga}} {{color|blue|í Síle}}''' — ''{{color|blue|Síle}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|a brave girl}}''.
* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|peileadóir}} {{color|blue|Tadhg}}''' or '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|peileadóir}} {{color|blue|é Tadhg}}''' — ''{{color|blue|Tadhg}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|a footballer}}''.

This pronoun is common in some Connacht and Munster dialects but isn’t required in the standard language and you’ll often see this kind of clauses without it in older literature.

==== Copula and adjectives ====

The copula is sometimes used with adjective predicates when describing more permanent features (while the substantive verb is used for more temporary states – though it’s not a strict rule by any means).

Thus to say ''{{color|blue|the house}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|big}}'' you might say:

* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|mór}} {{color|blue|(é) an teach}}''' (the pronoun before the subject is ''very'' common in this kind of sentences),

while ''I’m sad'' could be expressed with '''táim brónach''' – being '''mór''' ''big'' is a permanent inherent feature of the house, while being sad is just a temporary state of a person.

or you can hear in a song:

* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|blue|briste}} {{color|green|mo chroí}}''' — ''{{color|green|my heart}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|blue|broken}}''

which sounds a bit more serious than ''tá mo chroí briste''.

The book ''Fiche blian ag fás'' by Muiris Ó Súilleabháin starts with the words (the form ''gur'' is explained [[#TODO|later]]):

* '''Níl aon bhaol ná {{color|red|gur}} {{color|green|breá}} {{color|blue|í an óige}}''' — ''There’s no fear but {{color|red|that}} {{color|blue|(the) youth}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|red|wonderful}}'' (or ‘the one certain thing is that youth is wonderful’).

You’ll sometimes also hear '''is maith sin''' for ''that is good''.

Another very common use of the copula with adjectives is as follows:

* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|fuar}} {{color|teal|an oíche}} {{color|blue|í}}''' — ''it is a cold night'', very literally ''{{color|teal|the night}} – {{color|blue|it}} – {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|cold}}'' or ''{{color|teal|the night}} that {{color|blue|it}} is, {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|cold}}'',
* '''is maith an fear é''' — ''he is a good man'' (''the man that he is, is good''),
* '''is mór an teach é''' — 'it is a big house'' (''the house that it is, is big'').

In this construction the predicate is the adjective (''fuar, maith, mór''), and the subject is complex, composed of a definite noun phrase and a pronoun.

==== {{smallcaps|⟨predicate⟩}} is ea {{smallcaps|⟨subject⟩}} ====

Beside the basic classification, another type exists.

This is the default structure used in Munster dialects, where the simple ''is X Y'' is rarer, the above examples expressed using this construction are:

* '''{{color|green|ceapaire}} {{color|red|is}} ea {{color|blue|é}}''' — ''{{color|blue|it}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|a sandwich}}'',
* '''{{color|green|múinteoir}} {{color|red|is}} ea {{color|blue|mé}}''' — ''{{color|blue|I}} {{color|red|am}} {{color|green|a teacher}}'',
* '''{{color|green|iasc}} {{color|red|is}} ea {{color|blue|breac}}''' — ''{{color|blue|a trout}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|a fish}}'',
* '''{{color|green|cailín cróga}} {{color|red|is}} ea {{color|blue|(í) Síle}}''' — ''{{color|blue|Síle}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|a brave girl}}''.

The ''ea'' element here is the old neuter pronoun ‘it’ which stands for indefinite predicate, a sentence like '''fear is ea é''' ''he is a man'' says literally: ''a man – he is it'' with '''ea''' ''it''
referring back to '''fear''' ''a man''.

