uisce

Irish

Alternative forms

• uisge (obsolete)

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *wed-

Proto-Indo-European *-r̥

Proto-Indo-European *wódr̥der.

Proto-Celtic *udenskyos

Old Irish uisce

Irish uisce

From Old Irish uisce, from Proto-Celtic *udenskyos, from Proto-Indo-European *wódr̥, *udéns.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈiʃcə/, [ˈiʃcɪ]

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

uisce m (genitive singular uisce, nominative plural uiscí)

1. water

   Synonym: dobhar

   • 2015 [2014], Will Collins, translated by Proinsias Mac a' Bhaird, edited by Maura McHugh, Amhrán na Mara (fiction; paperback), Kilkenny, County Kilkenny, Howth, Dublin: Cartoon Saloon; Coiscéim, translation of Song of the Sea (in English), →ISBN, page 2:

     Tá rónta ag bogadaíl ar bharr an uisce.

     [original: Seals bob up and down in the water.]

Declension

Declension of uisce (fourth declension)

bare forms case singular plural nominative uisce uiscí vocative a uisce a uiscí genitive uisce uiscí dative uisce uiscí forms with the definite article case singular plural nominative an t-uisce na huiscí genitive an uisce na n-uiscí dative leis an uisce don uisce leis na huiscí

Derived terms

• aimsitheoir uisce
• buabhall uisce
• clóiséad uisce
• eireaball capaill uisce
• fíoruisce
• Iompróir an Uisce
• leith uisce
• leithreas uisce
• madra uisce
• mealbhacán uisce
• píbín uisce
• poc uisce
• póló uisce
• príomhphíobán uisce
• scuab eich uisce
• seaicéad uisce
• timthriall an uisce
• túr uisce
• uisce beatha
• uisce crua
• uisce sinséir
• uisce-obach
• uiscechlár
• uiscedhíonach
• uisceshaothrú
• uiscigh

Descendants

• → English: whiskey

Mutation

Mutated forms of uisce

radical	eclipsis	with h-prothesis	with t-prothesis
uisce	n-uisce	huisce	t-uisce

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Modern Irish.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

Further reading

• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “uisce”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
• de Bhaldraithe, Tomás (1959) “uisce”, in English-Irish Dictionary, An Gúm
• “uisce”, in New English-Irish Dictionary, Foras na Gaeilge, 2013-2025

Old Irish

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *wed-

Proto-Indo-European *-r̥

Proto-Indo-European *wódr̥der.

Proto-Celtic *udenskyos

Old Irish uisce

From Proto-Celtic *udenskyos, from Proto-Indo-European *wódr, *udéns.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈusʲkʲe]

Noun

uisce m

1. water

   Synonym: dobur

Inflection

Masculine io-stem
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	uisce	uisceL	uisciL
Vocative	uisci	uisceL	uisciu
Accusative	uisceN	uisceL	uisciuH
Genitive	uisciL	uisceL	uisceN
Dative	uisciuL	uiscib	uiscib
Initial mutations of a following adjective: H = triggers aspiration L = triggers lenition N = triggers nasalization

Derived terms

• bodar-uisce m (literally “deaf water”)
• fíruisce m (“spring-water”)
• uisce bruithe m (“broth”)
• uisce coisrectha m (“holy water”)
• uisce comnaidi m (“stagnant water”)
• uisce eorna m (“barley water”)
• uisce ernaigde m (“holy water”)
• uisce ferthana m (“rain water”)
• uisce imill m (literally “water of the edge”)
• uisce innalta m (“water for washing”)
• uisce innlaid m (“water for washing”)
• uisce lám m (“hand-washing water”)
• uisce mela m (“honey water”)
• uisce móna m (“bog water”)
• uisce nádúrtha m (“plain water”)
• uisce oiffrind m (“water for mass”)
• uisce óil m (“drinking water”)
• uisce retha m (“running water”)
• uisce rosa m (“rose water”)
• uisce saillte m (“salt water”)
• uisce tibrat m (“well water”)
• uisceán m (“pool”)
• uiscech (“watery”, adjective)
• uisce-lestar (“water-pot”)
• uiscemail (“watery; damp”, adjective)
• uiscemlacht f (“wateriness, damp”)
• uiscide (“watery, aqueous”, adjective)

Descendants

• Irish: uisce, uisge (obsolete)
  • → English: whiskey
• Manx: ushtey
• Scottish Gaelic: uisge
  • → English: whisky

Mutation

Mutation of uisce

radical	lenition	nasalization
uisce (pronounced with /h/ in h-prothesis environments)	unchanged	n-uisce

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in Old Irish.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

Further reading

• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “uisce”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language