A Welsh
to English Dictionary in page format
http://www.kimkat.org/amryw/1_vortaroy/geiriadur_cymraeg_saesneg_BAEDD_m_1022e..htm
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Index to this online dictionary
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Gwefan
Cymru-Catalonia
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TUDALENNAU ERAILL Y GEIRIADUR HWN
OTHER PAGES IN
THIS DICTIONARY
1580e A | 1039e B | 1735e BR | 1018e C | 1071e CE | 1675e CI | 1040e CR | 1075e CY | 1020e D | 1674e DI | 1072e E | 1077e F | 1021e G | 1042e GW | 1038e H | 1676e HY, I, J, K, | 1865e L | 1022e M | 1677e MI | 1047e N | 1600e O | 1023e P | 1073e PL | 1026e R |
1070e S | 1024e T | 1076e TR | 1025e U,V | 1731e W, X
| 1586e Y, Z
|
:_______________________________.
M, m [EM] [ɛm] feminine noun
1) thirteenth
letter of the twenty-six letter Roman alphabet
...1
a, 2
b, 3
c, 4
d 5
e, 6
f, 7
g, 8 h, 9
i, 10 j, 11
k, 12
l, 13
m, 14
n, 15
o, 16
p, 17
q, 18
r, 19 s, 20
t, 21
u, 22
v, 23
w, 24
x, 25
y, 26
z
2) seventeenth
letter of the twenty-nine letter Welsh alphabet
...1 a,
2 b,
3 c,
4 ch,
5 d,
6 dd
7 e,
8 f,
9 ff,
10 g,
11 ng,
12 h, 13 i, 14 j, 15 l, 16 ll, 17 m, 18 n, 19 o, 20 p, 21 ph, 22 r, 23 rh, 24 s, 25 t, 26 th, 27 u, 28 w, 29 y
:_______________________________.
m
1 an assimilation of n before b
(n + b) > mb
..1/ Dinbych (= town in north-east
Wales, ‘little fortress’) > (local form) Dimbech
..2/ enbyd (= danger) > embyd
..3/ (English “hand board”) > hanbwrdd
> hambwrdd (= tray)
..4/ Llanbedr (= church of Saint
Peter) > Llambed,
..5/ tanbaid (= burning hot, ardent)
> tambed
..6/ tinbren (= back board of a
cart) > (colloquially) timbren
The same assimilation is common in other languages:
..1/ Catalan tan bé (“as well”) >
també (“as well” in the sense of
“also”),
..2/ Latin imbibere - in (= in) + bibere (= drink) (hence English imbibe)
m
1 In words of English origin which
had initial v in English
mael < fael [vaail] < English vail (= advantage), archaic form of avail < Old French valoir
< Latin valeere (= be worth, be
strong).
The original Welsh form fael was
given a radical form mael, since
initial f [v] is generally a soft-mutated initial in Welsh (from radical [m] or
[b])
2 In words of Welsh origin which had
initial b. Both b and m soft mutate to v (mam, y fam; mother, the
mother; bach, y fach; hook, the hook), and so in some words there
has been confusion about which is the initial consonant of the base form.
bawd (= thumb), medd (= measurement)
bawd-fedd (“thumb measurement”) > bodfedd > modern Welsh modfedd
(= inch)
:_______________________________.
ma ‹MAA›
1 (obsolete) plain
It occurs as the first element of maes (= field; plain), as ma
(= plain) in place names (Machynlleth, Mechain < Ma Chain, Mathafarn),
and as the suffix –fa (= place).
ETYMOLOGY: ma < Old Welsh “magh” < Celtic mag-
NOTE: Found in numerous Celtic place names on the Continent and in Britain and
Ireland
E.g. The name of the town of Blond in France is from Gaulish Blat-o-mag-os.
This is either “grain field” or “flower field”
(blat- = grain, flower) + (mag- = plain, field)
It corresponds to modern Welsh blawd (= flower), or blod- < blawd (=
flower) in blodyn (= flower), and (ma = plain, < Old Welsh magh
= plain).
The equivalent form of Blat-o-mag-os in modern Welsh would
be “Blodfa”.
