FAQS
How do I type the Gaelic accents?
You can just copy and paste these
Lowercase letters
Uppercase letters
Keyboard shortcuts
Windows
Some simple ways to type grave accents in MS Windows, depending on which version you use. The grave accent ` is next to the number 1 at top of keyboard
à, è, ì, ò, ù Ctrl+`, release and type letter;
À, È, Ì, Ò, Ù Ctrl+Shift+`, release and type letter
OR
Alt key + character code on the numeric keypad on right of keyboard (laptops will vary). Ensure that the NUMLOCK is on.
à Alt+133 or 0224
è Alt+138 or 0232
ì Alt+141 or 0236
ò Alt+149 or 0242
ù Alt+151 or 0249
À Alt+0192
È Alt+0200
Ì Alt+0204
Ò Alt+0210
Ù Alt+0217
Mac
Push and hold a character to bring up a menu and choose.
E.g. hold the letter e to choose the letter è
What is the Gaelic Alphabet?
> Aa, Bb, Cc, Dd, Ee, Ff, Gg, Hh, Ii, Ll, Mm, Nn, Oo, Pp, Rr, Ss, Tt, Uu
For more information visit LearnGaelic’s Scottish Gaelic Alphabet https://learngaelic.scot/scottish-gaelic-alphabet.jsp
How do I pronounce Gaelic sounds?
SpeakGaelic always gives you a sound file for the word you are learning. For more information on individual sounds, visit LearnGaelic’ Sounds section https://learngaelic.scot/sounds/index.jsp
What are slender and broad vowels?
The slender vowels are e and i.
All the others are broad.
SpeakGaelic says my email is taken and I can’t log in. Can you help?
This is usually because your account has not been properly activated – there should be an email from us with a link to activate your account (remember to check spam / junk folders too). If you can’t find the email, let us know.
If you have already activated your account, you may be on the wrong page. Please ensure you are on the login page and not the registration page.
Can you fix my link SpeakGaelic emailed to activate my account?
Yes – please forward us the email to fios@speakgaelic.scot and ask us to activate your account.
How do I log in after activating my account?
Please make your way to the login page.
Can you help me move on after completing a test?
This commonly happens if you have not logged on. You also need to have passed with 60% correct answers, if you think you have been unfairly treated, let us know. We may have a mistake in that particular test and we will fix it.
My dashboard says I’ve completed X number of topics but I should have more. How do I complete all steps to finish my topics?
You should be able to scroll and expand each topic to see which one has a step missed out. In the following example, all the sections apart from the intro and completed topic section have been completed, so the topic is incomplete.
Go into the incomplete section and follow the all the steps in the section to complete the topic.
How can I see how many steps I have missed out?
You can tell how many steps are in each section by the score on the counter at the top of the page.
How can I see what steps I have missed out?
You can see these by going to the left-hand side of screen of any section and selecting See Lesson Content. Mobile users have an extra fist step, you can see this extra step below.
This will pull out all an index of all the pages and you can see your progress – a completed section will have a big green tick, an incomplete section will be empty. To resolve, navigate to the incomplete pages. If a quiz has not been completed it will be blue. if it is complete, the quiz icon is green.
Extra step for small screens
Mobile users will have an extra step: you have to select the three stacked lines (officially known as the hamburger) beofre the other steps.
How do I report an error?
Either use the contact form or send us an email at fios@speakgaelic.scot. Please send us the page title at the top of page (or URL) with a short description of error. If you can send a screengrab, that will help us identify the issue.
Why isn’t my sound working?
This is usually as something is muted somewhere on your device. Check volume controls, speaker settings and device settings. Please make sure you are pressing the speaker icon.
Why was I marked wrong on this quiz question?
We hate to break it to you, but you might be wrong. Check you have read the question correctly. Please ensure your apostrophes are facing the correct way and finally make sure you don’t have too many spaces.
If you think you have been unfairly treated, let us know. We may have a mistake in that particular test and we will fix it. Either use the contact form or send us an email at fios@speakgaelic.scot. Please send us the quiz title at the top of page (or URL) with a short description of error. If you can send a screengrab, that will help us identify the issue.
Can you translate something for me?
We are a tiny wee team and our main focus is on our resources. There are also professional translators who will talk you through your requirements and provide appropriate translations (some words may be context-dependent). We can send you a list of professional translators if you need them.
I think I’ve found a typo/mistake on the website. How do I report this?
Either use the contact form or send us an email at fios@speakgaelic.scot. Please send us the page title at the top of page (or URL) with a short description of error. If you can send a screengrab, that will help us identify the issue.
Why won't you provide your email address in a format I can open?
We will get ambushed by spam! If you email fios@speakgaelic.scot we will get back to you as soon as possible. Please don’t be mean, we are human beings and it will ruin our day!
Need more help or see something that is not working?
Don’t hesitate to get in touch if you see anything wrong or if you want to leave us a message.
Càit a bheil an coire agad?
Where is your kettle?
Joy tells us how to say where things, or people, are in the home.
We have enough knowledge of household items and rooms to start talking about where things are located.
Càit a bheil …?
Where is …?
We have come across this question before AND we know how to answer it! Gasta!
Càit a bheil am bòrd agad?
Where is your table?
Càit a bheil an leabaidh agad?
Where is your bed?
Càit a bheil an coire agad?
Where is your kettle?
We know how to ask the question but do we know how to answer it? We do! We learnt the principles of talking about where we live! Math dha-rìribh!
ann an
in a
Use ann an for objects or places without the definite article.
ann an seòmar-cadail
in a bedroom
ann an seòmar
in a room
ann am
in a
Use ann am for place names without the definite article which begin with B,M, F or P.
ann am preas
in a cupboard
Use ann an for nouns without the definite article which begin with any other letter.
ann an cathair
in a chair
ann an amar
in a bath
We’ve learnt lots of countries which take the definite article An | A’.
What’s the difference between anns an and ann an?
The difference is anns ann means in the and ann an means in a.
Gaelic nouns take a gender. We are looking at masculine nouns here.
If the masculine noun begins with an s add the t- after anns.
an seòmar
the room
anns an t-seòmar
in the room
anns an t-seòmar-shuidhe
in the sitting room
The an changes to a’ and the noun lenites (or takes an h after the first letter) if it can lenite.
an cidsin
the kitchen
anns a’ chidsin
in the kitchen
What is lenition?
Lenition means softening and it often means a change in the spelling of a word, by adding an ‘h’ after the first consonant.
What letters take lenition when you spell them?
B, C, D, F, G, M, P, S, T
What letters never lenite?
Vowels never lenite. The letters d, t and s don’t usually lenite if the word before them ends in an n, and words beginning with sg, sm, sp and st never lenite.
The an stays on its own in any other circumstance.
an àmhainn
the oven
anns an àmhainn
in the oven
The fancy title for when a noun follows a preposition is the dative case (or the prepositional case) and when we use anns it is with the article.