Verbal Nouns in Irish

In Brief

The Irish verbal noun (an t-ainm briathartha) names an action: rith “running,” ithe “eating,” foghlaim “learning,” and dul “going.” Irish uses it after ag for an action in progress (Tá mé ag foghlaim), after many prepositions, and in many places where English uses “to + verb” (Ba mhaith liom dul). There is no single reliable formation rule, so learn the verbal noun with every new verb.

Overview

A verbal noun is a noun (a word that names a person, thing, idea, or—in this case—an action) related to a verb. It does not show person or tense by itself. For example, ithe names the activity of eating; other words around it tell you whether someone is eating now, was eating, wants to eat, or is about to eat.

English learners may be tempted to call it either an “-ing form” or an infinitive (the basic “to eat” form). Both comparisons are useful, but neither tells the whole story. Irish commonly uses the same verbal noun where English switches between “eating,” “to eat,” and sometimes a plain verb after a modal: ag ithe “eating,” ba mhaith liom ithe “I would like to eat,” is féidir liom ithe “I can eat.” Translate the whole construction, not the form in isolation.

This is an A2 expansion of the progressive pattern learned earlier: tá + ag + verbal noun. The beginner goal is to recognise common verbal nouns and use them in a few dependable frames. Formation is less predictable than an English “-ing” ending, while objects and pronouns introduce extra grammar at B1 and beyond.

How It Works

One form, several English equivalents

The verbal noun itself does not change for “I,” “you,” or “they.” The surrounding verb or expression carries that information.

Function	Irish pattern	Example	Natural English
Action in progress	bí + subject + ag + verbal noun	Tá sí ag léamh.	She is reading.
Ability	is féidir le + person + verbal noun	Is féidir liom snámh.	I can swim.
Desire	ba mhaith le + person + verbal noun	Ba mhaith linn fanacht.	We would like to stay.
Necessity	caithfidh + subject + verbal noun	Caithfidh sé imeacht.	He must leave.
Purpose	chun/le + verbal noun	chun cabhrú	to help / in order to help
Time or sequence	preposition + verbal noun	roimh imeacht	before leaving

A subject is the person or thing doing or experiencing what the sentence describes. In Tá sí ag léamh, sí is the subject. The action word léamh remains unchanged with another subject: Tá siad ag léamh.

The progressive: ag + verbal noun

Use a form of bí “be” followed by ag and the verbal noun to present an action as ongoing.

Time or sentence type	Irish	English
Present statement	Tá mé ag obair.	I am working.
Present question	An bhfuil tú ag obair?	Are you working?
Present negative	Níl siad ag obair.	They are not working.
Past statement	Bhí sí ag obair.	She was working.
Future statement	Beidh muid ag obair.	We will be working.

Do not confuse this with the habitual present, which describes what normally happens. Tá sé ag rith means “He is running” now or around now; Ritheann sé gach maidin means “He runs every morning.” English also makes this distinction, but Irish builds it with two clearly different structures.

After modal and preference expressions

A modal expression adds an idea such as ability, necessity, or desire. English often uses a plain verb after “can” and “must,” but Irish still uses the verbal noun.

Irish frame	Meaning	Example
is féidir le…	can / be able to	Is féidir léi tiomáint. “She can drive.”
ní féidir le…	cannot	Ní féidir liom fanacht. “I cannot stay.”
ba mhaith le…	would like to	Ba mhaith leo taisteal. “They would like to travel.”
caithfidh…	must / have to	Caithfidh mé dul. “I must go.”

The person may be shown by a prepositional pronoun—a single form combining a preposition and a pronoun—such as liom “with me,” léi “with her,” or leo “with them.” Do not insert an English-style to before the verbal noun: Ba mhaith liom dul, not an invented equivalent of “would like to go.”