(delw 7226)
:_______________________________.
ma’ [MAA,
MA] [mɑː, ma] verb
1
southern form of mae (= is, there
is, ‹it› is, ‹he› is, ‹she› is, etc)
Usually spelt (less correctly)
ma
See aa / maa
:_______________________________.
ma [MA] [ma]
(adverb)
Also 'ma
1 Short form of yma = here
:_______________________________.
“maa” [MAA] [mɑː]
1
southern form of mae (= is, there
is)
Usually spelt ma / ma’
See aa
:_______________________________.
“mää” [MÄÄ] [mæː]
1
south-eastern form of mae (= is,
there is)
Usually spelt ma / mæ
See aa / maa
:_______________________________.
“maan” [MAAN] [mɑːn]
1
southern form of maen (= stone)
Usually spelt mân / ma’n
See aa
:_______________________________.
“mään” [MÄÄN] [mæːn]
1
south-eastern form of maen (= stone)
Usually spelt mên / mæn
See aa / maan
:_______________________________.
“maas” [MAAS] [mɑːs]
1
southern form of maes (= field), or ’maas < i maes (= outside)
Usually spelt mâs / ma’s
See aa
:_______________________________.
“määs” [MÄÄS] [mæːs]
1
south-eastern form of maes (=
field), or ’määs < i maes (= outside)
Usually spelt mês / mæs
See aa / maas
:_______________________________.
mab [MAAB] [mɑːb] masculine noun
PLURAL meibion
[MEIB-yon] [ˡməɪbjɔn]
1 son = male child in relation to the parents
Mae ganddo bedwar mab He's got four
sons
2 son = male child adopted as a son
mab mabwysiedig adopted
son
3 mab-yng-nghyfraith
son-in-law
4 obsolete child (son or
daughter); This sense survives in the word baban
(= baby), originally maban (mab + diminutive suffix -an).
The change of initial m to b occurs in other words (the change in
the reverse direction b to m also occurs) - bothe have the soft
mutation f, which may account for
this confusion about the appropriate radical consonant. In the case of baban there may also be the influece of
English baby, the first use of which
has been noted in the 1300s, and which is probably from the language of
infants, being a reduplicative form; cf daddy,
mummy.
5 boy, lad (in contrast to a girl)
mab a merch a boy and a girl, man
and woman
Gwelai fab a merch yn eistedd ar gamfa
He could see a boy and a girl sitting on a stile
Fel pob geneth sy'n ymwybodol am y tro
cyntaf o deimladau mab tuag ati.
Like every girl who is conscious for the first time of the feelings of a boy
for her.
6
man
côr meibion male-voice choir (“choir
(of) men”)
Genesis 50:26 A Joseff a fu farw yn fab
deng mlynedd a chant: a hwy a'i peraroglasant ef; ac efe a ● osodwyd mewn
arch yn yr Aifft
Genesis 50:26 So Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old: and they
embalmed him and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.
