Basic Question Words in Irish

In Brief

Irish question words normally come first: cad/céard “what,” cé “who,” cá “where,” cathain “when,” conas “how,” cén fáth “why,” and cé mhéad “how much/many.” The words after them do not all behave alike: compare Cé atá ann?, Cá bhfuil sé?, and Cén fáth a bhfuil sé anseo? Learn each question word with one complete sentence pattern rather than adding it mechanically to an English sentence.

Overview

Question words let you ask for missing information rather than merely asking for a yes-or-no answer. They are among the most useful A1 building blocks: you need them to ask a name, find a place, check a price, or understand what someone has said. Irish usually places the question word at the beginning, as English often does, but the structure that follows can be quite different.

The most important difference for an English-speaking learner is that Irish does not rely on English-style do/does/did. “What do you want?” is not built by translating what + do + you + want one word at a time. Irish uses its own verb-first patterns and often a relative particle (a short linking word connecting the question word to the following clause), usually a.

You will also meet initial mutation, a change at the beginning of a word. Lenition commonly inserts h after the first consonant, as in déanann → dhéanann. Eclipsis places another consonant before the original one, as in téann → dtéann. Some common dependent verb forms change more dramatically: tá becomes bhfuil after certain question structures. At beginner level, complete model phrases are more valuable than trying to predict every mutation at once.

How It Works

The core question words

Irish	Basic meaning	Useful model
cad, céard	what	Cad atá uait? — What do you want?
cé	who	Cé atá ann? — Who is there?
cá	where	Cá bhfuil sí? — Where is she?
cén áit	what place; where	Cén áit a bhfuil sé? — Where is it?
cathain	when	Cathain a thosaíonn sé? — When does it start?
conas	how	Conas atá tú? — How are you?
cén fáth	why; for what reason	Cén fáth a bhfuil tú anseo? — Why are you here?
cé mhéad	how much; how many	Cé mhéad atá air? — How much is it?

The English meanings are guides, not exact formulas. In particular, Irish often expresses possession, needs, feelings, and prices through prepositional phrases. That is why Cad atá uait? literally has a structure closer to “What is from you?” but naturally means “What do you want?”

Asking “what?” with cad and céard

Cad and céard are both common words for “what.” Céard developed from cén rud (“what thing”) and is especially associated with Connacht, while cad is the usual neutral form taught widely in the standard language. Both are readily understood.

Three high-value patterns are:

• Cad é ...? for identifying or defining something: Cad é sin? — “What is that?”
• Cad atá ...? when tá introduces the description or situation: Cad atá sa bhosca? — “What is in the box?”
• Cad a + verb ...? when “what” is directly connected to the action: Cad a dhéanann tú? — “What do you do?”

In the third pattern, a is a direct relative particle. It normally lenites a following regular consonant, which explains déanann → a dhéanann. A vowel gives no visible consonant mutation, and irregular verbs may have forms that must be learned separately.

Do not insert é automatically after cad. Use Cad é ...? in the identification pattern, but use Cad atá ...? or Cad a dhéanann ...? when a clause follows.

Asking “who?” with cé

Use cé when the missing information is a person:

• Cé hé sin? — Who is that? (male or grammatically masculine reference)
• Cé hí sin? — Who is that? (female or grammatically feminine reference)
• Cé atá ag caint? — Who is speaking?
• Cé a scríobh é? — Who wrote it?

In the short identification pattern, the pronoun appears as hé, hí, hiad after cé: Cé hiad sin? means “Who are those people?” In a full clause, cé is commonly followed by a plus the verb, as in Cé a scríobh é?

Asking “where?” with cá and cén áit

The essential location question is:

• Cá bhfuil ...? — Where is/are ...?

Here bhfuil is the dependent form related to tá. Treat Cá bhfuil...? as one fixed frame at first. It works with people, objects, and places: Cá bhfuil Seán?, Cá bhfuil mo ghuthán?, Cá bhfuil an stáisiún?

Cén áit a bhfuil ...? also means “Where is ...?” but literally asks “In what place ...?” It is longer and can sound more explicit. With movement verbs, you will meet patterns such as Cá dtéann tú? (“Where do you go?”) and the irregular past form Cá ndeachaigh siad? (“Where did they go?”). These show eclipsis after cá.

