biáil

Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word biáil. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word biáil, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say biáil in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word biáil you have here. The definition of the word biáil will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition ofbiáil, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.

See also: biail

Old Irish

FWOTD – 13 June 2023

Etymology

From Proto-Celtic *biyatlis, from the root of *binati (whence benaid). Cognate with Welsh bwyell.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key):

Noun

bïáil m (genitive béla)

axe, hatchet
- c. 800–825, Diarmait, Milan Glosses on the Psalms, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 7–483, Ml. 112^b12
  Is déniu ad·ciam húa ṡúlib risíu ro·cloammar in fogur húa chluasaib, ut est is toísigiu ad·ciam teilciud in béla resíu ro·cloammar a guth sidi.
  We see more quickly with the eyes before we hear the sound with the ears, ut est we see the throwing of the axe sooner before we hear the sound of this.
- c. 850-875, Turin Glosses and Scholia on St Mark, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 484–94, Tur. 106
  .i. do·cer in biail dia samthig issa mmuir 7 fo·caird Eleseus a samthig inna diad 7 do·luid in biail a rithissi ar chenn in samthige co mboi impe.
  That is, the ax-head fell from its handle into the sea and Elisha flung its handle after it and the ax-head came again to meet the handle and remained around it.

Inflection

Masculine i-stem
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	biáil	biáil^L	belai^H
Vocative	biáil	biáil^L	belai^H
Accusative	biáil^N	biáil^L	belai^H
Genitive	belo^H, bela^H	belo^H, bela^H	belae^N
Dative	biáil^L	belaib	belaib
Initial mutations of a following adjective: ^H = triggers aspiration ^L = triggers lenition ^N = triggers nasalization

Descendants

Middle Irish: bíail
- Irish: biail

Mutation

Old Irish mutation
Radical	Lenition	Nasalization
biáil	biáil pronounced with /β(ʲ)-/	mbiáil
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

Further reading

Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “bíail, biáil”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language

Wikious

Boobota

Sagapedia