Lessoonyn Meanagh

Intermediate Lessons

lesson 14: C'red vou jannoo?-What were you doing?

We now know a lot about the present tense of the verb 'to be'. Ta mee goll as gaccan means I'm going and grumbling. [Ta mee goll as gaccan.] ---------- Ta mee goll as gaccan.

Vel oo gobbraghey? Are you working? [Vel oo gobbraghey?] ---------- Vel oo gobbraghey?

T'ee geearree moddey, She wants a dog. [T'ee geearree moddey.] ---------- T'ee geearree moddey.

Cha nel eh geaishtagh rish y radio, He's not listening to the radio. [Cha nel eh geaishtagh rish y radio.] ---------- Cha nel eh geaishtagh rish y radio.

The word for 'today' is 'jiu' [jiu] ---------- jiu. I could ask, C'red t'ou jannoo jiu? What are you doing today? [C'red t'ou jannoo jiu?] ---------- C'red t'ou jannoo jiu? The question word, C'red? is used, so we just use 't'ou jannoo', you are doing. C'red t'ou jannoo jiu?

Jiu ta mee shappal ayns Rhumsaa. C'red t'ou jannoo jiu?

Ta mee lhaih pabyr naight jiu. So Stewart is shopping in Ramsey today, t'ee shappal ayns Rhumsaa jiu, and today I'm reading a newspaper, jiu ta mee lhaih pabyr naight.

But we may want to ask, C'red v'ou jannoo? What were you doing? C'red v'ou jannoo? [C'red v'ou jannoo?] ---------- C'red v'ou jannoo?

So instead of using 'ta' we use 'va'. Again, C'red? already asks the question, so we use 'v'ou jannoo', you were doing. C'red v'ou jannoo? So to talk about something that was the case, something in the past, instead of ta, use va.

Ta mee ayns Doolish. I'm in Douglas. [Ta mee ayns Doolish.] ---------- Ta mee ayns Doolish.

Va mee ayns Doolish, I was in Douglas. Va mee ayns Doolish. [Va mee ayns Doolish.] ---------- Va mee ayns Doolish. The word for yesterday is 'jea' [jea] ---------- jea. So I can ask Stewart what she was doing yesterday. C'red v'ou jannoo jea? What were you doing yesterday? Stewart, c'red v'ou jannoo jea?

Jea va mee gobbraghey ayns Balleychashtal. C'red v'ou jannoo jea?

Jea va mee shooyl ayns Skyll' Andreays. Va mee loayrt rish Tom. So yesterday, Stewart was working in Castletown, v'ee gobbraghey ayns Balleychashtal. I was walking in Kirk Andreas. I was talking to Tom. Va mee shooyl ayns Skyll Andreays. Va mee loayrt rish Tom. What if I wanted to say that I wasn't talking to Tom?

In the present tense, we say: Ta mee loayrt rish Tom, I'm talking to Tom, and the negative, Cha nel mee loayrt rish Tom, I'm not talking to Tom.

In the past tense, we use 'va' and 'cha row'.

Va mee loayrt rish Tom, I was talking to Tom, [Va mee loayrt rish Tom.] ---------- Va mee loayrt rish Tom.

Cha row mee loayrt rish Juan, I wasn't talking with Juan, [Cha row mee loayrt rish Juan.] ---------- Cha row mee loayrt rish Juan.

Cha row mee gobbraghey jea. Va mee jeeaghyn er y çhellveeish. C'red v'ou jannoo?

Cha row mee jeeaghyn er y çhellveeish. Va mee geaishtagh rish y radio. C'red va Mary jannoo?

Va Mary shappal ayns Doolish. C'red va Jonee jannoo jea?

Jea va Jonee gobbraghey ayns scoill. Cha row ee ayns Rhumsaa, v'ee ayns Balleychashtal.

The question form of 'ta' is 'vel?'. The question form of 'va' is 'row?'. Just as we can say Ta'n ayr aym shappal, The father at me, my father, is shopping, Ta'n ayr aym shappal, and make it a question, Vel yn ayr aym shappal? Is my father shopping? Vel yn ayr aym shappal? We can do the same in the past tense.

Va'n ayr aym shappal. Row yn ayr aym shappal?

Va Juan loayrt rish Mary. Row Jonee loayrt rish Tom?

Va'n dooinney lhaih pabyr naight. Row eh smooinaghtyn er cummal ayns Purt ny hInshey?

So the question form of va mee, I was, is row mee? Was I? The question form of v'eh, he was, is row eh? Row ee? Was she? is the question form of v'ee, she was. And we've used va Juan goll, Juan was going. Row Juan gaccan? Was Juan grumbling?

When we use row with oo, were you? it tends to get a bit lost, so we usually use the emphatic form, uss, so most often we'd ask, Row uss gobbraghey jea? Were you working yesterday? [Row uss gobbraghey jea?] ---------- Row uss gobbraghey jea?

Row uss coagyrey ayns y thie? Were you cooking in the house? [Row uss coagyrey ayns y thie?] ---------- Row uss coagyrey ayns y thie?

A question in the present tense asks Vel? And the answer may be Ta, or Cha nel. In the past tense, the question asks Row? And the answer may be Va, or Cha row.

Row uss loayrt rish Juan jea?

Cha row, cha row mee loayrt rish Juan jea. Row uss ayns Doolish jea?

Va, va mee ayns Doolish jea. Va Mary ayns Doolish jea.

Row uss loayrt rish Mary?

Cha row, agh va mee loayrt rish Jonee. V'ee cur shilley er y voir eck.

We've used the words jiu, today, jiu; and jea, yesterday, jea. Let's have a look at the days of the week.

Jedoonee, Jelune, Jemayrt; Sunday, Monday, Tuesday [Jedoonee, Jelune, Jemayrt] ---------- Jedoonee, Jelune, Jemayrt
Jecrean, Jerdein, Jeheiney; Wednesday, Thursday, Friday [Jecrean, Jerdein, Jeheiney] ---------- Jecrean, Jerdein, Jeheiney
Jesarn â€“ Saturday [Jesarn] ---------- Jesarn
And that brings us back to Jedoonee, Sunday, Jedoonee, or Yn Doonaght, the Sabbath, Yn Doonaght.

And we use those just as we used jiu and jea. Row uss geaishtagh rish y radio Jesarn?

Va. Row uss jeeaghyn er y Ã§hellveeish Jedoonee?

Cha row. Row uss cur shilley er Mary Jecrean?

Cha row, va mee gobbraghey Jecrean. Va mee cur shilley er Mary Jerdein.

And here are some more:

Row Mnr Clague shooyl ayn Creneash Jelune?

Cha row, v'eh ayns Purt le Moirrey. Row y braar ayd shappal ayns Doolish Jeheiney?

Cha row. Cha mie lesh shappal. Row y voir ayd geearree goll?

Va. S'mie lhee shappal ayns Doolish. Row ee cur shilley er Juan Jecrean?

Cha row, agh v'ee cur shilley er Tom Jedoonee.

As shen eh veih lessoon kiare-jeig