Past Tense TO BE

The adjective uabhasach - terrible / **awful** is often used to convey the meaning **very** when used with another adjective :
Tha e uabhasach mòr - He is awfully big	Tha e uabhasach fliuch - It is terribly wet

Similarly the words **glè - very** and ro - too are used with adjectives to emphasise qualities. The two words **glè** and ro lenite* the following adjective whenever possible :
Tha iad glè mhòr - They are very big	Tha e ro fhuar - It is too cold

* As you can see lenition means the introduction of a letter h after the first letter of the adjective. This always results in a slight change in sound at the beginning of the adjective.

However, words beginning with l, n, r, sg, sp, st or a vowel cannot be lenited in their spelling. L, n and r are affected, but only in their pronunciation.

Another useful little word is **cho - so**. It is used like **glè and ro**, but luckily you do not have to worry about leniting the next word :
Tha thu cho snog - You are so nice

**Adjectives**
àrd - tall, high	uabhasach - terrible, awful, very

**Adverbs**
cho - so	glè - very
ro - too, excessively

**Conjunctions**
ach - but	agus - and

**EXERCISE 1 Translate into English**
1.Tha am fear glè thrang	2.Tha an là glè fhliuch
3.Nach eil am fear àrd?	4.A bheil i ro fhuar?
5.A bheil thu uabhasach sgìth?	6.Tha e ro bheag
7.Tha sin uabhasach	8.Tha mi fuar agus fliuch

**EXERCISE 2 Translate into Gàidhlig**
1.I am so cold	2.The man is very lazy
3.Isn't she awful?	4.We are too tired
5.They're not very wet	6.He isn't too pleased
7.She isn't wet but she is cold	8.They're not so nice

The independent form is **Bha**, the dependent form is **Robh**. Like the present tense these are used to provide the four distinct forms of the past tense of the verb **To Be**:
Bha for positive statements: Bha e fuar - It was cold
Cha robh for negative statements: Cha robh e fuar - It was not cold
An robh? for asking a question (interrogative): An robh e fuar? - Was it cold?
Nach robh? for a negative question (negative interrogative): Nach robh e fuar? - Wasn't it cold?

Saying Yes and No
Gàidhlig has no single word for yes or no. The positive or negative forms of the verb need to be used in responding to a question.

In the present tense:
A bheil thu fliuch? - Are you wet?	Chan eil - No	Tha - Yes
Nach eil iad àrd - Aren't they tall?	Chan eil - No	Tha - Yes

In the past tense:
An robh sibh trang? - Were you busy?	Cha robh - No	Bha - Yes
Nach robh i leisg? - Wasn't she lazy?	Cha robh - No	Bha - Yes

**EXERCISE 3 Translate into English**
1.Bha iad glè thoilichte	2.Cha robh i ro shnog
3.An robh iad sgìth? Cha robh	4.A bheil i tioram? Tha
5.Nach robh am fear leisg?	6.Bha iad trang agus toilichte
7.Bha an là fliuch ach blàth	8.An robh thu blàth? Bha
9.Nach eil iad snog? Chan eil

**EXERCISE 4 Translate into Gàidhlig**
1.The man wasn't tired	2.Aren't you warm? No
3.Wasn't she very wet? Yes	4.Am I not nice? Yes
5.She wasn't busy, she is lazy	6.He was too tall
7.We were very pleased	8.The day wasn't so warm
9.They weren't terribly pleased, were they? No

**ANSWERS EXERCISE 1**
1.The man is very busy	2.The day is very wet
3.Isn't the man tall?	4.Is it/she too cold?
5.Are you terribly tired?	6.It/he is too small
7.That's awful	8.I am cold and wet

**ANSWERS EXERCISE 2**
1.Tha mi cho fuar	2.Tha am fear glè leisg
3.Nach eil i uabhasach?	4.Tha sinn ro sgìth
5.Chan eil iad glè fhliuch	6.Chan eil e cho toilichte
7.Chan eil i fliuch, ach tha i fuar	8.Chan eil iad cho snog

**ANSWERS EXERCISE 3**
1.They were very pleased	2.She wasn't too nice
3.Were they tired? No	4.Is it/she dry? Yes
5.Wasn't the man lazy?	6.They were busy and content
7.The day was wet but warm	8.Were you warm? Yes
9.Aren't they nice? No

**ANSWERS EXERCISE 4**
1.Cha robh am fear sgìth	2.Nach eil thu/sibh blàth? Chan eil
3.Nach robh i glè fhliuch? Bha	4.Nach eil mi snog? Tha
5.Cha robh i trang, tha i leisg	6.Bha e ro àrd
7.Bha sinn glè thoilichte	8.Cha robh an là cho blàth
9.Cha robh iad uabhasach toilichte, an robh? Cha robh

dm©lelland - Faodar na leasanan seo ath-riochdachadh le aithneachadh dhan ùghdar
dm©lelland - These lessons may be reproduced with credit to the author