<div class="warningbox">'''Nota bene''': Since the copula comes ''after'' the predicate and it is '''not''' relative, when using this construction in subordinate clauses the '''go''' ‘that’ particle
appears twice:

* '''tá a fhios agam gur {{color|green|fear}} {{color|red|gurb}} {{color|green|ea}} {{color|blue|é}}''' — ''I know {{color|red|that}} {{color|blue|he}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|a man}}''

The second '''gur(b)''' means ‘that … is’ and the first ''gur'' is pleonastic, inserted there only to syntactically fit the predicate ''fear'' in the sentence. One could imagine saying something like
''*'''fear''', tá a fhios agam gurb '''ea''' é'' instead – but it’s not the common form of such sentences.</div>

There are other constructions for classification though, most common of them is probably:

==== (is) {{smallcaps|⟨predicate⟩}} atá i {{smallcaps|⟨subject⟩}} ====

literally ''{{smallcaps|⟨predicate⟩}} is what is in {{smallcaps|⟨subject⟩}}'' or ''what is in {{smallcaps|⟨subject⟩}} is {{smallcaps|⟨predicate⟩''. Saying that ''thing1 is in thing2'' is just a Gaelic way of stating that ''thing2'' is ''thing1''. Note that this uses the '''bí''' verb – but its predicate is not a noun. Thus:

* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|teal|ceapaire}} {{color|blue|atá}} {{color|green|ann}}''' — ''it is a sandwich'', but literally something like: ''{{color|blue|(it, the thing) that is}} {{color|green|in it}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|teal|a sandwich}}'' or ''what’s in it is a sandwich'' – notice that a prepositional phrase '''ann''' ''in it'' is the predicate of '''tá''', not a noun;
* '''{{color|teal|múinteoir}} {{color|blue|atá}} {{color|green|ionam}}''' — ''I am a teacher'', but literally: ''{{color|blue|(the thing) that is}} {{color|green|in me}} (is) {{color|teal|a teacher}}'' or ''what’s in me is a teacher'' – again a prepositional phrase '''ionam''' ''in me'' is the predicate of '''tá''',

[TODO: more examples]

The copula is very often omitted in this construction.

==== tá {{smallcaps|⟨subject⟩}} ina {{smallcaps|⟨predicate⟩}} ====

literally ''{{smallcaps|⟨subject⟩}} is '''in its''' {{smallcaps|⟨predicate⟩}}'' ('''ina''' here means ''in his/her/its'' and will be replaced by appropriate form agreeing with the subject, eg. '''táim i mo…''' for ''I am in my…'', '''tá tú i do…''' for ''you (sg.) are in your…'', etc.). This one is interesting as it uses the '''substantive verb''' and not the copula – but note that the actual predicate in the Irish sentence is the phrase '''in its {{smallcaps|⟨predicate⟩}}''' – so actually a prepositional phrase.

This structure is often used to state one’s profession but is not restricted to such use:

* '''{{color|red|táim}} {{color|green|i mo mhúinteoir}}''' — ''I am a teacher'', but literally: ''{{color|red|I am}} {{color|green|in my teacher}}'' – ''only'' the '''tá''' verb, but the predicate is a prepositional phrase '''i mo mhúinteoir''' ''in my teacher'';
* '''{{color|red|tá}} {{color|blue|an Ghaeilge}} {{color|green|ina teanga Cheilteach}}''' — ''Irish is a Celtic language'', but literally: ''{{color|blue|the Irish}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|in her Celtic language}}'' the predicate is a prepositional phrase '''na teanga Cheilteach''' ''in her Celtic language'' (feminine non-leniting '''ina''' ''in her'' because the word '''Gaeilge''' is feminine, ''Irish language'' is a she in Irish ;-));
* '''{{color|red|tá}} {{color|blue|siad}} {{color|green|ina ndochtúirí}}''' — ''they are doctors'', but literally: ''{{color|blue|they}} {{color|red|are}} {{color|green|in their doctors}}'';
* '''{{color|red|tá}} {{color|blue|sé}} {{color|green|ina chara liom}}''' — ''he is a friend of mine'', but literally: ''{{color|blue|he}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|in his friend of mine}}''.

This construction is more often used with temporary states rather than permanent ones. That’s why it tends to be used when stating one’s profession, you say ''I (currently) am a teacher'' (but maybe in 3 years I’ll be doing something else) – because of this hint of non-permanent description it’s often used in past tense to give description that is no longer true:

* '''nuair a {{color|red|bhí}} {{color|blue|mé}} {{color|green|i mo bhuachaill óg}}…''' — ''when I was a young boy (but I no longer am)…'', literally ''the-time that {{color|blue|I}} {{color|red|was}} {{color|green|in my young boy}}…''

but it ''doesn’t have to'' mean the state is temporary – it just doesn’t suggest that it is permanent as strongly as [[#is ⟨predicate⟩ ⟨subject⟩ (VPS)|simple VPS clause]] tends to.

