I've been trying to decipher the following and it leaves me with a couple questions:

"a bhíonn maoin an pheacaigh á cnuasach."

(1) does the particle go with bhíonn, and is it properly translated 'has been?'

(2) what is the purpose of the á before cnuasach?

(3) Isn't cnuasach a noun? The whole phrase appears to be using it as part of a verb form. "has been gathered."

Give us a full sentence, fragments are useless.

I'd say it was something like:

Is minic a bhíonn maoin an pheacaigh á cnuasach.

It's often that the assests of the sinner are being hoarded.

(1) I don't understand the question. "bíonn" is simply the present tense of the English verb "is", for instance:

The cat is on the wall every day. (I'd actually say "The cat does be on the wall".)
Bíonn an cat ar an mballa gach lá.

(2) You could translate it as "being", for instance:

She's being annoyed.
Tá sí á crá.

(3) "cnuasach" is the verbal noun of the verb "cuasaigh", which means "hoard".

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If it had been "a mbíonn" instead of "a bhíonn", I would've thought it was something like:

Sin an bhean a mbíonn maoin an pheacaigh á cnuasach.
That's the woman whom the sinner's assests does be hoarding.
(Not logical, but grammatically correct.)

Quote: "Give us a full sentence, fragments are useless."

Is ar mhaithe leis an bhfiréan a bhíonn maoin an pheacaigh á cnuasach.

I see the answer to my first question" the a is translated as "that."

What about the á preceeding cnuasach?

Is ar mhaithe leis an bhfiréan a bhíonn maoin an pheacaigh á cnuasach.

It is for the good of The Just One that the sinner's assets be hoarded.

I couldn't find "firéan" in the dictionary, so I google'd it and found:

Sé Íosa an Firéan.
Jesus is the just one.

Go raibh maith agat, a Fhear_na_mbróg. By the way, An Foclóir Póca gives the definition of firéan as a just person. Apparently it is also used as an adjective meaning righteous. I guess the capitalization renders it a specific reference to Christ.

That sounds like a quote from the bible.

The sense is that the unjust will gather, but the just will benefit.

It's out of An leabhar seanfhocal

English NIV reads something like:

"...but the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous."

Often cited out of context to countenance the building of churches with the proceeds from gambling casinos. Bingo!

Tá seanfhocal againn: Sáraíonn seanfhocal seanfhocal eile. ;-) Seo agaibh an ceann Gaelach a sháraíonn an ceann Giúdach:

An rud a chruinnítear ar dhroim an diabhail, imíonn sé ar a bholg.

"Ill-gotten gains seldom prosper" an t-aistriúchán a thug De Bhaldraithe air. The Irish is obviously a good deal more colorful!

Sin a cheap mé, a Phádraig. Ach theip orm é aimsiú.

Bhí an cur amach ag Gael ar shaibhreas an Bhíobla.

Maidir le do cheisteanna:
The verb is "cnuasaigh", cnuasach is the verbal noun.


I think "a bhíonn" is the habitual present, so the answer to (1) is no.

á [aidiacht shealbhach]
aidiacht shealbhach sa tríú pearsa le hainmneacha briathartha (á chosaint, á cosaint, á gcosaint; bhí sé á gceannach; bhí siad á gceannach aige).

This "á" is ag+ a (possessive) or do+a (possessive)

gheobhfá:

do mo chosaint = a mo chosaint
do do chosaint = a do chosaint
dá chosaint = dhá chosaint = á chosaint
dá cosaint = dhá cosaint = á cosaint
dár gcosaint = dhár gcosaint = ’ár gcosaint
do bhur gcosaint = ’bhur gcosaint
dá gcosaint = dhá gcosaint = á gcosaint