How often do we find ourselves in situations that bring a sigh of sadness, anger, or despair, or perhaps a groan of pain, distress, or disapproval? (Too often, I’m afraid!) In Welsh, the verb-noun ochneidio perfectly captures the act of expressing these emotions through such sounds.
ochneidio
to sigh / to groan
Etymologically speaking, it is a variant of ucheneidio, which shares the same meaning. This form was influenced by the exclamation och (expressing woe or despair) and the verb-noun ochain (which also means to sigh or groan).
Because ochneidio begins with a vowel, it never undergoes mutation.
Mae hi’n ochneidio gyda thristwch.
She is sighing with sadness.
Let’s quickly look over some of the most commonly used conjugations of ochneidio:
| Future | Conditional | Past | |
| First person singular | Ochneidia (i) I will sigh | Ochneidiwn (i) I would sigh | Ochneidiais (i) I sighed |
| First person plural | Ochneidiwn (ni) We will sigh | Ochneidien (ni) We would sigh | Ochneidion (ni) We sighed |
| Second person singular / informal | Ochneidi (di) You will sigh | Ochneidiet (ti) You would sigh | Ochneidiaist (ti) You sighed |
| Second person plural / formal | Ochneidiwch (chi) You will sigh | Ochneidiech (chi) You would sigh | Ochneidioch (chi) You sighed |
| Third person singular | Ochneidiff/ ochneidith (ef/o/hi) He/she will sigh | Ochneidiai (ef/o/hi) He/she would sigh | Ochneidiodd (ef/o/hi) He/she sighed |
| Third person plural | Ochneidian (nhw) They will sigh | Ochneidien (nhw) They would sigh | Ochneidion (nhw) They sighed |
People ochneidio for various reasons, often as an emotional or physical response to a situation. Here are some common scenarios:
- rhwystredigaeth (frustration) when something doesn’t go fel y cynlluniwyd (as planned)
- tristwch (sadness) if you experience a colled bersonol (personal loss) or hear newyddion drwg (bad news)
- dolur / poen (pain) if you brifo dy hun / eich hun (hurt yourself) or experience a salwch (illness)
- diflastod (boredom) provoked by sitting through a long cyfarfod (meeting) or darlith (lecture)
- gwylltineb (exasperation) from dealing with someone’s irritating ymddygiad (behaviour), such as a child refusing to eat his llysiau (vegetables)
- ymostyngiad (resignation) after coming to terms with an unavoidable or unpleasant sefyllfa (situation)
- hiraeth (nostalgia) while thinking about a person, place, or time you colli (miss)
Ochneidiodd e’n drwm ar ôl clywed y newyddion.
He sighed heavily after hearing the news.
Below are some of the most common synonyms for ochneidio:
- ochain = to sigh or groan (literary)
- och = an exclamation of sighing or lamenting, like Oh! (used as an interjection)
- griddfan = to groan, often associated with pain or discomfort
- cwynfan = to moan or complain
- rhuo = to roar or bellow
- ebychu = to gasp