==== seo/sin/siúd {{smallcaps|⟨predicate⟩}} ====

[TODO]

=== Identification – definite predicates ===

As a general rule in Irish, since at least late Old Irish, the copula cannot be directly followed by a definite noun – it has to be separated from it with a pronoun. Because of that, if the predicate is ''definite'' – that is if you identify the subject as some specific person or thing ('''''the''' teacher'', ''my brother'', ''Colm'', ''the high-king of Ireland'') rather than simply stating what ''kind of thing'' the subject is – then an additional “subpredicate” pronoun appears before it.

==== is (é/í/iad) {{smallcaps|⟨predicate⟩}} {{smallcaps|⟨subject⟩}} (VpPS) ====

The subpredicate ''generally'' agrees in gender and number with the predicate.

* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|é mo cheapaire}} {{color|blue|é}}''' — ''{{color|blue|it}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|my sandwich}}'', note that additional ''é'', agreeing with the predicate ''mo cheapaire'' ‘my sandwich’, appeared before it;
* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|é an cineál céanna feamainne}} {{color|blue|í}}''' — ''{{color|blue|it}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|the same type of seaweed}}'' – note that the subject ''í'' ‘it’ is feminine (as it presumably refers to the feminine word ''feamainn'' ‘seaweed’) but the subpredicate ''é'' agrees with the predicate (an example from ''Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla'');
* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|í Máire}} {{color|blue|an múinteoir}}''' — ''{{color|blue|the teacher}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|Máire}}'', or in better English ''Máire is the teacher'' (when answering the question “Who is the teacher?” – ie. giving the identity of the teacher, ‘Mary’ being the information given);
* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|í an múinteoir}} {{color|blue|Máire}}''' — ''{{color|blue|Máire}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|the teacher}}'' (when answering the question “Who is Máire?”, “the teacher” being the new information) – note that here ''í'' agrees with ''Máire'' (the subject) and not with ''an múinteoir'' – when the predicate denotes a person, the subpredicate generally agrees with the gender associated with the person;
* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|é deartháir Choilm}} {{color|blue|Séamas}}''' — ''{{color|blue|Séamas}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|Colm’s brother}}'';
* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|í an Ghaeilge}} {{color|blue|teanga na Gaeltachta}}''' — ''{{color|blue|the language of the Gaeltacht}}  {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|Irish}}'' (or ''Irish is the language of the Gaeltacht'', but ''Irish'' is the information given);
* '''cuir i gcás {{color|red|gurb}} {{color|green|í an fhírinne féin}} {{color|blue|é}}''' — ''suppose {{color|red|that}} {{color|blue|it}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|the truth itself}}'' – the subject is generic ''é'' ‘it’, the subpredicate ''í'' agrees with predicate ''an fhírinne'' ‘the truth’, a feminine noun.

When a definite noun standing directly after the copula is defined by a relative clause, the article is traditionally often omitted:
* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|é rud}} {{color|blue|é}} {{color|green|is éagsamhlaighe}} (…) {{color|orange|dár airigheas riamh}}''' — ''{{color|blue|it}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|the most extraordinary thing}} {{color|orange|of all that I’ve ever heard}}'' – note that the first ''é'' is the subpredicate separating the definite ''rud (…) is éagsamhlaighe dár airigheas riamh'' from the copula, the second ''é'' is the subject ‘it’,
sometimes the article is omitted even without the relative clause:
* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|í cúis}} {{color|blue|é}}''' — ''{{color|blue|it}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|the reason}}''.

The rule about subpredicate agreeing with the predicate isn’t very strict though. As noted above, it gets overriden by the perceived gender when talking about persons (''is í an múinteoir Máire''), but it sometimes is ignored in other cases too:

* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|é an chloch is mó ar a phaidrín}} {{color|blue|é}}''' — ''it is his greatest concern'' (lit. ''{{color|blue|it}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|the greatest stone on his prayer}}'')
with the subpredicate ''é'' despite ''an chloch'' being a feminine noun.

