feum
Middle English
Scottish Gaelic
Etymology
From Old Irish feidm (“effort”), from Proto-Celtic *wédes-men- (“need-service”), from Proto-Indo-European *wed.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /feːm/
Noun
feum m (genitive singular feuma or fèim)
- need, necessity
- ann 'am fheum ― in my time of need
- 'S e am feum a thug air sin a dhèanamh. ― Dire necessity made him do that.
- use, usefulness
- Chan eil feum annad. ― There is no use in you.
- Dè is feum dha? ― What is the use of it?
- Is beag feum a tha ort. ― You are quite useless.
- poverty
- worth
- occasion
- Chan eil feum ort. ― There is no occasion for (or need of) you.
Derived terms
- dèan feum de (“use, exploit, make use of, utilize”, verb)
- feumach (“necessitous, needful, needy”)
- feumail (“useful, beneficial, helpful, handy, of use, serviceable, requisite”)
- gun fheum (“useless, needless; uselessly, needlessly”)
- mì-fheum m (“abuse, misapplication”)
References
- Faclair Gàidhlig Dwelly Air Loidhne, Dwelly, Edward (1911), Faclair Gàidhlig gu Beurla le Dealbhan/The Illustrated [Scottish] Gaelic-English Dictionary (10th ed.), Edinburgh: Birlinn Limited, →ISBN
- C. Marstrander, E. G. Quin et al., editors (1913–76), “feidm”, in Dictionary of the Irish Language: Based Mainly on Old and Middle Irish Materials, Dublin: Royal Irish Academy, →ISBN
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