Asking “when?” with cathain

Use cathain for a time that is not known:

• Cathain a thosaíonn an rang? — When does the class start?
• Cathain a bheidh tú réidh? — When will you be ready?

A common beginner pattern is cathain a + verb. The particle a links the requested time to the clause and normally causes lenition where the spelling allows it: tosaíonn → thosaíonn. Learn the full verb form you hear, especially with irregular verbs and different tenses.

Asking “how?” with conas

For condition or manner, use conas:

• Conas atá tú? — How are you?
• Conas a oibríonn sé? — How does it work?
• Conas a dhéanann tú é? — How do you do it?

The greeting Conas atá tú? is best memorised whole. When a separate action follows, conas a + verb is a productive pattern. Another common Irish form is cén chaoi, literally “what way”; it is especially frequent in Connacht and in expressions such as Cén chaoi a bhfuil tú?

Asking “why?” with cén fáth

Cén fáth literally means “what reason,” but functions as “why.” A clause usually follows with a:

• Cén fáth a bhfuil tú anseo? — Why are you here?
• Cén fáth a ndearna sí é? — Why did she do it?

The grammar inside the following clause determines whether you see lenition, eclipsis, or a special dependent form. The very common a bhfuil should be learned as a unit. In past-tense examples, forms such as a ndearna show the dependent verb and eclipsis.

Asking “how much?” or “how many?” with cé mhéad

Use cé mhéad for both countable quantity (“how many”) and amount or price (“how much”):

• Cé mhéad duine atá ann? — How many people are there?
• Cé mhéad leabhar atá agat? — How many books do you have?
• Cé mhéad atá air? — How much is it?

After cé mhéad, a counted noun is normally singular in form, even when the English translation is plural: leabhar, not leabhair. The following clause is often introduced by a, as in Cé mhéad a chosnaíonn sé? (“How much does it cost?”). With a noun, that noun comes directly after cé mhéad: cé mhéad + singular noun + clause.

A practical map of the following structure

Pattern	Use	Example
question word + identification form	identify a person or thing	Cad é seo? Cé hí sin?
question word + atá	direct link to affirmative tá	Cé atá anseo? Cad atá ann?
cá bhfuil	ask a location with “be”	Cá bhfuil an banc?
question phrase + a bhfuil	clause linked indirectly to tá	Cén fáth a bhfuil sé dúnta?
question word + a + action verb	ask about an action, time, or manner	Cad a cheannaigh tú?
cé mhéad + singular noun	ask a number	Cé mhéad cathaoir atá ann?

Examples in Context

Irish	English	Note
Cad atá ann?	What is it?	Literally asks what is there/in it.
Cad é d’ainm?	What is your name?	Identification pattern with cad é.
Cad a dhéanann tú gach lá?	What do you do every day?	a lenites déanann.
Cé hé sin?	Who is that?	Short identification pattern.
Cé atá ag an doras?	Who is at the door?	cé atá followed by a location.
Cé a rinne an dinnéar?	Who made the dinner?	Asking who performed the action.
Cá bhfuil an siopa?	Where is the shop?	Core location frame.
Cá ndeachaigh siad?	Where did they go?	Irregular dependent past form.
Cathain a thosaíonn an scannán?	When does the film start?	a causes lenition.
Conas atá tú inniu?	How are you today?	Common greeting pattern.
Conas a oibríonn an meaisín seo?	How does this machine work?	Asking about manner.
Cén fáth a bhfuil an doras oscailte?	Why is the door open?	Learn cén fáth a bhfuil together.
Cé mhéad duine atá sa seomra?	How many people are in the room?	The counted noun duine is singular.
Cé mhéad a chosnaíonn sé?	How much does it cost?	No noun is needed when asking the price.

Common Mistakes

Copying English do/does word order

• Wrong: Cad déanann tú?
• Right: Cad a dhéanann tú?
• Why: Irish does not insert an equivalent of English “do.” The linking particle a belongs before the verb here and causes lenition: déanann → dhéanann.

