obair

Irish

Etymology

From Old Irish opar, from Latin opera, from Proto-Indo-European *h₃ep- (“to work”).

Pronunciation

• (Munster, Connacht) IPA^(key): /ˈɔbˠəɾʲ/
• (Ulster) IPA^(key): /ˈʌbˠəɾʲ/, /ˈʊbˠəɾʲ/ (as if spelled ubair)

Noun

obair f (genitive singular oibre, nominative plural oibreacha)

1. verbal noun of oibrigh
2. work, labor

   Molann an obair an saor. (proverb)

   A man may be judged by his achievements.

   (literally, “The work commends the craftsman.”)

3. job, task
4. business, employment
5. handiwork

Declension

Declension of obair

Second declension

Bare forms Case Singular Plural Nominative obair oibreacha Vocative a obair a oibreacha Genitive oibre oibreacha Dative obair oibreacha

Forms with the definite article Case Singular Plural Nominative an obair na hoibreacha Genitive na hoibre na n-oibreacha Dative leis an obair don obair leis na hoibreacha

Derived terms

• athobair (“repetition of work”)
• bileog oibre (“worksheet”)
• binse oibre (“work-bench”)
• cailín oibre (“work-girl”)
• dea-obair (“good work; good deed”)
• eitic oibre (“work ethic”)
• grúpobair (“group-work”)
• obair adhmaid (“woodwork”)
• obair chloiche (“stonework, masonry”)
• obair ealaíne (“work of art”)
• obair ghloine (“glasswork”)
• obair láimhe (“handiwork”)
• obair lása (“lacework”)
• obair leathair (“leatherwork”)
• obair phaistí
• obair phíosála (“patchwork”)
• obair shnáthaide (“stitchery, needlework”)
• obair thógála (“construction work”)
• obair tí (“housework”)
• oibreacha Dé (“the works of God”)
• oibreacha poiblí (“public works”)
• scríob-obair (“scratch-work”)

 

Mutation

Irish mutation
Radical	Eclipsis	with h-prothesis	with t-prothesis
obair	n-obair	hobair	not applicable
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

Further reading

• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “obair”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
• de Bhaldraithe, Tomás (1959) “obair”, in English-Irish Dictionary, An Gúm
• “obair”, in New English-Irish Dictionary, Foras na Gaeilge, 2013-2024

Scottish Gaelic

Etymology

From Old Irish opar, from Latin opera, from Proto-Indo-European *h₃ep- (“to work”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /opəɾʲ/

Noun

obair f (genitive singular obrach or oibre, plural obraichean)

1. work, job
2. employment

   Synonyms: cosnadh, dreuchd

Derived terms

• an-obair (“idle work; trifle”)
• ath-obair (“work done again”)
• blàth-obair (“embroidery, variegated needlework”)
• bùth-obrach (“workshop”)
• comh-obair (“joint work, the same employment”)
• deagh-obair (“good work; good deed”)
• droch-obair (“bad work; evil doing, crime; bad job”)
• duadh-obair (“hard labour; handicraft”)
• grinn-obair (“mechanics; mechanism”)
• ionad-obrach (“jobcentre”)
• lìon-obair (“net-work; chequer-work”)
• main-obair (“handiwork”)
• neach-obrach (“worker; employee”)
• obair-cheàrdach (“smithy-work”)
• obair-cheàrdail (“engine, machinery, work done by machinery”)
• obair-chrèadha (“porcelain, china-work, earthenware, delf, pottery”)
• obair-chumta (“task”)
• obair-dachaigh (“homework”)
• obair-dhachaidh
• obair-dhìon (“rampart, bulwark”)
• obair-ghloine (“glass-work”)
• obair-ghréis (“embroidery”)
• obair-iarainn (“foundry”)
• obair-inntinn (“theory”)
• obair-làimhe (“handiwork; work done by hand in contradistinction to that done by machinery”)
• obair-lann (“laboratory”)
• obair-latha (“day's work”)
• obair-lìonain, obair-lìn (“network, chequer-work”)
• obair-shlabhraidh (“chain-work”)
• obair-taighe (“housework”)
• obraiche (“worker, workman, labourer”)
• taigh-oibre (“workshop; factory”)

 

Related terms

• obraich (“work, labor; operate”, verb)

Mutation

Scottish Gaelic mutation
Radical	Eclipsis	with h-prothesis	with t-prothesis
obair	n-obair	h-obair	t-obair
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

Further reading

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