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In Irish, we can get a lot of mileage out of three words: dubh, "black", bán, "white", and geal, which sometimes means "bright" and sometimes means "white". You can see this from the sentences below:
First, match the Irish expressions with their English equivalents. You should be able to do this fairly easily, based on vocabulary, length, and grammar. Then fill in each of the blanks in the Irish expressions with one of these words, dubh, bán, or geal. (We've already done the one used as an example in the GaelMinn Gazette.)
| 1. Bhí an bia ______ le seangáin |
| 2. Chomh ______ le sneachta na haon oíche |
| 3. Chuir sé ______ ina ______ orthu |
| 4. Dhiúltaigh sí go ______ agus go ______ é a dhéanamh |
| 5. Is ______ leis a bhfeiceann sé |
| 6. Is í bláth ______ na tíre í |
| 7. Leathanach bán |
| 8. Níl siad le fáil ______ ______ ná riabhach |
| 9. Tá bláth ______ ar gharraí an iascaire |
| 10. Tá Seosamh ______ ar Bhríd |
| 11. Tá sí imithe ______ ina dhiaidh |
| A. The sea is flecked with foam |
| B. They can't be found in any shape or form |
| C. The food was swarming with ants |
| D. She's crazy about him |
| E. She is the fairest in the land |
| F. She absolutely refused to do it |
| G. Joseph is fond of Bridgett |
| H. He sees the world through rose-colored glasses |
| I. He bamboozled them |
| J. As white as overnight snow |
| K. A blank page |