cèic
/kʲeːçɡʲ/feminine
The English word cake is translated into Gaelic in several ways, with cèic being the default form. Wiktionary also lists breacag and aran milis.
Meaning: type of sweet dessert (noun)
Ways to say it
| Gaelic | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| cèic | /kʲeːçɡʲ/ | feminine |
| breacag | /ˈpɾʲɛxkak/ | feminine |
| aran milis | [ˈaɾan ˈmilɪʃ] (narrow) | masculine |
| bonnach | /ˈbo.nəx/ | masculine |
| bannag | feminine |
Gaelic offers different ways to refer to a cake or sweet dessert, ranging from direct loanwords to more descriptive phrases.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase aran milis is a descriptive way to refer to cake, literally translating to sweet bread.
Which one should you use?
cèic is a direct loanword from English, whereas aran milis is a more descriptive Gaelic way to describe sweet baked goods.
How does it change in a sentence?
The forms provided have different grammatical genders: breacag and bannag are feminine, while aran milis and bonnach are masculine. cèic is feminine.
How do you pronounce it?
/kʲeːçɡʲ/
Did you know?
- The word bonnach shares a potential linguistic ancestor with the French word 'beignet', suggesting a distant connection between Gaelic baked goods and continental fried dough.
- The term breacag refers to a 'speckled' cake, often used for fruitcakes where the ingredients create a mottled appearance.
- Because Gaelic has several words for cake like bannag and breacag, using the wrong one might accidentally imply a completely different texture or size to a native speaker.
Examples in context
- Tha an cèic seo math.This cake is good.
Example conversation
Finlay and Catriona are in the kitchen.
- FinlayA bheil cèic an seo, a Chatriona?Is there cake here, Catriona?
- CatrionaTha, tha cèic air a bhòrd.Yes, there is cake on the table.
- FinlayTapadh leat, tha mi ag iarraidh slice.Thank you, I want a slice.
- CatrionaTogaidh tu e, a Fhionnlaigh.Take it, Finlay.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “cake” translations and entries cèic, breacag, aran milis, bonnach, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries aran, bonnach, milis, CC BY-SA 4.0.
