Non-dative Prepositions

Non-Dative Prepositions

1. Simple Prepositions Taking the Genitive Case of Nouns

There are a few one word prepositions which require the genitive case of nouns :
bhàrr / far - from off, off	chun / thun - to, towards
rè - during	thar - over
tre - by means of, through	trìd - through

Some Examples :
bhàrr a' bhalla - from off the wall
chun na coinneimhe - to the meeting
rè an t-samhraidh ‡ - during the summer
thar an rathaid - over the road
tre sgrìobhaidh ‡ - by means of writing
trìd na glainne - through the glass

‡ rè + an and tre + an frequently combine to give rèn and tren respectively

2. Compound Prepositions Taking the Genitive Case of Nouns

These are all made up of two elements; a simple dative preposition followed by a noun. The most common are :
a dh'aindeoin - despite	a dh'ionnsaigh - towards
air beulaibh - in front (of)	air cùlaibh / air chùl - behind
air feadh - throughout	air muin - atop, on top (of)
air sgàth - for the sake (of), because (of)	air son / airson - for, for the sake (of)
am broinn - within, inside	am measg - among
an aghaidh - against	an àite - instead (of), in place (of)
an comhair - in the direction (of)	an dèidh / às dèidh - after
an làthair - in the presence (of)	a rèir - according to
às aonais - without	às leth - on behalf (of)
a thaobh - regarding, with regard to	fa chomhair - in front (of) / before (place)
mu choinneimh / mu choinneamh - opposite	mu dhèidhinn - concerning
mun cuairt - around	mu thimcheall - around, aroundabout
os cionn - above, over	ri taobh - beside

Some Examples :
a dh'aindeoin do chomhairle - despite your advice	a dh'ionnsaigh a' bhaile - toward the town
air beulaibh a' chaisteil - in front of the castle	air chùl an taighe - behind the house
air feadh an t-saoghail - throughout the world	air muin nan leabhraichean - on top of the books
air sgàth an t-solais - because of the light	airson a' bhalaich ‡ - for the boy's sake
am broinn a' phasgain - inside the parcel	am measg nan daoine - among the men
an aghaidh na gaoithe - against the wind	an àite mo mhàthar - instead of my mother
an comhair - see section below	an dèidh na dìnnearach - after the dinner
an làthair a' bhanaltraim - in the presence of the nurse	a rèir an t-sagairt - according to the priest
às aonais airgid - without money	às leth mo pheathar - on behalf of my sister
a thaobh an airgid - regarding the money	fa chomhair a' mhinisteir - before the minister
mu choinneimh na h-eaglaise - opposite the church	mu dheidhinn na cùise - concerning the matter
mun cuairt na pàirce - around the park	mu thimcheall na sgoile - around the school
os cionn na craoibhe - above the tree	ri taobh an dorais - beside the door

‡ In spoken Gàidhlig and often in the written language airson behaves like a simple dative preposition. There is also a growing tendency for some or all these prepositions to be followed by the dative noun; and by the nominative noun when the noun is indefinite.

The preposition **an comhair** occurs only in a small number of related idioms :
an comhair a' chùil - backward (lit. in the direction of the back)	Thuit mi an comhair mo chùil - I fell backward Thuit thu an comhair do chùil - You fell backward Thuit e an comhair a chùil - He fell backward Thuit i an comhair a cùil - She fell backward &c
an comhair a' chinn - headlong (lit. in the direction of the head)	Thuit mi an comhair mo chinn - I fell headlong Thuit thu an comhair do chinn - You fell headlong Thuit e an comhair a chinn - He fell headlong Thuit i an comhair a cinn - She fell headlong &c

Compound Prepositions and Pronouns

Compound prepositions cannot be followed directly by a pronoun. Instead the corresponding possessive adjective must used before the final noun element :
dha ur n-aindeoin - despite you	dha ar n-ionnsaigh ‡ - towards us
dha do rèir - according to you	dha mo thaobh - with regard to me
air mo bheulaibh - in front of me	air a chùlaibh - behind him
air a feadh - throughout it [sgeul (f) - story]	air am muin - on top of them
air ar sgàth - for our sake	air mo shon - for my sake
às d' aonais - without you	às a leth - on her behalf
fa ar comhair ‡ - in front of us	mu ur coinneimh ‡ - opposite you
mu mo dheidhinn ‡ - concerning me	mu an timcheall ‡ - around them
os a cionn - above her	ri mo thaobh ‡ - beside me

