ór
/oːɾˠ/
The Irish word for gold is ór.
If you wish to describe something as being golden or made of gold, you should use the adjective órga.
Meaning: made of gold, golden (adj)
Which one should you use?
Ór is the noun meaning gold, whereas órga is the adjective used to describe an object's appearance or composition as golden or made of gold.
How does it change in a sentence?
Ór is a masculine noun, so it will take masculine adjectives and possessive pronouns.
How do you pronounce it?
/oːɾˠ/
Did you know?
- The Irish word for a 'golden' hair color is not always órga, as people frequently use fionn, which can mean 'fair' 'blonde' or 'white'.
- Ancient Irish laws, such as the Brehon Laws, had incredibly specific categories for the value of ór when used as a form of payment or fine for crimes.
- The word 'ór' is an unexpected linguistic cousin to the English word 'ore', as both trace back to the same ancient Indo-European roots regarding precious metals.
Examples in context
- An bhfuil aon ór agat?Do you have any gold?
Example conversation
Cian and Siobhán are looking at jewelry in a shop.
- CianBreathach an bratas ór seo, a Siobhán.Look at this gold treasure, Siobhán.
- SiobhánIs ór é go dearbh, a Chian.It is definitely gold, Cian.
- CianAn bhfuil sé an-daor?Is it very expensive?
- SiobhánTá gach rud ór an-daor anois.Everything gold is very expensive now.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry ór, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ór, CC BY-SA 4.0.
