Tiny questions with quick answers - continuing thread

Need help with understanding the context of Welsh polite commands! Diolch :slight_smile:

Does this means "Would you be as good to clean up " literally? I know the “a” is not “and” here … but in written welsh is it just seen in future tense?

yes, absolutely that. The a is an â because here it acts as the ‘as’ - cystal â = so good as. You’ll also see it in things like “cyn gynted â phosib” (as soon as possible). It’s not relative to tense - you could have “des i cyn gynted â fedrwn i” (I came as soon as I could)

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Diolch … but I meant the “A” before Fyddech! :smiley: Sorry I was not clear… “Cystal â” is a set phrase yes

Ah, right! The A there is because it is a request - there is an implied question (even though it is without a question mark).

and again, it’s not relative to tense - you could have “A oedd o’n barod?” (Was he ready?), although it’s very often not used in speech (“oedd o’n barod?” also = was he ready?)

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I’ve always thought of this as a comparative phrase but that’s not how I see the english way of saying it, what are we comparing? I don’t know whether it’s my english skills letting me down here or I’ve misunderstood the Welsh meaning.

Liking your new avatar by the way, if only people looked at each other like that more often. :grin:

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It is a comparative phrase but it’s also widely used in polite requests in Welsh - fyset cystal â’i nôl y caws? would you be so good as to fetch the cheese? I guess in English it would more often be “would you be so kind as to…”

The avatar is a nod to my conversations on Slack - anyone I’ve spoken to on there knows it’s never just me making noise! :rofl:

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Well, well, thank you. The english, in my mind, “would you be so good as to do something?” is usually followed by “old boy.” and said by cravat wearing, moustachioed, pipe smokers whilst relaxing in a red leather arm chair. :wink:

“Oess modd i ti/chi …” is the most polite form I can muster.

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Hi @siaronjames

I have thought previously that the dog in your avatar has similarities to one of mine - but as it’s just a headshot it may just be the whiskers under the chin! - the rest of him/ her may be completely different (!) - what breed of dog is it?

Mine is a complete mixture! - a rescue as you know…sort of half terrier half whippet - like a small lurcher or long haired Viszla - unusual!

Rich :slight_smile:

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Os mae’n bosib…Ive heard tool…but probably recent english phraseology borrowing by me :smiley:

He’s a rescue brithgi too :wink:

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Ooo that’s a useful word - thank you.

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It seems yours is a smidge more terrier and mine is smidge more whippet - although he is surprisingly solid when you pick him up :smile:

Rich :slight_smile:

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Brithgi is mongrel I think?

Daeargi - Terrier

Ci Defaid - Sheepdog

Milgi - Greyhound! (famous welsh song on youtube about milgi milgi!)

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Well, Google Translate recognizes ‘brithgi’, and say it means ‘mongrel’. Wiktionary doesn’t give me anything. :thinking:
There’s also ‘corgi’, of course- dwarf dog. :wink:

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yes, brithgi is mongrel. I tell everyone he’s a brithgi whatever language they ask me his breed in! :wink:

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Hi everyone, I’m not 100% if this is how I ask a small question on here but I gotta try? :joy:

• Is na the command of gwneud, because I hear people (from the south) say “Na y peth iawn” for “Do the right thing”

• How would you say “that” in Welsh (preferably South Welsh) because I used to think it was just yna/'na but now I hear more 'ny

  • for example: “wi’n gwybod 'ny” for “I know that”

• How do you say “it”, because I always hear hi being used, but then I wonder why they wouldn’t use fe

• On tv series I hear them saying something like “y ffach” [for example: “Beth y ffach”, “Pam y ffach”] and the subtitles translate it as stuff like “on earth” and “the hell”, I’m just wondering if I’m hearing it right. (It does sound like “the f**k” in English, maybe it’s an expression influenced by that?)

If anyone can help answer any of these I’d be very grateful :slight_smile:

Thank you

  1. Yes, the imperative of gwneud is gwna, but you’ll usually hear it spoken simply as 'na.

  2. yna is “that” in a demonstrative sense: Ti’n gweld y boi’na? Do you see that boy?
    In the sense of “I know that” you’ll hear Dw i’n gwybod 'ny, where 'ny is a common shortening of hynny

  3. In Welsh, non-specified "it"s are always hi. e / fe are only used when a male noun is referenced. Sometimes, the pronoun disappears completely:
    Mae’n anodd! It’s hard!

  4. yffach is a common variant of uffern, which is just the Welsh word for hell. So Beth yffach?! = What the hell!?

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This might sound ridiculous but I just cannot get into my head when to use ‘Dw i’ or ‘On i’. Is ‘On i’ the past tense of ‘Dw i’?

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Hi Helen,

Yes it’s one of the past tense versions. And your question isn’t ridiculous.

So Dw i + yn - I am
O’n i + yn - I was

:slight_smile:

Diolch Anthony. I just need the linguistic agility to go to the right form when speaking! I suppose it will come eventually.

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