IRISH

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does Irish mean? 

• IRISH (noun)
  The noun IRISH has 3 senses:

1. people of Ireland or of Irish extraction

2. whiskey made in Ireland chiefly from barley

3. the Celtic language of Ireland

  Familiarity information: IRISH used as a noun is uncommon.

• IRISH (adjective)
  The adjective IRISH has 1 sense:

1. of or relating to or characteristic of Ireland or its people

  Familiarity information: IRISH used as an adjective is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• IRISH (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

People of Ireland or of Irish extraction

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Synonyms:

Irish; Irish people

Hypernyms ("Irish" is a kind of...):

country; land; nation (the people who live in a nation or country)

Derivation:

Irish (of or relating to or characteristic of Ireland or its people)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Whiskey made in Ireland chiefly from barley

Classified under:

Nouns denoting foods and drinks

Synonyms:

Irish; Irish whiskey; Irish whisky

Hypernyms ("Irish" is a kind of...):

whiskey; whisky (a liquor made from fermented mash of grain)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "Irish"):

poteen (unlawfully distilled Irish whiskey)

Holonyms ("Irish" is a substance of...):

Irish coffee (sweetened coffee with Irish whiskey and whipped cream)

Derivation:

Irish (of or relating to or characteristic of Ireland or its people)

Sense 3

Meaning:

The Celtic language of Ireland

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

Irish; Irish Gaelic

Hypernyms ("Irish" is a kind of...):

Erse; Gaelic; Goidelic (any of several related languages of the Celts in Ireland and Scotland)

Domain region:

Emerald Isle; Hibernia; Ireland (an island comprising the republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "Irish"):

Old Irish (Irish Gaelic up to about 1100)

Middle Irish (Irish Gaelic from 1100 to 1500)

Derivation:

Irish (of or relating to or characteristic of Ireland or its people)

• IRISH (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Of or relating to or characteristic of Ireland or its people

Classified under:

Relational adjectives (pertainyms)

Pertainym:

Ireland (an island comprising the republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland)

Derivation:

Ireland (an island comprising the republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland)

Irish (the Celtic language of Ireland)

Irish (whiskey made in Ireland chiefly from barley)

Irish (people of Ireland or of Irish extraction)

 Context examples 

The Irish Setter is swift, with an acute sense of smell.

(Irish Setter, NCI Thesaurus)

“Not an Irish name,” the captain snapped sharply.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

Skeet was a little Irish setter who early made friends with Buck, who, in a dying condition, was unable to resent her first advances.

(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)

“Much more than for any other. Here is Daisy, too, loves music from his soul. Sing us an Irish song, Rosa! and let me sit and listen as I used to do.”

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

A massive, muscular dog, the Irish Wolfhound is one of the tallest breeds in the world.

(Irish Wolfhound, NCI Thesaurus)

A squadron is starting for the North Sea and another for the Irish Channel.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

We took our passage on board a vessel bound for Havre-de-Grace and sailed with a fair wind from the Irish shores.

(Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley)

First one out of an Irish stew.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

"More air than one often sees in Bath. Irish, I dare say."

(Persuasion, by Jane Austen)

That's one of the ladies in the Irish car party, not at all like her.

(Emma, by Jane Austen)