There are differences between all three. ‘Breathnaigh’ and ‘Féach’ are often heard in Connacht and Munster dialects, while ‘Amharc’ is predominantly used in the Ulster dialect.
These examples are in the present tense.
The verbs require the use of the preposition ‘ar’/on before the object in the sentence:
| Féachaim ar scannáin gach deireadh seachtaine. | I watch movies every weekend. |
| Breathnaímid ar an nuacht mar theaghlach gach oíche. | We watch the news as a family every night. |
| Amharcann Clíodhna ar an gclár ‘Home and Away’ go rialta. | Clíodhna watches the programme ‘Home and Away’ regularly. |
To pose a question using these verbs, we must place the particle ‘An’ before the verb. An will add an urú to ‘Féach’ and ‘Breathnaigh’ as they begin with consonants.
To use these verbs in the negative, simply add the particle ‘Ní’ before the verb. Ní will apply a séimhiú to the verb where possible.
What about ‘Féach ar’?
“Féach ar” (similar to look at) is generally more about actually watching something, though you can use it when you want someone to consider something too.
Note: you can have “féach” alone when drawing someone’s attention to something (though you can also use it to mean trying something or considering something):
| Féach ar an bhfear san | Look at that man |
| Féach ar an dteilifís | Look at the television / Watch the television |
| Féach an fear san | Consider that man / See that man |
| Féach an teilifís | Consider the television… (…a device which has had a great impact on…, etc. etc.) |
| Féach an leabhar a scríobh X | Consider the book X wrote / See the book X wrote |
You can also say things like “bhíos ag féachaint conas a dhéanfainn é” – I was trying to figure out how I’d do it/I was trying to see how I’d do it. “Chuas go dtí a thigh, féachaint an raibh sé fós ann” – I went to his house, to see if he was still there.
For those learning Gaeilge Chorca Dhuibhne, the pronunciation would be ‘héach’ when using ‘féach’ as an interjection e.g. Héach! Tá Pól ag teacht! From the book An Teanga Bheo: Chorca Dhuibne:
“Nuair is intriacht é seo deirtear héach, m.sh. Héach é seo! Is féidir h a ra sa chonasc chomh maith, m.sh. Chuas sios héach an mbeadh sé tacaithe.”