maith thú
/mˠɑh huː/word by wordsingular
In Irish, "well done" is expressed as maith thú. Wiktionary also lists maith sibh.
Meaning: exclamation of praise (intj)
Ways to say it
| Irish | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| maith thú | /mˠɑh huː/ (Munster, word by word) | singular |
| maith sibh | /mˠɑh ʃɪvʲ/ (Munster, word by word) | plural |
These phrases are used as exclamations of praise, similar to saying "good on you" or "good job" in English. If you want to say "very good" or "great job", you can use the informal phrase An-mhaith.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase maith thú literally translates to "good you".
Which one should you use?
The choice between the forms depends on whom you are addressing: use maith thú for one person and maith sibh for multiple people or when using a formal address.
How does it change in a sentence?
maith thú is the singular form used when praising one person, while maith sibh is the plural or polite form used when praising more than one person or when addressing someone formally.
How do you pronounce it?
/mˠɑh huː/
Did you know?
- The pronoun sibh descends from the Proto-Indo-European word *wos, meaning the way an Irish person says 'well done' to a group connects them to ancient speakers across Eurasia.
- Using An-mhaith to say 'very good' involves a grammatical change called lenition, where the 'm' in maith changes to 'mh' (pronounced like a 'v' or 'w').
- In Irish culture, the use of maith sibh for a single person is not just about formality but is a linguistic marker of respect often used when addressing elders.
Examples in context
- Maith thú, a chú!Well done, my boy!
- Maith thú le do chuid oibre.Well done with your work.
Example conversation
Saoirse congratulates Cathal on passing his driving test.
- SaoirseAn glac tú leis an test?Did you pass the test?
- CathalTá, d'éirigh liom!Yes, I made it!
- SaoirseMaith thú, a Chathail!Well done, Cathal!
- CathalGo raibh a haon gúis agat.Thank you very much.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “well done” translations and entries maith thú, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (maith, thú, sibh) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries maith, sibh, thú, CC BY-SA 4.0.
