kittydesade | (no subject)

In general, the preposition le in these constructions indicates that the adjective reflects the attitude of the object of le toward whatever follows. Is...le can be used in this way with a variety of other adjectives expressing evaluation, although the idiomatic use with maith/fearr meaning good/prefer is by far the most common:

Is maith liom tae. I like tea. (lit. Tea is good with me.)
Is fearr liom caife. I prefer coffee.
Is breá liom é. I find it fine./I love it.
Is aisteach liom e. I consider it strange.
Is aoibhinn liom é. I find it pleasant.

In contrast, do implies a more objective relation between the prepositions's object and another noun in the sentence. Dom is the prepositional pronoun form for do + mé (to me, for me). Other forms are presented later.

Ní maith dom é. It isn't good for me.
Is fearr dom bainne. Milk is better for me.

Without either preposition, the meaning becomes impersonal, with no particular individual person involved. Some of the same forms can also occur with no prepositional phrase and impersonal meaning.

Ní foláir obair. One must work.
Ba cheart obair. One should work.
Is féidir obair. It is possible to work.
Is féidir go bhfuil sí tinn. It may be that she is sick.
B'éigean obair. It was necessary to work.
Is cuma. It doesn't matter.

In other cases, no preposition is the norm:

B'fhéidir... It would be possible./Maybe...
B'fhéidir go mbeidh an lá go breá. Maybe the day will be fine.
Is dócha... It is likely...
Is dócha go mbeidh an aimsir go dona. The weather will likely be bad.
is fiú... It is worth(while)...
Tá sé daor ach is fiú é. It's expensive, but worth it.
is ionann/mar a chéile... Is/are identical/alike...
Is mar a chéile mise agus thusa. You and I are alike.

Although some uses of English 'be' must be translated with the copula is and others always require a form of bí, it is sometimes possible to use either. A challenge for the student is to know which determines the choices.

Is múinteoir é. Tá sé ina mhúinteoir. He is a teacher.
B'innealtóir é. Bhí sé ina innealtóir. He was an engineer.

The two sentences in each pair have the same translation, but they are not identical in meaning. The first senetnces can be taken as basic statements defining the person that the pronoun refers to; the focus is on his identity. In the second sentences, the focus is more on what he does for a living. The same construction, with in + possessive, signals a physical state as below.

Tá mé i mo sheasamh. I'm standing.

(note: the implication here being that the 'is' construction is closer to ser and the 'bí' construction is closer to estar. HAH.)

The in + possessive construction can also be understood as indicating a state in the first examples, i.e. he is currently a teacher, he was once an engineer. In contrast, the first sentences imply a permanence of the characteristic. As a result, the implication of the first variation of the second pair of sentences is that the subject is no longer alive.

I guess prepositions are the next thing to exhaustively review, then.

Wait, I didn't actually post this yesterday?

I was supposed to be better when I got back from my visit home. And in most emotional ways, I kind of do. Except now I seem to have acquired a head cold, I can't sleep through the night without waking up two or three times, and the combination of sniffles plus lack of sleep is punching me in the head just as hard. Or at least it feels that way. I am so, so tired of not being up to even remotely full functionality. I can't even begin to tell you. NyQuil tonight. I was aiming for a more gentler sleep remedy of chamomile and valerian, but when the sneezing fits are what's keeping me awake something more aggressive is called for, I think.

Other than that, I guess, things aren't going all that badly. I'm making shitloads of friendship bracelets because, hell, why not. Our media center debacle is currently resolved, we'll see if the console actually gets delivered. Oh, right, this happened while I was away. Basically they delivered 3/4 of the media center we ordered, everything but the base console to get the TV and player equipment off the floor, which was the whole reason for the damn exercise in the first place. The media center looks great! The TV is still on the floor with all the cat hair. So, if they do deliver the console like they've finally promised and scheduled, all will be good. If not, I may murder someone with my teeth.

It's snowing today, which also makes me want to bite things, but it's supposed to be in the 50s and 60s after that, so I'll put up with it I guess? It could be worse. It could be a lot worse, she said, looking north. The work place snafu yesterday was not of my making, which is good because I could totally believe I fucked something up in shipping last week and in the state I'm in if I find out I did fuck up something I might cry because the world would end. I'm that tired. I just need a couple good night's sleep, and I'm not getting them. Ugh.