The augmented prepositions of **ann** are used when the first element is either am or an (contracted forms of **ann** = in). You have already met these in :
nam bhroinn - inside me	nar measg - among us
nan aghaidh - against them	nur n-àite - in your place (instead of you)
nad dhèidh - after you	nar làthair - in our presence

‡ Similarly whenever the first element (preposition) ends in a vowel the following pronoun can appear as an augmented preposition. These forms are optional but are encountered frequently in both the written and spoken language (see ) :
dhur n-aindeoin - despite you	dhar n-ionnsaigh - toward us
dhad rèir - according to you	dham thaobh - with regard to me
far comhair - in front of us	mur coinneimh - opposite you
mum dheidhinn - concerning me	mun timcheall - around them
rim thaobh - beside me

As with all other possessive adjectives the emphatic suffices can and are often added. You met these endings in and :
air am muin-san - on top of them	air ar sgàth-ne - for our sake
air mo shon-sa - for my sake	às a leth-se - on her behalf
ri mo thaobh-sa - beside me	nam bhroinn-sa - inside me
nar measg-ne - among us	nan aghaidh-san - against them
nad dhèidh-sa - after you	nar làthair-ne - in our presence

3. Other Prepositions

One important preposition takes the nominative noun :
eadar - between

Some Examples :
Bha cù ann eadar am balach agus an nighean - There was a dog between the boy and the girl
A bheil eanchainn agad ann eadar na cluasan? - Do you have a brain between your (the) ears?

Two important prepositions are irregular. Without the article they are followed by the dative noun, but with the article the nominative noun is used. This rule is often broken in the spoken language with both behaving as simple dative prepositions :
gu / gus (before definite noun) - to, until	mar - as, like


Followed by an Indefinite Noun	Followed by a Definite Noun
Bha am fiodh mar chloich ‡ - The wood was like stone	Bha am fiodh mar a' chlach - The wood was like the stone
Chuir mi litir gu caileig - I sent a letter to a girl	Chuir mi litir gus a' chaileag - I sent a letter to the girl

‡ The indefinite noun is always lenited after mar

NEW WORDS

**Adjectives**
binn - melodious, tuneful	ladarna - bold, impudent

**Adverbs**
air fad - entire, whole

**Nouns**
britheamh (m) - judge	cead (m) - permission, licence
fasgadh (m) - shelter	fear-seòlaidh (m) - guide, leader
geàrd (m) - guard	prìosanach (m) - prisoner
saoghal (m) - world	seanchaidh (m) - story teller
tarbh (m) - bull	teaghlach (m) - family
cèis-litreach (f) - envelope	eanchainn (f) - brain
mòinteach (f) - moor

**Prepositions**
a dh'aindeoin - despite	a dh'ionnsaigh - towards
air beulaibh - in front of	air cùlaibh / air chùl - behind
air feadh - throughout	air muin - atop, on top (of)
air sgàth - on account (of), because (of)	airson - for, for the sake (of)
am broinn - within, inside	am measg - among
an aghaidh - against	an àite - instead of
an comhair - in the direction (of)	an dèidh / às dèidh - after
an làthair - in the presence of	a rèir - according to
às aonais - without	às leth - on behalf of
a thaobh - regarding, with regard to	bhàrr / far - from off, off
chun / thun - to, towards	fa chomhair - in front of / before
mu choinneimh - opposite	mu dhèidhinn - concerning
mun cuairt - around	mu thimcheall - around, aroundabout
os cionn - above, over	ri taobh - beside
rè - during	thar - over
tre - by means of, through	trìd - through

**Pronouns**
a chèile - of one another

**Verbs**
ceileir, ceileireadh - sing (as a bird)	cìr, cìreadh - comb
cruinnich, cruinneachadh - gather, collect	cuir am falach, cur am falach - hide (transitive verb)
deasaich, deasachadh - prepare, edit	leum, leum - jump, leap
seòl, seòladh - sail

