Most people know that words fascinate me, and I’m a careful observer of linguistic quirks…so it only seems natural that I’m constantly noticing the differences in expression of Irish English versus Canadian English. Some of the turns of phrase the Irish use make me laugh, and others make more sense to me than our counterpart. So here’s a primer on common Irish expressions.
Grand: Everything is “grand” here, and this is generally the equivalent of our “fine” and also “great.” When someone asks how you are, you say grand. When someone tells you they’re going for coffee and will be back in 15, you say grand. It’s a handy catch-all word.
What’s the crack? This means, what’s new/what’s up/what’s going on? Crack is also the equivalent of “stuff.” If you ask someone if they liked a film/song/book/etc. they might say, “yeah, it was great crack.” This always makes me giggle.
Your (yer) man: This is one of my fave Irish linguistic quirks. I'm planning to bring it back to Canada with me and incorporate it into our English. Yer man refers either to someone very general, or someone very specific. Eg. if your cable isn't working, you might say, "I'll ring yer man and have him come round." Or, if your boyfriend/brother/father/male friend is coming by the house, your friend might say, "When's yer man coming by?" Obviously this is entirely contextual, but people always know exactly who you mean, so it works:) The female equivalent is your one, and very occasionally, your woman.
Are you alright/okay? This one I find hard to get used to, as it’s the equivalent of our “can I help you?” Store clerks will look at you and ask that, and I always find it awkward to respond to. Sometimes you’ll get a term of endearment added to it, which is nice – it’s usually older Irish women who might call you love or dear, or as the woman in the pharmacy said to me the other day – “are you alright, pet?”
Any joy? Like us saying “any luck?”
You’re alright: This is often said in response to an apology – if you bump into someone and say, I’m sorry, the person will often say “you’re alright,” or sometimes “you’re grand.”
Knock the spots off you: Like us saying, it’ll put hair on your chest.
Fair balls/Fair play: This generally means “good for you.” Many people have said this to me when I tell them why I’ve come to Ireland…
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4 comments:
Very interesting, thanks for posting this!
So interesting. I'm jealous. Ireland sounds so grand. ;)
(butterfly79 is Melissa Beedle,btw. lol)
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