feidhm

Irish

Etymology

From Old Irish feidm (“effort”), from Proto-Celtic *wedes-men- (“need-service”), from Proto-Indo-European *wed-. Compare Scottish Gaelic feum.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fʲəimʲ/

Noun

feidhm f (genitive singular feidhme, nominative plural feidhmeanna)

1. use, application
2. service
3. function
4. business, affair
5. effect, effectiveness
6. need, necessity

   Níl feidhm é sin a dhéanamh.

   There’s no need to do that.

Declension

Declension of feidhm

Second declension

Bare forms Case Singular Plural Nominative feidhm feidhmeanna Vocative a fheidhm a fheidhmeanna Genitive feidhme feidhmeanna Dative feidhm feidhmeanna

Forms with the definite article Case Singular Plural Nominative an fheidhm na feidhmeanna Genitive na feidhme na bhfeidhmeanna Dative leis an bhfeidhm don fheidhm leis na feidhmeanna

Synonyms

• (need): gá
• (function, business, affair): gnó
• (service): seirbhís
• (use, function): úsáid

Derived terms

• aonfheidhmeach (“monofunctional”)
• feidhmchlár (“computer application”)
• feidhmeannach (“executive, official, agent”)
• feidhmeannas (“function, service; office, capacity; position, employment”)

 

References

• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “feidhm”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “feidm”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language