Gra
Love, affection, deep regard. Borrowed straight from Irish 'grá' and used in English when the speaker wants the warmth of an Irish word for the feeling - 'she has a gra for the place' is fond and unmistakably Irish.
Etymology
From Irish 'grá' (love), itself from Old Irish 'grád', ultimately from Proto-Celtic '*gʷrātus'. Borrowed into Hiberno-English as a direct loanword; the Irish spelling with the fada is usually preserved in print, though 'gra' (no accent) is common in casual writing. The same word entered Scots as 'gra' through Ulster contact, where it kept its sense of affection.
In a sentence
anybody who's been here develops a massive grá for Achill. - Irish Independent Magazine, 2023
Historical notes
Grá and love are not synonyms in Hiberno-English - they coexist. Where 'love' is the standard English word and carries the standard English emotional range, 'grá' is reserved for the warmer, more particular kind of regard, particularly for places ('a grá for Donegal'), for objects ('a grá for the old record player'), and for situations of pleased fondness rather than burning passion. It does for affection what 'craic' does for fun.
Alternate spellings
grá · graw
Sources
- Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla (Ó Dónaill), entry grá. · dictionary
- Irish Independent Magazine, 2023 (cited in Wiktionary). · other