Gender of Nouns in Irish

Overview

Every noun in Irish is either masculine (firinscneach) or feminine (baininscneach). There is no neuter gender. At the A1 level, learning noun gender is important because it controls how the definite article behaves, how adjectives agree, and which pronoun (sé or sí) replaces the noun.

The good news is that Irish noun gender follows some helpful patterns. Most nouns ending in a broad consonant (one preceded by a, o, or u) are masculine, while nouns ending in a slender consonant (preceded by e or i), or in -óg or -eog, tend to be feminine. However, there are exceptions, so it is best to learn the gender of each noun as you learn the word itself.

Gender is not just an abstract category — it has visible effects throughout the language. A feminine noun after an (the) triggers lenition, while a masculine noun does not. Adjectives following a feminine noun are also lenited. These patterns make gender one of the most practically important grammar points in Irish.

How It Works

General gender patterns

Pattern	Gender	Examples
Broad consonant ending (a/o/u + consonant)	Usually masculine	fear (man), bord (table), bus (bus)
Slender consonant ending (e/i + consonant)	Usually feminine	sail (willow), sráid (street), obair (work)
Ending in -óg	Feminine	bróg (shoe), fuinneog (window)
Ending in -eog	Feminine	spideog (robin)
Ending in -acht/-íocht	Feminine	filíocht (poetry), Gaeltacht
Countries and languages	Mostly feminine	an Fhrainc (France), an Ghaeilge (Irish)
Verbal nouns	Usually masculine	an rith (the running)

Effects of gender

Feature	Masculine	Feminine
After an (nom.)	no mutation: an fear	lenition: an bhean
Adjective agreement	no mutation: fear mór	lenition: bean mhór
Pronoun	sé	sí
an + s-initial	an sagart	an tsúil (t before s)
an + vowel	an **t-**éan	an oíche (no change)

Examples in Context

Irish	English	Note
an fear (m)	the man	Masculine — no mutation
an bhean (f)	the woman	Feminine — lenition
an bord (m)	the table	Masculine — no mutation
an fhuinneog (f)	the window	Feminine — lenition (fh silent)
fear mór	a big man	Adjective unchanged
bean mhór	a big woman	Adjective lenited
Tá sé ar an mbord.	It is on the table.	sé for masculine bord
Tá sí dúnta.	It is closed.	sí for feminine fuinneog
an Ghaeilge (f)	the Irish language	Language — feminine
an leabhar (m)	the book	Masculine — no mutation

Common Mistakes

Assuming gender matches English logic

• Wrong: Assuming "table" is feminine because it seems "inanimate"
• Right: bord is masculine — gender is grammatical, not logical
• Why: Irish gender is based on word form (ending), not meaning. Always check the dictionary.

Forgetting to lenite adjectives after feminine nouns

• Wrong: bean mór
• Right: bean mhór
• Why: Adjectives must agree with the gender of the noun. After a feminine singular noun, the adjective is lenited.

Using the wrong pronoun for inanimate objects

• Wrong: Tá sé dúnta (referring to fuinneog)
• Right: Tá sí dúnta (fuinneog is feminine)
• Why: Even for objects, the pronoun must match the noun's grammatical gender.

Practice Tips

1. Every time you learn a new noun, write it with its article: "an fear (m)" or "an bhean (f)." The article form itself tells you the gender — if the noun is lenited after an, it is feminine.
2. Practice pairing common nouns with the adjective mór (big). Say "fear mór" and "bean mhór" until the pattern of leniting after feminine nouns becomes automatic.
3. Group nouns by their endings and gender to reinforce the patterns: -óg words, -acht words, broad-ending words, slender-ending words.

Related Concepts

• Basic Adjectives — adjective agreement depends on noun gender
• Plural Formation — plural forms interact with gender patterns
• The Genitive Case — case changes differ by gender