caomh

Irish

Pronunciation

• (Munster) IPA^(key): /keːvˠ/
• (Connacht) IPA^(key): /kiːvˠ/
• (Ulster) IPA^(key): /kiːw/

Etymology 1

From Old Irish cóem, from Proto-Celtic *koimos (“dear, nice”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱóymos (“of the home, belonging to the family”).

Adjective

caomh (genitive singular masculine caoimh, genitive singular feminine caoimhe, plural caomha, comparative caoimhe)

1. dear, gentle
2. mild, pleasant
3. lovely, smooth

   Synonym: caomhdha

Declension

Declension of caomh

Positive	singular		plural
	masculine	feminine	strong noun	weak noun
nominative	caomh	chaomh	caomha; chaomha2
vocative	chaoimh		caomha
genitive		caoimhe	caomha	caomh
dative	caomh; chaomh1	chaomh; chaoimh (archaic)	caomha; chaomha2
Comparative	níos caoimhe
Superlative	is caoimhe

¹ When the preceding noun is lenited and governed by the definite article.
² When the preceding noun ends in a slender consonant.

Derived terms

• caomhdha
• caomheagar

Related terms

• caoimhe
• macaomh

Etymology 2

From Old Irish cáem (“friend, relation; comrade; noble, aristocrat; fair or beautiful object or person”).

Noun

caomh m (genitive singular caoimh, nominative plural caoimh) (literary)

1. dear one, companion
2. gentle, noble person

Declension

Declension of caomh (first declension)

bare forms singular plural nominative caomh caoimh vocative a chaoimh a chaomha genitive caoimh caomh dative caomh caoimh forms with the definite article singular plural nominative an caomh na caoimh genitive an chaoimh na gcaomh dative leis an gcaomh don chaomh leis na caoimh

Mutation

Mutated forms of caomh

radical	lenition	eclipsis
caomh	chaomh	gcaomh

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Modern Irish.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

Further reading

• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977), “caomh”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla [Irish–English Dictionary], Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “1 cáem”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
• de Bhaldraithe, Tomás (1959), “caomh”, in English-Irish Dictionary, An Gúm

Scottish Gaelic

Etymology

From Old Irish cóem, from Proto-Celtic *koimos (“dear, nice”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱóymos (“of the home, belonging to the family”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kʰɯːv/

Adjective

caomh (comparative nas caoimhe, superlative as caoimhe)

1. kind, meek, gracious, gentle, mild
2. emollient
3. tender
4. dear, beloved
5. bland

Derived terms

• is caomh le (“like (verb)”)

Noun

caomh m (genitive singular caoimh, plural caoimh)

1. kindness, gentleness, friendship, hospitality
2. friend
3. beloved object
4. (rare) feast

Mutation

Mutation of caomh

radical	lenition
caomh	chaomh

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Scottish Gaelic.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

References

• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “1 cáem”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language