gabhal

Irish

FWOTD – 16 June 2024

Etymology

From Old Irish gabul (“fork, forked branch”).

Pronunciation

• (Munster) IPA^(key): /ɡɑul̪ˠ/
• (Connacht) IPA^(key): /ˈɡɑuəlˠ/, /ˈɡɑuəl̪ˠ/
• (Ulster) IPA^(key): /ɡoːlˠ/, /ɡoːl̪ˠ/

Noun

gabhal m (genitive singular gabhail, nominative plural gabhail)

1. fork (of a road)
2. branch
3. split
4. crotch
   • 1906, E. C. Quiggin, A Dialect of Donegal (overall work in English), § 40, page 18:

     vɛ:r̥ə m′ə kick sə ꬶo:l ꬶyd′, said by boys

     [Bhéarfaidh mé cic sa ghabhal dhuit]

     I’m going to kick you in the crotch.

5. udder, bag (of a cow)
   • 1906, E. C. Quiggin, A Dialect of Donegal (overall work in English), § 40, page 18:

     tα: go:l mαiç bwæN′ə ɛg′ ə wɔ: ʃïn′

     [Tá gabhal maith bainne ag an bhó sin]

     That cow has a good bag of milk.

6. (cycling) bicycle fork
7. (chess) fork

Declension

Declension of gabhal (first declension)

bare forms singular plural nominative gabhal gabhail vocative a ghabhail a ghabhala genitive gabhail gabhal dative gabhal gabhail forms with the definite article singular plural nominative an gabhal na gabhail genitive an ghabhail na ngabhal dative leis an ngabhal don ghabhal leis na gabhail

Derived terms

• gabhlán
• gabhlóg
• i ngabhal a chéile

Mutation

Mutated forms of gabhal

radical	lenition	eclipsis
gabhal	ghabhal	ngabhal

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) “gabhal”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN