cailín beag
/kɑˈlʲiːnʲ bʲeɡ/word by word
The Irish phrase for 'baby girl' is cailín beag.
This phrase is used to refer to a very young female human child.
How do you pronounce it?
/kɑˈlʲiːnʲ bʲeɡ/
Did you know?
- In some regions of Ireland, people use cailín to refer to a girlfriend or a female partner, rather than a child.
- In many Irish dialects, the word beag can actually sound much more similar to the English word 'big' than its true meaning of 'small' would suggest.
- The word cailín is actually a double diminutive. It comes from caile meaning 'maid' and adds the suffix -ín to make it 'little maid'.
Examples in context
- An bhfuil cailín beag agat?Do you have a baby girl?
- Tá an cailín beag anseo.The baby girl is here.
Example conversation
Saoirse and Cathal are looking at a photograph.
- SaoirseSeo mo níon, cailín beag íf.This is my niece, she is a baby girl.
- CathalTá sí go hálainn, a Saoirse.She is beautiful, Saoirse.
- SaoirseGo raibh maith agat, a Chathal.Thank you, Cathal.
- CathalIs cailín beag shona íf.She is a happy baby girl.
Sources
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (cailín, beag) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries beag, cailín, CC BY-SA 4.0.