7 descendant
mab Adda - a son of Adam, a
descendant of Adam, a human being
8 (Christianity) Jesus Christ, the Second Person of the Trinity;
called
(1) y Mab
Mathew 28:19
yn enw'r Tad, a'r Mab, a'r Ysbryd Glân
in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost
also:
(2) Mab Duw (the Son of God),
(3) Mab Dyn (the Son on Man)
9 mab y tŷ son of a
householder
10 boy or man brought up in a particular kind of household:
mab y mans, the son of a family
living in a manse, the son of the family living in the manse
mab y plas the son of a family
living in a mansion, the son of the family living in the mansion
11 boy or man who is son of the owner of a named farm
Mab Nant-y-moch yw e He’s the son /
one of the sons of the man at Nant-y-moch farm, he’s one of the Nant-y-moch
family
12 Meibion (toilet) “Men,
Gentlemen, Gents” (usually Dynion =
men)
13 person from a named area
Pan aeth meibion y sir allan i ymladd ar
y “ffrynt”, daeth erchyllderau'r rhyfel yn hysbys i bob cymuned yng
Ngheredigion
When the men of the county went out to fight on the front the horrors of the
war became known to every community in (the county of) Ceredigion
14 in patronymics in the form ab
or ap; for example,
ab Owen = son of Owen,
ap Hywel = son of Hywel
_________________________________________________
(1) The original form was fab. with
soft mutation to indicate genitive relation
Hywel fab Owen (Hywel son of Owen), Wiliam fab Huw, Hywel fab Rhys, Hywel fab
Siôn
Apocrypha Esdras-1 8:1 Ac wedi'r pethau hyn, pan oedd
Artacsercses brenin y Persiaid yn teyrnasu, y daeth Esdras mab Saraias, fab Esereias, fab Helcias, fab Salum,
Apocrypha Esdras-1 8:1 And after these things, when Artexerxes the king of the
Persians reigned came Esdras the son of Saraias, the son of Ezerias, the son of
Helchiah, the son of Salum,
_________________________________________________
(2) The initial [v] [v] was dropped
Hywel ab Owen, Wiliam ab Huw, Hywel ab Rhys,
Hywel ab Siôn
_________________________________________________
(3) There was devoicing of [b] [b] > [p] [p] except when the name began with a vowel
Hywel ab Owen, Wiliam ap Huw, Hywel ap Rhys,
Hywel ap Siôn
_________________________________________________
(4) Before a vowel or [h] [h] or [hr] [hr] the vowel of ‘ab / ap’ was lost and the consonant
became a preclitic; before other consonants ‘ap’ was lost completely
Hywel b-Owen > Hywel Bowen
Wiliam p-Huw > Wiliam Puw
Hywel p-Rhys > Hywel Prys
Hywel Siôn
_________________________________________________
(5) many present surnames are these patronymics, normally with English
orthography
Bowen (same spelling in Welsh and in English),
Puw > (English spelling) Pugh,
Prys > (English spelling) Preece, (also Price, formerly also pronounced as
“Preece”, but English long vowel [ii] [iː] became [ai] [aɪ] around 1500)
_________________________________________________
(6) In Middle Welsh the spellings map
i ap represented both a
pronunciation with final [b] [b] and with final
[p] [p]. Hence Hywel ap
Owen would be [ab] [ab] and not [ap] [ap].
_________________________________________________
15 apparently used in older Welsh as a diminutive – a prefix or
suffix of endearment = little;
.....(1) Deiniol-fab ‘little
Deiniol’ in the place-name Llanddeiniol-fab
..... (2) mabsant a parish feast
(‘little patron saint’)
..... (3) (obsolete) mablan ‘little
land’ (= grave; llan = land)
..... (4) (obsolete) mablygad
‘little eye’ (= pupil of the eye; llygad
= eye)
..... (5) (obsolete) mapgainc young
branch, twig, shoot (cainc = branch)
..... (6) (obsolete) mapgorn inner
part of an animal’s horn (corn =
horn)
16 In South Wales the plural form meibion > meibon >
miibon (a regular change – simplification of the diphthong “ei” to become a
half-long vowel “ii”; and the loss of the initial consonantal “–i” of a final
syllable)
Also in place names in the South:
(1) John Hobson Mathews (Mab Cernyw) in 'Cardiff Records' (1889-1911), notes a
meadow called Gwaun Feibon Siôn
“Gwayne Veibon Shone: (the meadow of the sons of John.) A tenement in the
parish of Pentyrch and lordship of Miscyn (1666)”
(2) Llangatwg Feibion Afel village
in the county of Mynwy (“(the) Llangatwg (of the) sons (of) Abel”) . The local
form would have been Llangatwg Feibon
Afal / Llangatwg Fiibon Afal.
The “English” form “Llangattock Vibon Avel” is an Englished form of the local
Welsh pronunciation (rather than an adaptation of the literary form of the
name).
17 meib sons; archaic
plural form.
