Little by Little Beag air Bheag
Beginners (A1)- Unit 31 - Hobbies
Luchd-tòiseachaidh (A1) - Aonad 31 - Cur-seachadan
Introduction
Hobbies
In this Unit we’ll look at some hobbies. Note how we ask somebody if they are good at something – we say a bheil thu math air? (lit. are you good on it?):
Conversation 1
Listen to the conversation:
- Mairead:
- Dè na cur-seachadan a th’ agad?
- What are your pastimes/hobbies?
- Iain:
- Tha dà chur-seachad agam – fear a-muigh is fear a-staigh.
- I have two hobbies – one outside and one inside.
- Mairead:
- Dè bhios tu a’ dèanamh a-muigh?
- What do you do outside?
- Iain:
- Bidh mi a’ cluich goilf.
- I play golf.
- Mairead:
- A bheil thu math air?
- Are you good at it?
- Iain:
- Chan eil ro mhath. Ach tha e a’ còrdadh rium.
- Not too good. But I enjoy it.
- Mairead:
- Agus dè bhios tu a’ dèanamh a-staigh?
- And what do you do inside?
- Iain:
- Bidh mi a’ dèanamh modalan de longan.
- I make models of ships.
- Mairead:
- Tha sin inntinneach. De fhiodh?
- That’s interesting. Of wood?
- Iain:
- Seadh. De fhiodh aotrom.
- Aye. Of light wood.
- Mairead:
- Am bi a’ cur nan longan ann am botail?
- Do you put the ships in bottles?
- Iain:
- Bithidh – agus bidh mi gan reic.
- Yes – and I sell them.
- Mairead:
- Inntinneach, gu dearbh.
- Interesting, indeed.
- Iain:
- Co-dhiù, sin gu leòr mu mo dheidhinn-sa. Dè mu do dheidhinn-sa?
- Anyway, that’s enough about me. What about you?
- Mairead:
- Tha dìreach aon chur-seachad agam. Samhradh is geamhradh.
- I only have one pastime. Summer and winter.
- Iain:
- Dè th’ ann? Fighe?
- What is it? Knitting?
- Mairead:
- Chan e no fighe!
- Certainly not!
- Iain:
- Còcaireachd? Dèanamh chuibhrigean?
- Cooking? Making quilts?
- Mairead:
- Chan e sin nas motha.
- Not that either.
- Iain:
- Uill, dè an cur-seachad a th’ agad?
- Well, what is your pastime?
- Mairead:
- Tha sreap nam beann!
- Climbing [the] mountains!
Childhood hobbies
Hobbies
In Conversation 2, Ceitidh and Anna are discussing the pastimes/hobbies they had when they were young. Much of this conversation employs the past tense of verbs:
Conversation 2
Listen to the conversation:
- Ceitidh:
- Dè na cur-seachadan a bh’ agad nuair a bha thu òg?
- What pastimes did you have when you were young?
- Anna:
- Bha na rudan àbhaisteach.
- The normal things.
- Ceitidh:
- Dè na rudan?
- What things?
- Anna:
- Bha mi a’ cluich le doilichean.
- I was playing with dolls.
- Ceitidh:
- Dè na geamannan a bha thu a’ cluich?
- What games did you play [lit. were you playing]?
- Anna:
- Nursaichean is dotairean. Floireans Nightingale. Rudan mar sin.
- Nurses and doctors. Florence Nightingale. Things like that.
- Ceitidh:
- Mo chreach! Cha do chluich mise geamannan mar sin riamh.
- Wow! I never played games like that.
- Anna:
- Dè na cur-seachadan a bh’ agad fhèin, ma-thà?
- What pastimes did you have, then?
- Ceitidh:
- Bha mi a’ cuideachadh mo mhàthar. Bha peathraichean òga agam.
- I was helping my mother. I had young sisters.
- Anna:
- ’S e obair a tha sin, chan e cur-seachad.
- That’s work, not a hobby.
- Ceitidh:
- ’S e, ach bha sinn uile trang.
- Yes, but we were all busy.
- Anna:
- Nach robh cur-seachad sam bith agad?
- Didn’t you have any hobbies?
- Ceitidh:
- Bha – bha each aig caraid dhomh.
- Yes – a friend of mine had a horse.
- Anna:
- A bheil thu math air marcachd?
- Are you good at riding?
- Ceitidh:
- Cha robh mi a’ marcachd.
- I wasn’t riding.
- Anna:
- Dè bha thu a’ dèanamh, ma-thà?
- What were you doing, then?
- Ceitidh:
- Bha mi a’ bruidhinn ris an each. Chòrd e ris.
- I was speaking to the horse. He enjoyed it.
- Anna:
- An do dh’innis thu stòiridhean dha?
- Did you tell him stories?
- Ceitidh:
- Dh’innis. Agus dh’innis esan stòiridhean dhòmhsa.
- Yes. And he told me stories.
- Anna:
- A bheil gin agad fhathast?
- Do you still have any?
- Ceitidh:
- Tha – ach dh’iarr e orm gun a bhith gan innse do dhuine sam bith eile.
- Yes – but he asked me not to tell them to anybody else.
- Anna:
- O thalla! Tha thu a’ tarraing asam!
- O go away! You’re teasing me.