Using tá after cá

• Wrong: Cá tá an siopa?
• Right: Cá bhfuil an siopa?
• Why: Standard Irish uses the dependent form bhfuil in this location question. Memorise Cá bhfuil ...? as a complete frame.

Adding é to every question with cad

• Wrong: Cad é sa bhosca? when you mean “What is in the box?”
• Right: Cad atá sa bhosca?
• Why: Cad é ...? identifies or defines something, as in Cad é sin? To ask what is present or happening, a clause commonly begins directly with atá or with a + verb.

Making the noun plural after cé mhéad

• Wrong: Cé mhéad leabhair atá agat?
• Right: Cé mhéad leabhar atá agat?
• Why: A noun counted after cé mhéad is normally singular in form, although English uses a plural translation.

Treating every a in the same way

• Wrong assumption: the particle a must always produce a visible h.
• Right: Learn Cé atá...?, Cad a dhéanann...?, and Cén fáth a bhfuil...? as distinct patterns.
• Why: Different relative structures trigger different mutations, vowels may hide the effect, and irregular verbs have special dependent forms.

Usage Notes

Cad and céard overlap in meaning. Choice varies with dialect and speaker; learners do not need to avoid either, but should expect to hear both. Likewise, conas is broadly useful, while cén chaoi is particularly characteristic of Connacht. In Ulster speech, you may also hear cad é mar for “how.” For active beginner use, choosing one neutral model—such as cad and conas—keeps your own speech consistent while your listening vocabulary grows.

Irish speech often shortens questions when the situation makes the missing information obvious. Cé? can simply mean “Who?” and Cá háit? can mean “Where?” as a follow-up. Full forms are safer when opening a conversation: Cá bhfuil an leithreas? rather than an isolated Cá?

A question word does not change the normal Irish preference for verb-first clause structure. English speakers often search for a one-to-one translation of “do,” or put the subject before the verb. Instead, listen for reusable chunks: Cé atá..., Cá bhfuil..., Cén fáth a bhfuil..., and Cad a dhéanann....

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

You do not need to master the full mutation system at A1, but later you will learn why the forms differ. Very roughly, when the question word represents the subject or direct object (the person or thing doing the action, or directly affected by it), Irish commonly uses direct relative a, which lenites: Cé a bhris an fhuinneog? (“Who broke the window?”). When the question refers to an adverbial relationship such as place or reason, the indirect relative construction commonly causes eclipsis: an áit a bhfuil sé (“the place where he is”). Irregular verbs have dependent forms such as bhfuil, ndearna, and ndeachaigh.

Tense can also alter the linking form. In past questions, cá may combine historically with the past interrogative particle in forms such as cár: Cár cheannaigh tú é? (“Where did you buy it?”). Actual forms vary with the verb and with dialect, so it is better to learn past and future question models alongside each new tense than to apply one present-tense recipe everywhere.

There are also more idiomatic question expressions built from the same words:

• Cén t-am é? — What time is it?
• Cén sort ...? — What kind of ...?
• Cad faoi ...? — What about ...?
• Cé leis é? — Whose is it? (literally, “With whom is it?”)

Notice cén t-am, where the article-like element in cén produces t- before a masculine noun beginning with a vowel. This belongs to the wider Irish article and mutation system. Recognise it now, but leave the full rules until you study noun phrases in more depth.

Practice Tips

1. Build one frame per question word. Memorise Cad atá...?, Cé atá...?, Cá bhfuil...?, Cathain a...?, Conas a...?, Cén fáth a bhfuil...?, and Cé mhéad...? Then replace only one element at a time.
2. Turn statements into information questions. From Tá an siopa sa bhaile (“The shop is in town”), make Cá bhfuil an siopa? From Tosaíonn an rang ar a naoi, make Cathain a thosaíonn an rang? This trains Irish structure rather than word-for-word translation.
3. Record mutation pairs aloud. Say déanann → cad a dhéanann, tosaíonn → cathain a thosaíonn, and tá → cá bhfuil. Hearing each pair as a rhythm makes the changed forms easier to retrieve in conversation.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Negation and Questions — introduces Irish yes-or-no questions, dependent verb forms, and question particles that help explain these patterns.