Deallais ei fod yn un o feib yr awen, yn
Gristion hawddgar a da (Twynog - Cyfrol Goffa y diweddar T. Twynog
Jeffreys, Rhymni. 1912. Tudaeln 28)
I understood he was a poet (“one of the sons of the muse”), a good and
agreeable Christian
18 Meibion Cernyw Welsh
translation of Mebyon Kernow (‘(the)
sons (of) Cornwall’), the home-rule political party of Cornwall
19 ’mab i my son, sonny –
addressing one’s son or a young lad (= fy mab i, “my son (of) me”)
20 mab darogan messiah, a
liberator or deliverer whose coming has been prophesied; (“prophesied man”), darogan = stem of the verb darogan (= predict, prophesy) used as a
past participle (= predicted, prophesied)
21 mab bedydd godson
(“blessed son, Christened son”)
Here the second element not bedydd (= baptism) but bedydd-, the stem of the verb bedyddio
(= to bless) used as a past participle
22 (South-east Wales) mab
gweddw plural meibion gweddw, meibion gweddwon bachelor
23 used in pen names
(1) Mab Cernyw (“(the) son (of)
Cornwall”) John Hobson Mathews, a Cornishman, archivist in Caer-dydd who
published 'Cardiff Records' (1889-1911)
(2) As a suffix -fab
.....(a) Creuddynfab [krei-DHIN-vab] [krəɪˡðɪnvab],
William Williams (1814-1869), author of “Y Barddoniadur Cymmreig” (1855) (“the
Welsh poetry guide”), from Creuddyn, Llandudno (county of Conwy)
24 mebyd youth. childhood
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < British *map-os
< Celtic
From the same British root: Breton mab
(= son), Cornish mab (= son)
From the same Celtic root: Irish mac (= son), Scottish mac
(= son), Manks mac (= son)
:_______________________________.
mabddall
[MAB-dhalh] [ˡmabðaɬ] masculine noun
PLURAL mabddeillod,
mabddelli [mab-DHEILH-yod, mab-DHE-lhi] [mabˡðəɪɬjɔd, mabˡðɛɬɪ]
1 lacerta vivipara =
slowworm
Standard name: neidr ddefaid (“snake
(of) sheep”)
2 lizard
bod fel maplath be restless (“be
like a lizard”)
3 newt
full name: mabddall dŵr
(‘mabddall’ (of) water)
Standard name: madfall ddŵr
NOTE: South Wales mablath
(South-east Wales maplath, but also
in Sir Gaerfyrddin);
plural mablathod, mablethi; maplathod, maplethi
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh mabddall (=
child blind at birth) > *mablladd
(metathesis: DD-LL becomes LL-DD) > mablath
(LL > L; devoicing of final DD > TH); south-east maplath (showing typical devoicing B > P when the first
consonant of a final syllable)
(mab = son) + soft mutation + (dall = blind)
:_______________________________.
Mabelfyw [ma-BEL-viu] [maˡbɛlvɪʊ] (feminine
noun)
1 (History) cwmwd / kumud (=
“neighbourhood”) of the kantrev of Cantref Mawr (Ystrad Tywi, South-west Wales)
:_______________________________.
Mabinogi [ma-bi-NOO-gi]
[mabɪˡnoˑgɪ] (masculine noun)
1 (obsolete) childhood story, story
of someone's childhood
2 Pedair
Cainc y Mabinogi (“four branches of the childhood story”) Four medieval
tales, c. 1100 (or in the range 1060-1200) those of Pwyll, Branwen, Manawydan,
Math
:_______________________________.
Mabinogion [ma-bi-NOG-yon]
[mabɪˡnɔgjɔn] (plural noun)
twelve medieval tales in Welsh, published beween 1838 and 1849 in three volumes
by Charlotte Guest
:_______________________________.
mablath
[MA-blath] [ˡmablaθ]
1 (South Wales) lizard. See mabddall
:_______________________________.
Mabli
[MA-bli] [ˡmablɪ] feminine noun
1 woman's name
2 Cefnmabli [KEE-ven-MA-bli] [ˡkeˑvɛnˡmablɪ] (qv) place near
Caer-dydd (“Mabli’s hill”)
ETYMOLOGY: ?
