suigh síos
/sˠɪɟ ʃiːsˠ/word by word
The English phrase "sit down" is translated into Irish as suigh síos.
The phrase suigh síos is used to express the command or request to assume a sitting position from a standing position.
Meaning: to assume a sitting position from a standing position (verb)
How does it change in a sentence?
suigh síos is the imperative form, which is used when giving a command or making a request.
How do you pronounce it?
/sˠɪɟ ʃiːsˠ/
Did you know?
- The English word 'sit' and the Irish word suigh share a common ancestor in the Proto-Indo-European root *sed-, meaning 'to sit'.
- In traditional Irish etiquette, telling someone to suigh síos without a polite modifier like do (please) can sound unusually blunt or authoritative.
- While suigh síos is the standard command, Irish often uses different verb forms depending on whether you are speaking to one person or a group of people.
Examples in context
- Suigh síos, le do thoilPlease sit down
- Suigh síos go ciúinSit down quietly
- Suigh síos ar an cathaoir.Sit down on the chair.
Example conversation
Cian and Aoife are entering a waiting room.
- CianTá an seomra lán, Aoife.The room is full, Aoife.
- AoifeAch tá cathaoir follaidh ansin.But there is an empty chair there.
- CianCeart, suigh síos ansin.Right, sit down there.
- AoifeGo raibh maith agat, a Chian.Thank you, Cian.
Sources
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (suigh, síos) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries suigh, síos, CC BY-SA 4.0.
