Present tenseGetting started

How to put a verb into the present tense

To put a verb into the present tense, an understanding of the different types of verbs in Irish is needed.

Long, short and syncopated verbs

Have a look at the rules below on long, short and syncopated verbs in Irish, then move to the next page where the present tense is explained.

• a short verb has one syllable - for example cuir, glan, bris
• a long verb has more than one syllable (ends with –igh / –aigh), for example éirigh, ceannaigh
• a syncopated verb has more than one syllable (does not end with –igh / –aigh), for example muscail, imir, freastail, oscail

Here is a short version of the rules.

• short - one syllable
• long - more than one syllable
• syncopated - more than one syllable, not ending with –igh / –aigh

Can you decide if the following verbs are short, long or syncopated?