:_______________________________.
maboed
[MAAB-oid] [ˡmɑˑbɔɪd]
masculine noun
1 childhood; (somewhat literary; a more usual word is plentyndod)
Yr oedd yr ardal yr ymsefydlodd ynddi yn
Wisconsin yn rhyfeddol o debyg i ardal ei faboed yng Ngheredigion
The area where he settled in Wisconsin was amazingly like the area of his
childhood in Ceredigion
ETYMOLOGY: “child-age” (mab = son,
child) + (oed = age)
:_______________________________.
mabolgamp
[ma-BOL-gamp] [maˡbɔlgamp] feminine noun
PLURAL mabolgampau
[ma-bol-GAM-pai-ai, -e] [mabɔlˡgampaɪ, -ɛ]
1
obsolete youthful feat, young
people's game
y fabolgamp = the feat
ETYMOLOGY: 'juvenile feat' (mabol =
(obsolete meaning) juvenile) + soft mutation + (camp = feat)
:_______________________________.
mabolgampau
[ma-bol-GAM-pai, -e] [mabɔlˡgampaɪ, -ɛ] plural noun
1 athletics
2 diwrnod mabolgampau
sports day (day of sporting events in a school or college)
ETYMOLOGY: plural of mabolgamp (=
juvenile feat)
:_______________________________.
mabolgampwr
[ma-bol-GAM-pur] [mabɔlˡgampʊr] masculine noun
PLURAL mabolgampau
[ma-bol-GAMP-wir] [mabɔlˡgampwɪr]
1 athlete, sportsman
ETYMOLOGY: plural of (mabolgamp =
juvenile feat) + (-wr suffix, = man)
:_______________________________.
mabolgampwraig
[ma-bol-GAMP-reg] [mabɔlˡgamprɛg]
feminine noun
PLURAL mabolgampwragedd
[ma-bol-gamp-RAA-gedh] [mabɔlgampˡrɑˑgɛð]
1 athlete, sportswoman
y fabolgampwraig = the sportswoman
ETYMOLOGY: plural of (mabolgamp =
juvenile feat) + (-wraig suffix, =
woman)
:_______________________________.
Mabon
[MAA-bon] [ˡmɑˑbɔn] masculine noun
1 man's name
2
Place Names:
(1) Llanfabon (south-east Wales)
(qv) [lhan-VAA-bon] [ɬanˡvɑˑbɔn], (“(the)
church (of) Mabon”)
(2) Rhiwabon (north-east Wales) (qv)
[hriu-AA-bon] [hrɪʊˡɑˑbɔn] < rhiw
Fabon (“(the) slope (of) Mabon”)
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh (mab = son) + (-on = suffix used in forming names
of deities) < British maponos
NOTE: Mabon was an obsolete name, but was revived as a personal name
towards 1900
:_______________________________.
mabsant
[MAB-sant] [ˡmabsant] masculine noun
PLURAL mabseintiau
[mab-SEINT-yai, -e] [mabˡsəɪntjaɪ, -ɛ]
1
patron saint of a parish, parish saint
2 gwylmabsant parish
wake, parish celebration (annual celebration on the parish feastday, day of the
saint to whom the parish church is dedicated)
ETYMOLOGY: ‘little saint’ (mab =
son, used here as a diminutive prefix) + (sant
= saint)
:_______________________________.
Mabudrud [ma-BI-drid] [maˡbɪdrɪd] (feminine
noun) History
1 kumud of the kantrev of Cantref Mawr
(Ystrad Tywi, South-west Wales)
ETYMOLOGY: kumud < cwmwd =
“neighbourhood” (literally: dwellings together, cym + bod)
kantrev < cantref = “hundred; hundred area” (literally: hundred trêvs
or hamlets, cant, can’ + tref)
:_______________________________.
mabwysiad
[ma-BUIS-yad] [maˡbʊɪsjad]
masculine noun
PLURAL mabwysiadau
[ma-buis-YAA-dai, -e] [mabʊɪsˡjɑˑdaɪ, -ɛ]
1 adoption = process of taking a child as one's own
2 adoption = (of a town or a country place where one decides to live
instead of one's town or country of origin)
Bu farw ym mro'i fabwysiad yn bedwar ugain oed
He died at the age of eighty in his adopted neighbourhood
3 adoption = act of assuming a new nationality
Gwyddel trwy fabwysiad an Irishman through adoption
ETYMOLOGY: mabwys (= state of being
a son) + (-iad = suffix for forming
nouns);
in fact the element mabwys is an
adaptation of the word mamwys (=
maternal side of one's family) (mam
= mother) + (-wys = ?suffix), with mab (= son) taking the place of mam
:_______________________________.
