20 English Words That Actually Come from Irish

Published: March 8, 2024 by Colman Andrews

In 1995, an American writer with Irish ancestry, Thomas Cahill, published a book called “How the Irish Saved Civilization.” His thesis was that monasteries founded by Saint Patrick — whose feast day we are about to celebrate with distinctly non-monastic green beer and silly hats and the like — and others were largely responsible for preserving and later disseminating ancient learning that would otherwise have been lost after the fall of the Roman Empire.

Copying classical manuscripts by hand and then bringing them to the monasteries they founded in turn in mainland Europe, they (writes Cahill) “single-handedly refounded European civilization throughout the continent.”

Not all scholars agreed with Cahill, and it’s entirely possible that he oversold his case. But the Irish have indeed had a measurable influence on society far beyond the Emerald Isle — especially in the United States

Fleeing poverty and famine in their native land, they became powerful forces in American politics and the labor movement. They filled police and fire departments and reinvigorated the Catholic Church in this country. They or their descendants enriched our literature (F. Scott Fitzgerald and Eugene O’Neill are just two examples) and our music (Elvis Presley, Bruce Springsteen, and Taylor Swift are among the many singers who have at least traces of Irish blood). And they’ve lent our language words, at least a portion of which we use often.

To assemble a list of English words that come from Irish, along with their original forms and meanings, 24/7 Tempo consulted sources including Irish Central, the Irish Post, and Dictionary.com, and drew etymologies from the Oxford English Dictionary and Online Etymological Dictionary. It should be noted that some of these derivations are disputed or uncertain.

Some of the words here have generally Irish-specific meanings, among them “banshee,” “brogue,” and “colleen.” Among the others, though, are terms we use freely. If we say “That brat is bothering me,” we’ve used two Irish-based words right there. “That clan of hooligans smashed the whiskey bottle to smithereens” involves four. And if “Erin go Bragh” — or its original Irish form, Éirinn go Brách — is your favorite St. Patrick’s Bay slogan, well, “slogan” comes from Irish, too. (Here’s a list of 20 popular Irish slang terms and their meanings.)

Keep reading for 20 English words that came from Irish.

Banshee

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Meaning: A supernatural being, generally a woman, known for wailing
Original Irish word(s): Bean sídhe
Original Irish meaning: Woman of the fairies

Bog

Soumarske raseliniste (moor or peat bog), Sumava national park (Bohemian forest) in Czech Republic. Wooden walkway — Home of bog people, fire starters, and wet marshy earth, “bog” hasn’t changed much in form from the original.

Meaning: Wet, mushy soil composed of decayed moss or other substances
Original Irish word(s): Bogach
Original Irish meaning: Bog

Bother

Annoyed Woman Covering Her Ears in Noisy Restaurant. Unhappy cafeteria customer complaining about the environmental noise

Source: Nicoleta Ionescu / Shutterstock.com

If you see other diners doing this, take the hint.

Meaning: Something annoying; to take the trouble to do something
Original Irish word(s): Bodraigh
Original Irish meaning: To deafen or annoy

Brat

Source: STUDIO GRAND WEB / Shutterstock.com

Meaning: An ill-behaved child or someone who acts like one
Original Irish word(s): Bhrat
Original Irish meaning: Blanket (such as might wrap a child)

Brogue

The origin is unclear and might be because of a particular style of footwear or might imply a thick tongue.

Meaning: A pronounced Irish accent
Original Irish word(s): Barróg (or possibly bróg)
Original Irish meaning: To grasp or hug, suggesting a thick tongue (or perhaps from the word for “shoe,” indicating someone who wears brogue or brogan shoes — i.e., an Irishman)

Clan

Meaning: A large family or group of families
Original Irish word(s): Clann
Original Irish meaning: Family

Colleen

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Studio Shot Of Smiling Young Girl Listening To Music On Headphones Against Yellow Background

Meaning: A young girl
Original Irish word(s): Cailín
Original Irish meaning: Girl

Hooligan

Meaning: A rowdy person or tough, almost always a man
Original Irish word(s): O’Houlihan
Original Irish meaning: An Irish family name, originally used as a humorous cliché to refer to rowdy Irishmen in British newspapers

Hubbub

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Meaning: Noise, confusing conversation
Original Irish word(s): Abu
Original Irish meaning: An old Irish war cry (perhaps related to “bua,” victory)

Keening

Meaning: Impassioned wailing, especially for the dead
Original Irish word(s): Caoin
Original Irish meaning: Cry

Kibosh

Business Man show stop gesture with his hand on dark background.picture have space for put your text.

Source: pr_camera / Shutterstock.com

Meaning: To definitively stop or prevent something
Original Irish word(s): Caipín báis
Original Irish meaning: Death cap (i.e., the headgear worn by a judge sentencing someone to death)

Limerick

Meaning: A piece of humorous five-line doggerel, often racy
Original Irish word(s): Luimneach or Limerick
Original Irish meaning: A city in southwestern Ireland (the connection of the city to the verse is unknown)

Phony

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Meaning: False, imitation, insincere
Original Irish word(s): Fáinne
Original Irish meaning: Ring (because con men used to cover cheap metal rings with gold to sell to their marks)