Published Date:
18 May 2008
Glè: very
Pronounced glay. Although the word is short and simple, it changes the words following it. Very good is glè mhath (glay vah). Although the Gaelic for good is math – pronounced mah – when the word follows glè it changes to mhath – pronounced vah. The expression glè math is rather like the word 'really' in English in that the tone of voice can completely alter the meaning. A Russian writer has said that the essence of being a true English speaker is being able to say 'really' with 16 different tones of voice and mean something different each time. Similarly, glè math either means really good, or 'a bit rubbish actually' depending on your tone.
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Last Updated:
17 May 2008 8:41 PM
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Source:
Scotland On Sunday
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Location:
Scotland
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Related Topics:
Gaelic language