mabwysiadu
[ma-buis-YAA-di] [mabʊɪsˡjɑˑdɪ] verb
1 adopt (a child) = take a child as one's own, usually by a formal
legal process
2 (ideas) adopt = take in, begin to use as one's own, use an idea,
follow a custom that comes from somewhere else
3 adopt = take over (an idea) as if it is one's own
4 (policy; way of life) adopt = begin to follow
5 (word, expression); adopt, take up; incorporate into one's active
vocabulary
O fyd amaeth daw’r dywediad ‘sefyll yn y
bwlch’. Bellach fe'i mabwysiadwyd gan bobl na fu ar gyfyl na chae na chlawdd na
dafad
The expression ‘sefyll yn y bwlch’ (= stand in the opening / gap) comes
from the world of farming. Now it has been adopted by people who have never
been near a field or hedgebank or sheep
6 adopt = begin to follow (a policy of action)
Maen nhw wedi penderfynu mabwysiadu
pólisi iaith
They have decided to adopt / implement a language policy
7 (Englandic) adopt = nominate a candidate for a parliamentary
election, etc
cyfarfod mabwysiadu adoption meeting, a meeting to choose a candidate
8 adopt (a name) = choose
ETYMOLOGY: (mabwysiad = adoption) +
(-u suffix for forming verbs)
:_______________________________.
mabwysiedig
[mab-uis-YEE-dig] [mabʊɪsˡjeˑdɪg] adjective
1 adopted; mab mabwysiedig
adopted son
ETYMOLOGY: (mabwys-i-, stem of mabwysiadu = adopt) + (-edig)
:_______________________________.
mab y Dyn
[maab
ə DIIN] [mɑːb ə ˡdiːn]
masculine noun
1 the Son of God;
O Fab y Dyn O Son of God! (vocative)
ETYMOLOGY: ‘(the) son (of) the man’ (mab
= son) + (y dyn = the man)
:_______________________________.
mab y mans
[maab
-ə MANS] [mɑːb ə ˡmans]
masculine noun
1 a son of the manse, son of a minister
ETYMOLOGY: (mab = son) + (y = definite article) + (mans = manse, home of a minister which
belongs to the church he (she) serves)
:_______________________________.
mab-yng-nghyfraith,
meibion... [maab ə -NGHƏ-vraith, -vreth, MEIB-yon...] [mɑːb ə ˡŋhəvraɪθ,
-vrɛθ, ˡməɪbjɔn...] (masculine noun)
1 son-in-law
:_______________________________.
macaroni
[ma-ka-ROO-ni] [makaˡroˑnɪ] masculine noun
1 macaroni = pasta made of semolina
2
a dish based on macaroni
macaroni â chaws macaroni cheese
ETYMOLOGY: English macaroni <
Italian maccarone < Greek makaria (= food made from barley), if
not from Italian maccare (= to
crush). Modern Italian: maccheroni
:_______________________________.
’mach i
[MAAKH-i] [ˡmɑɑˑxɪ]
1 my little one, my darling;
Tyd, ’mach i Come here, my son
ETYMOLOGY: from fy mach i, with the
dropping of the pretonic syllable [və] [və]
(fy = my) + nasal mutation + (bach = small) + (i = of me)
:_______________________________.
’machgen i
[MAKH-gen-i] [ˡmaxgɛnɪ]
1 (speaking to a son or a small boy) my son
Pam wyt ti'n dweud hynny, ’machgen i?
why do you say that, my son?