After prepositions

Because it behaves as a noun, the verbal noun can follow prepositions (words such as “before,” “after,” and “for”). Common patterns include:

Pattern	Typical meaning	Example
roimh + verbal noun	before doing	roimh imeacht “before leaving”
tar éis + verbal noun	after doing; having just done	tar éis teacht “after arriving / having arrived”
chun + verbal noun	in order to do	chun foghlaim “in order to learn”
le + verbal noun	to do; for doing	rud le déanamh “something to do”
gan + verbal noun	without doing	gan labhairt “without speaking”
ar tí + verbal noun	about to do	ar tí tosú “about to start”

These are constructions to learn as complete chunks. An English infinitive is not automatically translated with one particular Irish preposition. For example, Caithfidh mé imeacht has no preposition, while Tháinig mé chun cabhrú uses chun because it expresses purpose.

How verbal nouns are formed

There is no ending equivalent to English -ing that works for every Irish verb. Some verbal nouns match a familiar short verb form; many use a suffix; others change unpredictably.

Verb	Verbal noun	Meaning	Pattern or reminder
rith	rith	run; running	same visible form
ól	ól	drink; drinking	same visible form
foghlaim	foghlaim	learn; learning	same visible form
ith	ithe	eat; eating	adds -e
léigh	léamh	read; reading	stem and ending change
scríobh	scríobh	write; writing	same visible form
ceannaigh	ceannach	buy; buying	change to -ach
oscail	oscailt	open; opening	adds -t
tiomáin	tiomáint	drive; driving	adds -t with spelling change
péinteáil	péinteáil	paint; painting	-áil form
cabhr(a)igh	cabhrú	help; helping	common -ú type
déan	déanamh	do/make; doing/making	-amh form
feic	feiceáil	see; seeing	irregular-looking form
téigh	dul	go; going	irregular
tar	teacht	come; coming	irregular

These groups help you notice patterns, but they are not safe rules for creating an unknown form. Dictionaries normally give the verbal noun in a verb entry. Record pairs such as léigh—léamh and téigh—dul, preferably inside a phrase: ag léamh, ba mhaith liom dul.

A practical beginner method

For each verb, learn three items together:

1. the dictionary or command form: ith;
2. the verbal noun: ithe;
3. one useful frame: Tá mé ag ithe.

This avoids the common assumption that the form printed as a dictionary headword can always be placed after ag unchanged.

Examples in Context

Irish	English	Note
Tá mé ag foghlaim Gaeilge.	I am learning Irish.	Present progressive
Tá na páistí ag rith sa pháirc.	The children are running in the park.	rith has the same visible form
An bhfuil tú ag ithe?	Are you eating?	Question with an bhfuil
Níl sí ag obair inniu.	She is not working today.	Negative progressive
Bhíomar ag fanacht leis an mbus.	We were waiting for the bus.	Past progressive
Ba mhaith liom dul abhaile.	I would like to go home.	Irregular téigh → dul
Is féidir leis snámh go maith.	He can swim well.	Ability + verbal noun
Caithfidh muid imeacht anois.	We have to leave now.	Necessity; imeacht
Tháinig sí chun cabhrú linn.	She came to help us.	Purpose with chun
Nigh do lámha roimh ithe.	Wash your hands before eating.	After roimh
D’imigh sé gan slán a fhágáil.	He left without saying goodbye.	gan “without”
Tá an scannán ar tí tosú.	The film is about to start.	ar tí + verbal noun
Tá obair le déanamh agam.	I have work to do.	le déanamh expresses something to be done
Tá siad tar éis teacht.	They have just arrived.	Literally built with “after coming”

Common Mistakes

Adding -ing mechanically

• Wrong: ag ith for “eating”
• Right: ag ithe
• Why: Irish verbal nouns have their own forms. The verb ith uses ithe as its verbal noun.

Using the progressive for a habit

• Wrong: Tá mé ag ól caife gach maidin when you simply mean a regular habit
• Right: Ólaim caife gach maidin.
• Why: tá + ag + verbal noun presents an activity as ongoing. The habitual present is normally the better choice for “every morning.” The progressive can be possible if you deliberately mean a temporary current routine, so context matters.

Leaving out ag in an ongoing action

• Wrong: Tá sí léamh.
• Right: Tá sí ag léamh.
• Why: The standard progressive frame requires ag before the verbal noun.