[TODO: elaborate]

==== VpSP ====

There sometimes is a need to state the subject before the predicate (since generally subject is the ''theme'', topic of a sentence, and the predicate is the ''rheme'', new information, it’s a natural tendency – all languages with some freedom of word order prefer stating the rheme later). In this case the ''sub-predicate pronoun'' actually fulfills the role of the predicate of the copula and it refers to the noun phrase that comes later, this gives us the {{smallcaps|V[erb] p[redicate] S[ubject] P[redicate]}} structure. This is the type from which the [[#is (é/í/iad) ⟨predicate⟩ ⟨subject⟩ (VpPS)|previous one (VpPS)]] developed.

Sometimes, especially in Munster the word '''ná''' (which can be understood as ‘namely, that is’ in this context) is inserted before the rheme-predicate. Thus one can find this in Peadar Ua Laoghaire’s prose:

* '''agus {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|é}} {{color|blue|ainm a bhí air}} ná {{color|green|Séadna}}''' — ''and his name was Séadna'', literally: ''and {{color|blue|(the) name he had}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|it}}, (namely) {{color|green|Séadna}}''.

Also note that in Muskerry Irish (the dialect of Peadar Ua Laoghaire) the word '''ainm''' ''name'' is feminine – so the pronoun '''é''' clearly disagrees with the subject here.

When no ''ná'' is present there might be more vocal stress put on the pronoun and a pause might be heard after the subject. This also means that a sentence like:
* '''is é Mícheál D. Ó hUigínn uachtarán na hÉireann''' can be understood as either:
:* VpPS: '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|é Mícheál D. Ó hUigínn}} {{color|blue|uachtarán na hÉireann}}''' — ''(the person being) the president of Ireland is Michael D. Higgins'' (ie. answering the question ‘who is the president of Ireland?’), literally: ''{{color|blue|the president of Ireland}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|Michael D. Higgins}},
:* or VpSP: '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|é}} {{color|blue|Mícheál D. Ó hUigínn}}, {{color|green|uachtarán na hÉireann}}''' — ''{{color|blue|Michael D. Higgins}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|this}}: {{color|green|the president of Ireland}}'' (ie. answering the question ‘who is Michael D. Higgins?’),
depending on how the words are stressed in pronunciation.

This structure is required when the predicate is a subordinate clause, when stating facts, opinions, reporting what someone said, etc. – the subordinate clause is always pushed till the end and substituted with '''é''' ''it'':

* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|é}} {{color|blue|mo thuairim}} {{color|green|go bhfuil sé as a mheabhair}}''' – ''I’m of the opinion that he’s out of his mind'', literally ''{{color|blue|my opinion}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|it}}: {{color|green|that he is out of his mind}}'',
* [TODO: more examples]

Note that the word '''tuairim''' ''opinion'' is feminine, so in the first example also the pronoun '''é''' standing for the whole '''go…''' ''that…'' phrase disagrees with the subject '''mo thuairim''' ''my opinion''.

==== 1st and 2nd person: ''mise'', ''tusa'' ====

The 1st and 2nd person pronouns in identification clauses always come first – as if they always were the predicate. The pronouns also generally are with the emphatic suffixes (''mise'' instead of ''mé'' ‘I’, ''tusa'' for ''tú'' ‘you, thou’, ''sinne'' or ''muidne'' for ''sinn, muid'' ‘we’,
''sibhse'' for ''sibh'' ‘you, y’all’):

* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|mise}} {{color|blue|an múinteoir}}''' — ''{{color|green|I}} {{color|red|am}} {{color|blue|the teacher}}'' (or more literally: ''the teacher is me'');
* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|mise}} {{color|blue|Séamas}}''' — ''{{color|green|I}} {{color|red|am}} {{color|blue|Séamas}}'' (or more literally: ''Séamas is me'');
* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|tusa}} {{color|blue|ardrí na hÉireann}}''' — ''{{color|green|you}} {{color|red|are}} {{color|blue|the high-king of Ireland}}'' (or more literally: ''the high-king of Ireland is you'');
[TODO: more examples]