ETYMOLOGY: from fy machgen i (fy = my) + nasal mutation + (bachgen = boy) + (i = of me)
:_______________________________.
machlud
[MAKH-lid] [ˡmaxlɪd] verb
1 (sun, moon) set, go down, dip
2 masculine noun
machlud haul (qv) or machlud yr haul sunset, setting of the
sun
ar fachlud haul at sunset
machlud y lleuad setting of the moon
3 o wawr hyd fachlud from
dawn to dusk
ETYMOLOGY: machlud < ymachlud < ymachludd (ym-,
reflexive prefix) + (achludd).
The element achludd < British
< Latin occlûdere = to close, (ob- intensifying prefix) + (claudere = to close)
NOTE: also: machludo (with the
verbal suffix -o)
:_______________________________.
machlud haul
[MAKH-lid HAIL] [ˡmaxlɪd ˡhaɪl]
masculine noun
1 sunset = apparent sinking of the sun below the horizon
2 the time of this phenomenon
ar fachlud haul at sunset
wedi machlud haul after sunset
ETYMOLOGY: (machlud = setting,
hiding) + (haul = sun)
:_______________________________.
Machno
[MAKH-no] [ˡmaxnɔ] feminine noun
1 Afon Machno SH7849 river in the county of Gwynedd,
rising south of Blaenau Ffestiniog and flowing by Penmachno to join the river
Conwy 3km south-east of Betws-y-coed
2 Penmachno (originally Pennant Machno) SH7590 4km south of Betws-y-coed (pennant = head of a
valley, thus ‘Machno valley-head’)
ETYMOLOGY: Machno < Machnou (man’s name)
:_______________________________.
Machynllaith [ma-KHƏN-lhaith,
lheth] [maˡxənɬaɪθ,
-ɛθ]
1 village in the north-west ('plain of
Cynllaith'); the official spelling represents the localism Machynlleth (e instead
of ai) [ma-KHƏN-lheth]
[maˡxənɬɛθ]
:_______________________________.
maco [MA-ko] [ˡmakɔ] verb
1 maco = it may raise
third person singular subjunctive of magu
= to raise
Cas gŵr na charo'r wlad a'i maco
(qv)
Only an ungrateful man will not love the country which bore him
:_______________________________.
macrell,
mecryll [MA-krelh, ME-krilh] [ˡmakrɛɬ,
ˡmɛkrɪɬ] (masculine noun)
1 mackerel
:_______________________________.
Macsen Wledig
[MAK-sen
WLEE-dig] [maksɛn ˡwleˑdɪg] (masculine noun)
1 Magnus Maximus, Roman citizen from the
Iberian peninsula, commander of the Roman army in the province of Brittania. He
deposed Gratian in Rome 383AD and proclaimed himself emperor; assassinated five
years later
:_______________________________.
macsu
[MAK-si] [ˡmaksɪ] verb
South Wales
verb with an object
1 (beer) brew = make by steeping, boiling and fermenting malt and
hops
2 brew = prepare (a drink) by boiling a solid in water
macsu coffi brew coffee
verb without an object
3 make beer, make tea, etc
4 (weather) gather, brew = be in the making
Mae hi’n macsu iddi A storm is
brewing
Mae hi’n macsu am storm A storm is
brewing
Mae storm yn macsu A storm is
brewing
Mae hi’n macsu am law It’s
threatening to rain
Mae hi’n macsu at y glaw It’s
threatening to rain
Mae hi’n macsu i’r glaw It’s
threatening to rain
5 (trouble) brew, be in the making
Mae helynt yn macsu Trouble is
brewing
6 macsu, or macsu am: ask for punishment, behave in
a way which invites punishment or retribution
Mae e’n macsu am goten He’s asking
for a beating
Mae e’n macsu cosfa He’s asking for
a beating
Mae e’n macsu’r wialen He’s asking
for a caning (“the rod”)
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh macsu is (macs-) + (-u, suffix for forming verbs).