**EXERCISE 1 Translate into English**
1.Sheas am prìosanach eadar an dà gheàrd fa chomhair a' bhritheimh	2.Bha an teine air mo bheulaibh agus a' chathair air mo chùl(aibh)
3.Sheòl am bàta chun a' phuirt air sgàth na stoirme	4.Leum an tarbh thar an uillt agus chaidh e am measg a' chruidh
5.Ghlan iad mu thimcheall an taighe airson am màthar	6.An robh iad a' bruidhinn mu mo dhèidhinn?
7.Shiubhail iad mun cuairt an t-saoghail às aonais na cloinne aca	8.Chuir e na leabhraichean air muin a chèile
9.Chaidh e dhan choinneimh nam àite, agus às aonais mo chead	10.Shabaid iad an aghaidh na gaoithe a dh'ionnsaigh an fhasgaidh
11.Sheas i mu choinneimh an sgàthain agus chìr i a falt	12.Bha fios againn gun robh sinn am measg charaidean
13.Sgrìobh i an litir às ar leth	14.Dha rèir, bidh sneachd ann a-màireach
15.Dh'fhàg iad an càr aca mu choinneimh a' bhanca	16.Ruith na geàrdan às dèidh a' phrìosanaich
17.Bidh mi ann a dh'aindeoin a' chnatain a tha orm	18.Dè thuirt e a thaobh na litreach?

**EXERCISE 2 Translate into Gàidhlig**
1.Everyone gathered around the storyteller	2.He went to the door for me
3.There was a terrible storm during the night	4.There is a garden in front of the building
5.The men came in after the women	6.I wouldn't like to be in your place
7.During the winter I would not be without a coal fire	8.She prepared dinner for the entire family
9.The boy was impudent in the presence of the school master	10.We walked around the old castle behind the guide
11.I ran through(out) the park after the dog	12.She placed the kettle on the table beside the pot
13.She hid the money on top of the cupboard	14.They put the card in the envelope
15.The farmer walked over the bridge towards the wood	16.The larks were singing sweetly (melodiously) above the moor
17.They went sailing (to sail) despite the bad weather	18.Regarding the loan, you don't (won't) need to pay it back to me

**ANSWERS - EXERCISE 1**
1.The prisoner stood between the two guards in front of the judge	2.The fire was in front of me and the chair behind me
3.The boat sailed towards the port because of the storm	4.The bull jumped over the burn and went among the cattle
5.They cleaned around the house for their mother	6.Were they speaking about me?
7.They travelled around the world without their children	8.He put the books on top of one another
9.He went to the meeting in my place, and without my permission	10.They fought against the wind towards (the) shelter
11.She stood before (opposite) the mirror and combed her hair	12.We knew we that were among friends
13.She wrote the letter on our behalf	14.According to him, there will be snow tomorrow
15.They left their car opposite the bank	16.The guards ran after the prisoner
17.I'll be there despite the cold I have	18.What did he say regarding the letter?

**ANSWERS - EXERCISE 2**
1.Chruinnich a h-uile duine mun cuairt/mu thimcheall an t-seanchaidh	2.Chaidh e a dh'ionnsaigh/chun an dorais air mo shon-sa
3.Bha stoirm uabhasach ann rè na h-oidhche	4.Tha gàrradh ann air beulaibh an togalaich
5.Thàinig na fir a-staigh an dèidh nam boireannach	6.Cha bu toil leam a bhith nad àite/nur n-àite
7.Rèn gheamhraidh cha bhithinn as aonais teine guail	8.Dheasaich i dìnnear airson an teaghlaich air fad
9.Bha am balach ladarna an làthair a' mhaighistir-sgoile	10.Choisich e mun cuairt an t-seann chaisteil air chùl an fhir-sheòlaidh
11.Ruith mi air feadh na pàirce an dèidh a' choin	12.Chuir i an coire air a' bhòrd ri taobh na poite
13.Chuir i an t-airgead am falach air muin a' phreasa	14.Chuir iad a' chairt am broinn na cèise-litreach
15.Choisich an tuathanach thar na drochaide a dh'ionnsaigh na coille	16.Bha na h-uiseagan a' ceileireadh gu binn os cionn na mòintiche
17.Chaidh iad a sheòladh a dh'aindeoin na droch shìde	18.A thaobh an iasaid, chan fheum thu a phàigheadh air ais dhomh

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