The above sentence work well as responses to questions like ''cé hé an múinteoir?'' ‘who is the teacher?’, ''cé hé Séamas?'' ‘who is Séamas?’, etc. – ie. the pronoun is the response. They may ''also'' be used when responding to ''cé (hé) thusa?'' ‘who are you?’ (ie. giving ''an múinteoir'' ‘the teacher’,
''Séamas'', etc. as the information) – but to note explicitly that the focus is ''not'' on the pronoun, the non-emphatic form might be used:

* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|blue|mé}} {{color|green|an múinteoir}}''' — ''{{color|blue|I}} {{color|red|am}} {{color|green|the teacher}}'';
* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|blue|mé}} {{color|green|Séamas}}''' — ''{{color|blue|I}} {{color|red|am}} {{color|green|Séamas}}'';
* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|blue|tú}} {{color|green|ardrí na hÉireann}}''' — ''{{color|blue|you}} {{color|red|are}} {{color|green|the high-king of Ireland}}'';
[TODO: more examples]

Here the pronouns '''mé''' ''I'', '''tú''' ''you'', '''sinn''' or '''muid''' ''we'', '''sibh''' ''ye'' are merely the topic, the context of the sentence, and what follows is the rheme, the focus, the new information given.

<div class="warningbox">'''Note''' that the word order differs from classification. To say ‘I am '''a''' teacher’ you say:

* '''is múinteoir mé''',

but to state ‘I am '''the''' teacher’ you say:

* '''is mé an múinteoir''' or '''is mise an múinteoir'''.</div>

=== Other uses of copula ===

Contrary to the ''substantive verb'', copula isn’t that restricted in what kind of predicates it takes. And in some common expressions it actually takes prepositional phrases, adjectives, and other grammatical creatures as its predicates.

==== Fronting – additional emphasis on the focus of the sentence ====

A very common use of copula is ''fronting'' – moving some part of a sentence to put emphasis on it – to explicitly mark it as the ''focus'', the ''main point'' of the sentence. The rest of the sentence, with the main verb, is put in a relative clause then. Compare:

* '''tá an cat ar an mbord''' — ''the cat is on the table'' – no fronting, no copula, neutral sentence,
* '''is é an cat atá ar an mbord''' — ''it’s '''the cat''' that is on the table'' – '''an cat''' fronted – it’s the predicate of the copula, the sentence underlines the fact that the thing on the table is '''the cat''' (as opposed to a cup, for example),
* '''is ar an mbord atá an cat''' — ''it’s '''on the table''' that the cat is'' – '''ar an mbord''' fronted, the sentence underlines the fact that the location of the cat is '''on the table'''.

Note that a subpredicate pronoun (''é, í, iad'') will appear if a definite noun phrase is being fronted (''is '''é''' an cat…''). There will be no pronoun otherwise (''is ar an mbord…'').

Also note that the subject of the copula in the fronted sentence is a relative clause. Sometimes you can think of it as elliptical, eliding some noun – like you could add a noun to the second sentence:
* '''{{color|red|is}} {{color|green|é an cat}} {{color|blue|(an t-ainmhí) atá ar an mbord}}''' — ''{{color|blue|(the animal) that is on the table}} {{color|red|is}} {{color|green|the cat}}'',
but it doesn’t work for the third sentence (or when an adverbial or a prepositional phrase is fronted in general). That’s just the general syntax of fronting in Irish – a relative clause can be the subject of the copula.<ref>Sometimes in such cases in Old Irish the “subject” was a regular
non-relative clause, it became relative in later Old Irish due to analogy with other types of fronting. See Pádraig MacCoisdealbha (1998) ''The Syntax of the Sentence in Old Irish'', edited by Graham R. Isaac, De Gruyter</ref>

In fronting the copula is very commonly elided.

* [TODO: examples]

When fronting an adverb, the '''go''' part disappears:

* [TODO: examples]

==== Other set phrases and constructions ====

[TODO]

=== Dependent form (present tense) ===

As mentioned [[#The dependent form fuil|earlier]], some particles in the Irish language – like leniting '''ní''' ''not'', or eclipsing '''an?''' ''is? does?'', '''nach?''' ''isn’t? doesn’t?'', etc. – require the '''dependent''' form of a verb. For the substantive verb that form is ''fuil''. But what happens with the copula?

