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noun
2.
the inhabitants of Ireland and their descendants elsewhere.
3.
the aboriginal Celtic-speaking people of Ireland.
4.
Also called Irish gaelic. the Celtic language of Ireland in its historical or modern form. Abbreviation: Ir, Ir. Compare Middle Irish, Old Irish.
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Irish
is always a great word to know.
So is ninnyhammer. Does it mean:
| a fool or simpleton; ninny. |
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
7.
get one's Irish up, Informal. to become angry or outraged: Don't go getting your Irish up over a little matter like that.
Origin:
1175–1225; Middle English Yrisse, Iris(c)h; compare Old English Īras people of Ireland (cognate with Old Norse Īrar); see -ish1
1175–1225; Middle English Yrisse, Iris(c)h; compare Old English Īras people of Ireland (cognate with Old Norse Īrar); see -ish1
Related forms
I·rish·ly, adverb
an·ti-I·rish, adjective, noun, plural -I·rish.
half-I·rish, adjective
non-I·rish, adjective, noun, plural -I·rish.
pre-I·rish, adjective
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Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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|
Link To Irish
Collins
World English Dictionary
| Irish (ˈaɪrɪʃ) | |
| —adj | |
| 1. | of, relating to, or characteristic of Ireland, its people, their Celtic language, or their dialect of English |
| 2. | informal, offensive ludicrous or illogical |
| —n | |
| 3. | (functioning as plural) the Irish the natives or inhabitants of Ireland |
| 4. | another name for Irish Gaelic |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
Irish
c.1200, Irisce, from stem of O.E. Iras "inhabitant of Ireland," from O.N. irar, ult. from O.Ir. Eriu (acc. Eirinn, Erinn) "Erin," which is from O.Celt. *Iveriu (acc. *Iverionem, abl. *Iverione), perhaps meaning "good land." Meaning "temper, passion" is 1834, Amer.Eng. (first attested in writings of Davy
EXPANDCrockett), from the legendary pugnacity of Irish people. Irish-American is from 1832; Irish coffee is from 1950. Wild Irish (1399) originally were those not under English rule; Black Irish in ref. to those of Mediterranean appearance is from 1888.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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