aois
/iːʃ/feminine
The Irish word for age is aois.
aois refers to the amount of time that has passed since the birth of a being or the beginning of a thing.
Meaning: amount of time since the birth of a being or the beginning of a thing (noun)
How does it change in a sentence?
aois is a feminine noun. It does not change its form in the singular or plural when used specifically in the context of a person's age.
How do you pronounce it?
/iːʃ/
Did you know?
- The word aois is closely related to the Sanskrit word ā́yus, showing a deep connection between Irish and ancient Indian languages.
- The word aois shares a root with the Latin 'aevum', which is the same root used to create the English word 'medieval'.
- Because aois is grammatically feminine, an adjective describing a man's age will still use the feminine form.
Examples in context
- Cá haois é? Cén aois é?How old is he? (lit. What age is he?)This example shows how to ask how old someone is using aois.
- Cárbh aois é?How old was he? (lit. What age was he?)This example shows how to ask how old someone was using aois.
Example conversation
Siobhán and Conor are talking about a new puppy.
- SiobhánIs iontach an madra é!It is a wonderful dog!
- ConorGo raibh maith agat. An bhfuil aois air?Thank you. Is he old?
- SiobhánNíl mé cinnte. Cá haois é?I am not sure. How old is he?
- ConorTá sé seachtaina aois.He is seven weeks old.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “age” translations and entries aois, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries aois, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0.
