The
Past Tense - Regular Verbs
As you
discovered in 
a continuous action in the past is expressed
by using the past tense of the verb To Be with the present
participle :
| Bha e a' cluich anns a' phàirc fad an là
an-dè - He was playing in the park all day yesterday |
In contrast, you must use the
past tense (or finite) of a verb to express a single completed action in the past.
Fortunately, this corresponds very closely in meaning with the finite verb in English.
Whenever
possible lenite the root of the verb to get the independent form of the past tense.
Verbs beginning with a vowel (and lenited fh - which is silent) are
preceded by an initial dh'.
The dependent form of the verb = do + independent form :
| Verbal Noun |
Root |
Independent * |
Dependent |
| bualadh - hitting |
buail |
bhuail |
do bhuail |
| fàgail - leaving |
fàg |
dh'fhàg |
do dh'fhàg |
| leughadh - reading |
leugh |
leugh |
do leugh |
| ruith - running |
ruith |
ruith |
do ruith |
| seasamh - standing |
seas |
sheas |
do sheas |
| sgrìobhadh -writing |
sgrìobh |
sgrìobh |
do sgrìobh |
| òl - drinking |
òl |
dh'òl |
do dh'òl |
| togail - lifting / building |
tog |
thog |
do thog |
As with the verb To Be
add either Cha, An / Am or Nach to the
dependent form to get the negative and interrogatives.
* Grammar: Historically the Independent and Dependent were identical.
However, in the Independent do was in an unstressed initial position and
was subsequently lost but its leniting influence remains.
Example
Uses : 
| Bhuail iad - They hit |
| Cha do bhuail iad - They didn't hit |
| An do bhuail iad? - Did they hit? |
| Nach do bhuail iad? - Didn't they hit? |
|
| Dh'fhàg iad - They left |
| Cha do dh'fhàg iad - They didn't leave |
| An do dh'fhàg iad? - Did they leave? |
| Nach do dh'fhàg iad? - Didn't they leave? |
|
| Leugh iad - They read |
| Cha do leugh iad - They didn't read |
| An do leugh iad? - Did they read? |
| Nach do leugh iad? - Didn't they read? |
|
| Ruith iad - They ran |
| Cha do ruith iad - They didn't run |
| An do ruith iad? - Did they run? |
| Nach do ruith iad? - Didn't they run? |
|
| Sheas iad - They stood |
| Cha do sheas iad - They didn't stand |
| An do sheas iad? - Did they stand? |
| Nach do sheas iad? - Didn't they stand? |
|
| Sgrìobh iad - They wrote |
| Cha do sgrìobh iad - They didn't write |
| An do sgrìobh iad? - Did they write? |
| Nach do sgrìobh iad? - Didn't they write? |
|
| Thog iad - They lifted |
| Cha do thog iad - They didn't lift |
| An do thog iad? - Did they lift? |
| Nach do thog iad? - Didn't they lift? |
|
| Dh'òl iad - They drank |
| Cha do dh'òl iad - They didn't
drink |
| An do dh'òl iad? - Did they drink? |
| Nach do dh'òl iad? - Didn't they drink? |
|
With the Dependent Clause
The pattern is the same as the verb To Be (see 
) :
| Tha e ag ràdh gun do bhuail iad e -
He says that they hit him |
| Tha e ag ràdh nach do bhuail iad e - He
says that they didn't hit him |
| Tha e ag ràdh gun do dh'fhàg iad -
He says that they left |
| Tha e ag ràdh nach do dh'fhàg iad - He
says that they didn't leave |
The Relative Verb
Some examples are given below.
The pattern is the same as the verb To Be (see ) :
| 'S iadsan a bhuail mi - It's they who hit
me |
| 'S iadsan nach do bhuail mi - It's they
who didn't hit me |
With Interogative Pronouns
Some examples are given below.
The pattern is the same as the verb To Be (see ) :
| Dè leugh thu anns an sgoil an diugh? -
What did you read in school today? |
| Cò sgrìobh an litir? - Who wrote the
letter? |
| Carson a bhuail thu am balach? - Why did
you hit the boy? |
| Ciamar a sheas i? - How did she stand? |
| Cuin a dh'fhàg thu? - When did you leave? |
| Càit an do thog iad an taigh? - Where did
they build the house? |
With Conjunctions
Some examples are given below.
