Nia is an aspiring writer from Powys, Wales. She attended Welsh-medium primary and secondary school, and is passionate about preserving the beautiful Welsh language and culture. She speaks some French, and is currently learning Arabic.
Mis Gorffennaf (July) has to be one of the loveliest misoedd (months) of the blwyddyn (year), and I promise I’m not just biased because it’s my penblwydd (birthday). Gorffennaf July Theoretically, mis Gorffennaf is heulog (sunny), cynnes (warm) and braf (fine). Prime time, then, for gwyliau (holidays), teithio (travel), partis (parties), and spending time in …
One of the most universal experiences when learning a new language – or, to be honest, speaking in any language! – is baglu [dros eich] geiriau (tripping over words). Baglu means to trip or to stumble. It can be very literal, as in baglu dros eich traed (tripping over your feet), or metaphorical, as in …
Recently, I’ve been looking forward to visiting my parents’ house even more than normal, since they recently got a ci bach. Ci bach means puppy, but it is also literally a small dog. In reality Penny (that’s her name) is going to be a very big ci indeed, because she’s a ci Labrador (Labrador). Specifically, …
Do you have any Welsh words you’ve learnt that you think are particularly hyfryd (lovely)? If so, we’d love to hear about them – and you never know, maybe one will be our next word of the day! But today’s word of the day is hyfryd itself, an adjective that’s pronounced like this: hyfryd lovely …
Llipa is a word that to me really sounds like what it means – limp, flaccid, or floppy. It can also be used in a non-literal sense to mean that something is weak or feeble, as in the phrase esgus llipa (a feeble excuse). Antonyms for llipa could include caled (hard) and cryf (strong), since …
I’ve always loved the Welsh word clustog, meaning cushion or pillow, because I find it so unique, with the first part of the word clust meaning ear. You’d think that naming pillows after ears wouldn’t be that common, but in actuality I was wrong – clustog’s not unique because French has the very same construction …
Our Welsh word of the day today is gwag. This is an adjective which means empty – including empty-headed! It can also, for some contexts, mean vain. The antonym is llawn or llond (full), depending on the context. gwag empty Gwag has been a Welsh word for a very long time, appearing in Old Welsh …
Our Welsh word of the day today is helynt (trouble). This noun can mean trouble as in difficulty or bother, and it can also mean trouble more as in a specifically trafferthus (troublesome) situation, like a predicament. It doesn’t mean trouble as in someone’s worries or things that are troubling them; this would be pryderon …
If you’ve been learning Welsh for a while, you may have already encountered our word of the day today, which is afon (river). The plural is afonydd (rivers). This –ydd is a fairly common plural ending in Welsh; for example, it’s used in chwiorydd (sisters). Many, but not all, nouns that are pluralised with –ydd …
How do you like to cadw’n heini (keep fit / stay active)? Heinifrwydd or, more commonly, ffitrwydd (physical fitness) is a complex subject since there are many factors – personal and societal – that influence someone’s level of iechyd (health) and abledd (ability). And the word heini is a complex word, too, since though it’s …
