Croeso yn ôl i Groeseiriau Cymraeg.

Last week we covered the past tense long form - long form . You will recall that this involved the use of a helper verb 'gwneud'. Thus 'wnes i darllen' = I read ( or perhaps more precisely 'I  did  read' ). In English we can say 'I did read the book' or 'I read the book'. In Welsh the situation is similar except that the use of gwneud does not denote emphasis. 'Wnes i darllen' and 'darllenais i' are equivalent in meaning and both mean 'I read' (past tense).

The long form is more commonly used in spoken Welsh particularly in the North. The short form  is more widely used in the South and is also preferred in more formal (written) contexts.

In order to form the past tense short form we add the relevant endings to the stem of the verb. To find the stem of a verb in Welsh:-

• For verbs ending with a vowel we drop the vowel and add the appropriate ending ( Welsh vowels = a e i o u w y) e.g   gwrando  (to listen) - gwrandais i = I listened

• For verbs ending with  -io we drop the o. e.g   chwilio  (to search) - chwiliais i = I searched

• For verbs ending  in -eg / -ed we drop the final syllable. e.g.  rhedeg  (to run) -  rhedais i.  cerdded  (to walk) -  cerddais i
  

• The relevant verb endings are listed below. ...
  
  

Affirmative

darllenais i                                               I read
darllenaist ti (familiar)                             You read
darllenoch chi (formal, plural)                 You read
darllenodd e/hi                                        He/ she read
darllenon ni                                             We read
darllenon nhw                                         They read...

Negative

darllenais i ddim                                          I didn't read
darllenaist ti ddim (familiar)                        You didn't read
darllenoch chi  ddim (formal, plural)           You didn't read
darllenodd e/hi  ddim                                  He/ she didn't read
darllenon ni  ddim                                       We didn't read
darllenon nhw  ddim                                   They didn't read

Take some time to learn the endings above and practice forming this tense with other verbs that you know. There are some practice examples below (there will be more in the next lesson) and of course the weekly crossword. Whatever you do....enjoy / mwynhewch.
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If there are is any vocabulary you need to look up go here: Geiriadur You will find the answers at the bottom of the page.

Darllenon ni am y ffilm ddoe.  = We read about the movie yesterday.

Prynais y cwrw yn y dafarn.  =  I bought the beer in the pub.

Nofion nhw yn y pwll ar y traeth.  =  They swam in the pool on the beach.

We looked at the car first. =  Edrychon ni ar y car yn gyntaf.

...

If there are is any vocabulary you need to look up go here: Geiriadur You will find the answers at the bottom of the page.

Cerddais i ddim i'r orsaf.  = I didn't walk to the station.

Bwytais i ddim y bresych.  =  I didn't eat the cabbage.

Gweithiais i ddim ddoe.  =  I didn't work yesterday.

I did not search for another book. =  Chwiliais i ddim am lyfr arall.

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And so to our weekly crossword. The theme is -  'Yr Amser Gorffennol (Short Form)'

• Click through the slides below and learn the words as you go.
  

• Optional: If you want help with pronunciation or wish to check out other vocabulary entries on the wordcard, click the pic or text below to be taken to the appropriate Geiriadur listing page. 

• Attempt the crossword puzzle here  Cymraeg - Vocabulary Crossword 17  (interactive) or if you prefer to do it the old fashioned way you can download a hard copy of  the grid here Crossword 17 Print Version  (.pdf)
  
  

That's it for week five. We hope that you have enjoyed the fifth instalment of the course and that your knowledge of the Welsh language has improved. Next week we will be covering the pluperfect tense in Welsh.
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* Don't worry if some of the sample sentences are at a more advanced level. Concentrate on the simpler ones unless of course you are feeling adventurous and want to read ahead.

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Darllenon ni am y ffilm ddoe . = We read about the movie yesterday.

Prynais y cwrw yn y dafarn. = I bought the beer in the pub.

Nofion nhw yn y pwll ar y traeth. = They swam in the pool on the beach.

We looked at the car first. = Edrychon ni ar y car yn gyntaf.

Cerddais i ddim i'r orsaf. = I didn't walk to the station.

Bwytais i ddim y bresych. = I didn't eat the cabbage.

Gweithiais i ddim ddoe. = I didn't work yesterday.

I did not search for another book. = Chwiliais i ddim am lyfr arall.

AmeriCymru is committed to doing everything it can to assist its members and readers to acquire a working knowledge of the Welsh language. Whether your goal is fluency or merely the ability to order a pizza and beer when on vacation in Caernarfon you will find helpful resources on this site....  

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