Generally, the dependent form of the copula '''is''' in the present tense is ''zero''. That is, in the present tense the copula ''disappears'' in the dependent positions. But the particles with the copular meaning also stop leniting and eclipsing. Thus:

* '''ní hé Séamas rí Shasana''' — ''James is not the king of England'',
* '''nach í Máire banríon na hAlban?''' — ''isn’t Máire the queen of Scotland?'',
* '''nach múinteoir thú?''' – ''aren’t you a teacher?''
* '''ní múinteoir atá ionat''' — ''you are not a teacher'',
* '''an iascairí sibh?''' — ''are y’all fishers?'',
* '''an ar an mbord atá an cat?''' — ''is it on the table that the cat is?''.

In Munster – where the negative interrogative and relative particle is '''ná''' – it changes to '''nách''' in the copular meaning:

* '''nách múinteoir thú?''' – ''aren’t you a teacher?'',
* '''dúirt sé nách mac léinn í''' – ''he said that she isn’t a student''.

The dependent present tense copula also adds an '''-r''' to '''go''' and changes the spelling of the vowel ('''go''' + '''is''' → '''gur'''):

* '''dúirt sí gur mac léinn atá ionat''' — ''she said that you are a student'',
* '''deirtear gur áit aerach Mullach an Chlasaigh''' — ''it’s said that Mullach an Chlasaigh is an eerie place''.

In certain cases before vowels – especially before adjectives, adverbs, the pronouns '''é, í, iad, ea''', this '''gur''' changes to '''gurb''':
* '''táim ag smaoineamh gurb é Iain an té a ghoid fobhríste''' — ''I am thinking that Iain is the one who stole underpants'',
* '''admhaím gurb áille cónaí cois farraige ná in áit eile''' — ''I admit that it’s lovlier to live by the sea than in another place'' (lit. ''… that living by the sea is lovlier than in another place''),
* '''m’anam ag Dia gurb í an fhírinne a deirim''' — ''(on) my soul to God that it’s the truth that I say''.

This '''-r(b)''' is also used in ''indirect relative clauses'' and in relative clauses after prepositions:
* '''an duine ar maith leis an rud sin''' — ''the person who likes that thing'',
* '''an duine lenar maith an rud sin''' — ''the person who likes that thing'',
* '''cén tír arb as duit?''' — ''which country are you from?'''
* [TODO: more examples]

== Past and future tenses ==

[TODO]

== Answering yes-no questions ==

[TODO]

== Other resourses ==

* [https://archive.org/details/cu31924026508022/page/n7/mode/2up ''Introduction to Studies in Modern Irish], 1921, Gearóid Ó Nualláin – a guide-book for teachers (but useful for learners too) with notes on correct idiomatic usage of Irish syntax, starting with the copula;
* [https://archive.org/details/cu31924026785174/page/n5/mode/2up ''Studies in Modern Irish'', vol. 1], 1920, Gearóid Ó Nualláin – extensive explanations of elements of Irish syntax, with lots of examples from (mostly Munster) literature, starting with chapters on the copula; also has multiple translation exercises;
* [http://nualeargais.ie/gnag/gramadac.htm ''Gramadach na Gaeilge''] on the Nualéargais website, especially the page on [http://nualeargais.ie/gnag/bi.htm ''bí''] and [http://nualeargais.ie/gnag/kopul1.htm the copula] (if you know German, the German pages are better: [http://braesicke.de/gramadac.htm main page], [http://braesicke.de/bi.htm ''bí''], [http://braesicke.de/kopul1.htm the copula]);
* [https://www.forasnagaeilge.ie/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/GGBC_19990-2.pdf ''Graiméar Gaeilge na mBráithre Críostaí''], 1999 – the most comprehensive Irish grammar dealing with Standard Irish, written in Irish, discusses the use and syntax of the copula in several places.

== Footnotes ==
<references />

[[Category:Irish]]