Learn Irish for Free with Native Speakers at PBC Languages
Learn Irish for free at PBC Languages: small group classes with native teachers plus 1-to-1 exchanges, half Irish, half English.
Create your free accountNo card needed. Exchanges between members are always free.
The sounds are what get most English speakers first. Irish splits every consonant into broad and slender versions, so the same letter can sound completely different depending on the vowels around it. Then there's 'mh' and 'bh', which usually sound like a 'v' or a 'w' (as in 'leabhar', book, said roughly 'lyow-er'), and 'dh' or 'gh', which often go silent or turn into a soft throat sound English just doesn't have. None of this is written down obviously for someone reading English spelling rules, so the first few weeks are about retraining your eyes as much as your ears.
What trips people up next is the grammar shape, not the words. Irish puts the verb first: 'Tá mé tuirseach' is literally 'Is I tired', not 'I am tired'. There's no single word for yes or no either, you answer by repeating the verb ('An bhfuil tú...?' gets 'Tá' or 'Níl'), which English speakers keep forgetting mid-conversation. And possession works through prepositions instead of a verb 'to have': 'Tá leabhar agam' is 'a book is at me', not 'I have a book'. On top of that, initial mutations change the front of a word depending on grammar, so a noun you just learned can suddenly look different in the next sentence.
Where it moves fast: once the broad/slender spelling rule clicks, pronunciation stops being a guessing game, because Irish is far more consistent than English is. Regular verbs conjugate in predictable patterns with a small set of endings, no noun cases to memorize. And a good chunk of everyday vocabulary is borrowed from Latin or English centuries ago, so words like 'club', 'garda', 'siopa' or 'leabhar' give you an anchor from day one instead of starting from zero.
Words you will actually hear
| Here | Elsewhere | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| fáil | fail | Looks identical to the English word 'fail', but it means 'to get' or 'to find'. Confuses beginners constantly in the first month. |
| mall | mall | Spelled exactly like the English 'mall', but in Irish it means 'slow'. No shopping centre involved. |
| dath | death | Looks like 'death' on paper and is pronounced closer to 'dah'; it actually means 'colour'. |
| cáis | case | Reads like 'case' but means 'cheese'. Handy to know before ordering food. |
| trá | tray | Looks like 'tray', sounds closer to 'thraw', and means 'beach' or 'strand'. |
| leabhar | library | Both come from the Latin 'liber'. Once you spot the link, 'leabhar' (book) is easy to keep. |
| peann | pen | Borrowed straight from Latin 'penna', same as English 'pen'. Practically a freebie. |
| garda | guard | Same root as English 'guard', and it's literally what the Irish police are called. Easy to remember once you know that. |
| siopa | shop | A direct loanword, close enough in sound and spelling to guess correctly the first time you see it. |
| carr | car | Shared Celtic-Latin root with English 'car'. One of the few words where your instinct is just right. |
How it works here
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Sign up and say your level
Two minutes. If you do not know your level, we place you in the first class.
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Pick a class or an exchange
Classes are led by a native teacher. An exchange is with another member: half the time in their language, half in yours.
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Join by video, nothing to install
From your phone or your computer. If you cannot make it, cancel and get your place back.
Questions about this
How long before I can hold a basic conversation in Irish?
It depends on how often you show up, but the verb-first structure and the mutations are what take the longest to feel natural, not the vocabulary. Most people who come to a small group class weekly and do one or two exchanges start managing simple exchanges (introductions, ordering something, basic questions) within a few months. Consistency with the exchanges matters more than any single class.
Is the 1-to-1 exchange with a native actually free?
Yes. You give half an hour in English and get half an hour in Irish from your partner, so nobody pays for the exchange itself. The small group classes with native teachers are the paid part of PBC Languages; the exchange is a straight trade of time between members.
What level do I need before joining a small group Irish class?
None. Groups are kept small precisely so a native teacher can adjust to whoever's in the room, including absolute beginners. If you already know some Irish, mention it when you sign up so you land in a group at the right pace instead of repeating basics you've covered.
How exactly is the half hour/half hour split organized?
You and your exchange partner agree on a call or in-person session, split into two clear halves: thirty minutes where you speak Irish and they help you, thirty minutes where you speak English and help them. Most pairs alternate who starts each session so nobody's always warming up in their weaker language.
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