Nine English Words You Probably Didn't Know Came From Irish

REPUB/REDIRECT Nine English Words You Didn't Know Were Actually Irish Shutterstock/Getty Images
From slogans to minutiae, you have the Irish to thank for your crazy language (Photo: Shutterstock/Getty Images)

On St. Patrick's Day, millions of people take to the streets dressed in green, with shamrocks on their faces, celebrating Irish culture.

Thanks to the tireless efforts of Irish migrants, Paddy's Day will be celebrated around the world in 2025.

From Sydney to Santiago, Dublin to Dubai, and Tokyo to Toronto, you're sure to find somewhere to party. Only St. Nicholas could rival the title of the world's most beloved saint.

However, you may find that Irish words and phrases are more common than you thought.

Some of our favorite slang phrases and terms have roots in the Irish language, which natives call Gaeilge.

From the nickname of the Conservative Party to our slang for fun and one of Britain's most popular drinks, many have surprising origins on the island of Ireland.

Crake

“What's the fuss?” you can ask your friends instead of “What's the story” or “What's going on” when you meet them for a pint at the pub.

And you'll certainly enjoy it when the conversations start flowing.

LONDON, ENGLAND - MARCH 1: Ezra Collective celebrate winning the BRIT Awards at the Ezra Collective x Courvoisier BRIT Awards Party at Ronnie Scott's on March 1, 2025 in London, England. (Photo: Ricky Vigil M/GC Images)
Can you guess the connection between Ronnie Scott's famous jazz club and the Irish language (Photo: Ricky Vigil M/GC Images)

This word doesn't require much explanation, but for those who aren't familiar, it means fun or having a good time and came into the English language from Ireland.

However, its origins are a little more confusing.

Evidence of the cultural exchange between these islands is the fact that craic actually originated in Britain.

It comes from the Scottish and North East English term “crack”, which means loud gossip, jokes or boasting.

The word Craic then took on its characteristic Irish spelling and retained it when it came back into use in England.

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, USA - MARCH 15: A view of the Chicago River as it turns green in honor of the annual St. Patrick's Day celebration in Chicago, United States on March 15, 2025. (Photo by Jacek Boczarski/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Chicago's decision to dye its river green is a controversial choice that some see as unnecessary (Photo: Jacek Boczarski/Anadolu via Getty Images)

In abundance

This word, meaning “plenty” (you have plenty of Guinness here), has a somewhat less lofty meaning in the original Irish.

This is an anglicised spelling of the phrase “go leoir”, which translates as “enough”, and was adopted by English speakers around 400 years ago.

Hooligan

This word, which means an aggressive troublemaker, conjures up images of drunken mobs brawling after a football match. In fact, it comes from an Irish surname.

The English term “hooligan”, which can be variously spelled Houlihan, O'Houlihan or Ó hUallacháin, was first recorded in 19th-century police reports on youth gangs in London.

It became popular in the early 20th century, possibly due to its use as the name of a fictional rowdy Irish family in a music hall song.

There will be Guinness and festive food galore this St Patrick's Day (Photo: William West/AFP via Getty Images)

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Sourse: metro.co.uk

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