The pattern is the same as the verb To Be (see 
) :
| Sgrìobh mi litir mus do dh'fhàg mi - I
wrote a letter before I left |
| Bha e dorch nuair a bhuail an càr am
balach - It was dark when the car hit the boy |
| Leugh mi am pàipear-naidheachd fhads a
dh'ith mi dìnnear - I read the paper while I ate dinner |
| Mur do bhuail thusa am balach, cò bhuail?
- If you didn't hit the boy, who did (hit)? |
Saying Yes and No
The pattern is the same for the verb To Be. You need to use the positive
or negative forms of the verb in the Past Tense :
| An do bhuail iad an cù ? - Did they hit
the dog? |
Bhuail - Yes |
Cha do bhuail - No |
| Nach do sheas iad aig an doras? - Didn't
they stand at the door? |
Sheas - Yes |
Cha do sheas - No |
NEW WORDS
Adjectives
| sàmhach - quiet |
|
Nouns
| boireannach (m) - woman |
coire (m) - kettle, corry |
| leanabh (m) - baby |
pàipear-naidheachd (m) - newspaper |
| briosgaid (f) - biscuit |
dèideag (f) - toy, bauble |
| leithid (f) - like, type |
staidhre (f) - stair |
Verbs
| bris, briseadh - break |
caidil, cadal - sleep |
| freagair, freagairt - answer |
goil, goil - boil, seethe |
| pòs, pòsadh (aig) - marry |
saoil, saoilsinn (air) - think (about) |
| tòisich, tòiseachadh (air) - start (to) |
tuit, tuiteam - fall |
Miscellany
| fad an là - all day |
leithid de rud - such a thing |
EXERCISE 1 Translate into English
| 1.Dh'fhàg an toit a h-uile rud anns an taigh salach |
2.An do chuir thu bainne anns a' chopan? Chuir |
| 3.Cò bhris an uinneag agam? 'S ise a bhris i |
4.Cha do dh'fhuirich e fada nuair a thill sinn |
| 5.Nach do cheannaich iad càr ùr? Cheannaich |
6.Chluich ar leanabh leis an dèideig fad an là |
| 7.Chuir mi an t-uisge anns a' choire agus ghoil mi e |
8.Dh'ionnsaich mi Gàidhlig nuair a bha mi nam bhalach |
| 9.Shaoil mi gum b' aithne dhomh e |
10.Can e mar a sgrìobh iad e |
EXERCISE 2 Translate into Gàidhlig
| 1.Did you buy anything in the shop? No |
2.He put his hand on her hand |
| 3.I broke my leg when I fell down the stairs |
4.My sister returned from her holiday last night |
| 5.Did she answer the question correctly? Yes |
6.I ate the biscuit before I drank the milk |
| 7.Who moved my chair away from the fire? It's him that moved it |
8.Why did you marry that man / that woman? |
| 9.I wrote a long letter when I returned home |
10.They played quietly while she slept |
ANSWERS - EXERCISE 1
| 1.The smoke left everything in the house dirty |
2.Did you put (some) milk in the cup? Yes |
| 3.Who broke my window? She broke it |
4.He didn't stay long when we returned |
| 5.Didn't they buy a new car? Yes |
6.Our baby played with the toy all day |
| 7.I put the water in the kettle and I boiled it |
8.I learned Gàidhlig when I was a boy |
| 9.I thought that I knew him |
10.Say it as they wrote it |
ANSWERS - EXERCISE 2
| 1.An do cheannaich sibh càil anns a' bhùth? Cha do cheannaich |
2.Chuir e a làmh-san air a làimh-se |
| 3.Bhris mi mo chas nuair a thuit mi sìos na staidhrichean |
4.Thill mo phiuthar bhon saor-là aice a-raoir |
| 5.An do fhreagair i a' cheist gu ceart? Fhreagair |
6.Dh'ith mi a' bhriosgaid mun do dh'òl mi am bainne |
| 7.Cò ghluais mo chathair air falbh bhon teine? 'S esan a ghluais
i |
8a.Carson a phòs thu am fear sin?
8b.Carson a phòs thu an tè sin? |
| 9.Sgrìobh mi litir fhada nuair a thill mi dhachaigh |
10.Chluich iad gu sàmhach fhads a chaidil i |
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