scamall

Irish

scamaill

Etymology

From a Hiberno-Latin diminutive of Latin squama (“animal scale”). The semantic evolution would be something like "scale" > "film, membrane" (whence also the meaning "webbing") > "eye occlusion" > "cloud".

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsˠkamˠəl̪ˠ/

Noun

scamall m (genitive singular scamaill, nominative plural scamaill)

1. (weather) cloud

   Synonym: néal

2. web (between toes)

Declension

Declension of scamall (first declension)

bare forms case singular plural nominative scamall scamaill vocative a scamaill a scamalla genitive scamaill scamall dative scamall scamaill forms with the definite article case singular plural nominative an scamall na scamaill genitive an scamaill na scamall dative leis an scamall don scamall leis na scamaill

Derived terms

• scamallach (“cloudy, clouded; webbed, palmate”, adjective)
• scamallacht f (“cloudiness”)
• scamallach m (“web-footed bird, palmiped”)
• scamallaigh (“cloud (over), mist, obscure”, verb)

Further reading

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