Putting ag before every infinitive-like meaning

• Wrong: Ba mhaith liom ag dul abhaile.
• Right: Ba mhaith liom dul abhaile.
• Why: ag belongs to the progressive construction. After ba mhaith liom, the verbal noun follows directly.

Inventing a form from the dictionary headword

• Wrong: Tá sé ag téigh.
• Right: Tá sé ag dul.
• Why: téigh has the irregular verbal noun dul. Learn frequent irregular pairs as vocabulary.

Translating every English “to” as chun

• Wrong: Caithfidh mé chun imeacht.
• Right: Caithfidh mé imeacht.
• Why: chun commonly marks purpose, as in Tháinig mé chun cabhrú. A modal such as caithfidh takes the verbal noun directly.

Usage Notes

Irish spelling and pronunciation vary by dialect, and you may encounter regional verbal-noun forms or preferences. At A2, use the standard form supplied by your course or dictionary, but recognise that a different form in natural speech is not automatically an error.

A verbal noun can become established as an ordinary noun. Obair, for example, can refer to “work” as an activity or to work more generally. Context and the words around the form matter. Capitalisation does not mark a special verb form, and the verbal noun has no tense of its own: Tá mé ag léamh, Bhí mé ag léamh, and Beidh mé ag léamh all retain léamh while the form of bí changes.

Be careful when translating. English “I like reading” names an activity, while “I am reading” describes an action in progress. Both involve an English -ing form, but Irish chooses its construction according to the whole meaning, not according to the English ending alone.

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

You do not need to master the following details at A2, but you will meet them often as your Irish develops.

Objects can affect the construction

An object is the person or thing directly affected by an action. In Tá mé ag léamh an leabhair “I am reading the book,” the book is the object. After a verbal noun, a definite noun object traditionally appears in the genitive case (a form often used for “of” relationships and possession): leabhar becomes an leabhair. Modern usage varies, but this is an important standard pattern.

Object pronouns use special constructions with á. The initial change on the verbal noun helps show whether “it” is masculine, feminine, or plural:

Irish	Meaning	What happens
Tá sé á dhéanamh.	He is doing it.	masculine singular object; lenition
Tá sí á hoscailt.	She is opening it.	feminine singular object before a vowel; h-
Tá muid á bhfoghlaim.	We are learning them.	plural object; eclipsis

This belongs to the later topic “Verbal Noun with Object.” For now, learn whole examples rather than trying to generate every mutation from memory.

The doer may be expressed in a noun-like phrase

After some prepositional expressions, Irish can name the doer with forms such as dom, duit, and dó. In tar éis dom an obair a dhéanamh, the natural English meaning is “after I had done the work” or “after doing the work.” Literally matching each word to English will be misleading.

Perfect and prospective meanings

Irish builds several aspectual meanings—ways of viewing an action—with verbal-noun phrases:

• Tá mé tar éis ithe. — I have just eaten.
• Bhí sí tar éis imeacht. — She had left / had just left.
• Táimid ar tí tosú. — We are about to start.

These are not new verbal-noun tenses. The verbal noun remains unchanged; the surrounding construction supplies the time and viewpoint.

Purpose is not the same as a simple complement

Compare:

• Caithfidh mé dul. — I must go.
• Chuaigh mé ann chun labhairt léi. — I went there to speak to her.

The first verbal noun completes the meaning of “must.” The second explains the purpose of going. This distinction helps you decide when chun is appropriate instead of copying English “to.”

Practice Tips

1. Build verb cards in pairs. Put léigh → léamh, ith → ithe, and téigh → dul on the same card, then add a short phrase such as ag léamh or caithfidh mé dul.
2. Sort examples by frame. Make four small lists headed ag, ba mhaith liom, caithfidh mé, and chun. Reuse one verbal noun across several frames so that you learn the construction rather than one memorised sentence.
3. Listen for the word before the action. In speech, notice whether a verbal noun follows ag, a modal expression, or a preposition. Pause and predict the form before checking a transcript or dictionary.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Progressive Tense (Ag + Verbal Noun) — introduces the core tá + ag + verbal noun pattern.
• Next step: Verbal Noun with Object — explains noun objects, genitive forms, and á with object pronouns.