béile

Irish

Etymology

Borrowed from English meal, with m changed to b as a back-formation from the eclipsed form, where *méile was reinterpreted as mbéile.

Noun

béile m (genitive singular béile, nominative plural béilí)

  1. meal (food that is prepared and eaten, usually at a specific time)

Declension
Declension of béile

Fourth declension

Bare forms

Case Singular Plural
Nominative béile béilí
Vocative a bhéile a bhéilí
Genitive béile béilí
Dative béile béilí

Forms with the definite article

Case Singular Plural
Nominative an béile na béilí
Genitive an bhéile na mbéilí
Dative leis an mbéile

don bhéile

 leis na béilí

Synonyms

Derived terms
  • béile bainise (“wedding breakfast”)
  • béile beag (“refection”)
  • Béile Chonáin (“gargantuan meal”, literally “Meal of Conan”)
  • béile maidine (“breakfast”)
  • béile meán lae (“luncheon”)
  • béile oíche (“supper”)

Mutation
Irish mutation
Radical Lenition Eclipsis
béile bhéile mbéile
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

References
  • “béile” in Dictionary of the Irish Language, Royal Irish Academy, 1913–76.

Further reading
  • "béile" in Foclóir Gaeilge-Béarla, An Gúm, 1977, by Niall Ó Dónaill.
  • “meal” in New English-Irish Dictionary by Foras na Gaeilge.
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