The element *macs < *masg- is from English mask, a variant of mash (= to mash, soak malt). The same word is found in Lowlandic
(Germanic language of Scotland) – to
mask (= to brew tea; soak malt; (storm) to brew, threaten)
:_______________________________.
macswr
[MAK-sur] [ˡmaksʊr] masculine noun
PLURAL macswyr
[MAKS-wir] [ˡmakswɪr]
1 brewer, person who makes beer
ETYMOLOGY: (macs-, stem of macsu = brew (beer)) + (-wr, suffix = 'man')
:_______________________________.
mad [maad] [mɑːd] adjective
1 obsolete good, excellent
gwladgarwyr tra mad = great patriots
('most excellent patriots') (from the Welsh national anthem)
2 obsolete fortunate; in
certain names from the British period
Madien, Madog
3 Derivative word: obsolete difad bad (di- = negative prefix) + (mad
= good); survives as part of the modern Welsh word amddifad orphan (am =
intensifying prefix) + (difad = bad)
4 Derivative word: anfad
bad, evil (an- = negative prefix) +
(mad = good)
anfadwr rogue, delinquent, vandal
anfadwaith atrocity (gwaith = deed)
5 A wnêl mad, mad a ddyly
(archaic Welsh) One good turn deserves another (“the-person-who / may-do /
good, / (it-is) good / that-he / deserves”)
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < British *mat-
< cèltic
From the same British root: Breton mad
= good
From the same Celtic root: Irish maith
= good, Scottish maith = good
cf Latin mâtûrus = ripe, from which
comes the English word mature
:_______________________________.
maddau
[MAA-dhai, -e] [ˡmɑˑðaɪ, -ɛ] verb
1
forgive = cease to blame
2
maddau i (rywun) am (rywbeth) forgive
(someone) for (something) = pardon for having made a mistake, allow to go
unpunished,
Gellid yn hawdd faddau i lymeitwyr
tafarn ger yr Wyddgrug am feddwl eu bod wedi cael mwy na thropyn neu ddau yn
ormod i'w yfed pan welson nhw éliffant yn cerdded ar hyd yr heol
The customers (“drinkers”) in a pub near Yr Wyddgrug could easily be forgiven
for thinking that they’d had a drop or two too much to drink when they saw an
elephant walking along the street
Maddeued y darllenydd i mi am... I hope the reader forgives me for..., may the reader forgive me
for...
Rhaid i chi faddau i mi am alw yr
adeg hyn o'r nos You must excuse me for calling this time of night
Gellid maddau i rywun am gredu fod y
gaeaf wedi cyraedd yng nghanol Awst oherwydd... You could be forgiven for
thinking that winter had arrived in the middle of August because...
2
lledfaddau (verb with an object)
reprieve= postpone a punishment
(lled
= half) + soft mutation + (maddau =
pardon)
3
maddau (rhywbeth) i (rywun) forgive
= tolerate
Roedd hi’n gwybod bod Ifan yn dueddol i
faddau iddi ei diffygion She knew that John tended to forgive her for her
shortcomings
maddau pechod i rywun absolve
somebody of his / her sins
4
(North Wales) resist (the temptation to eat sth)
Roeddwn i’n methu medde i'r pwdin 'na
I just couldn’t resist that pudding
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < British < Celtic ?*mad- (= humid, wet)
Cf Latin madere (= be wet)
NOTE: informal spelling: madde, and
(representing the pronunciation of “a”-final areas) madda [MAA-dha] [ˡmɑˑða]
:_______________________________.
maddeuol
[ma-DHEI-ol] [maˡðəɪɔl] adjective
1
pardonable, forgivable
2
anfaddeuol unpardonable,
unforgivable
(an- = negative prefix) + soft
mutation + ( maddeuol = pardonable)
ETYMOLOGY: (maddeu- penult form of maddau = to pardon) + (-ol suffix for forming adjectives)
:_______________________________.
madfall
[MAD-valh] [ˡmadvaɬ] feminine
or masculine noun
PLURAL madfallod
[mad-VA-lhod] [madˡvaɬɔd]
1 (standard Welsh; in Welsh dialects, used in South-west Wales)
lizard
y fadfall / y madfall the lizard
madfall Lacerta vivipara common lizard; also madfall y coed
madfall balmwyddog Triturus helveticus palmate lizard
madfall gribog Triturus cristatus crested newt
madfall y tywod Lacerta agilis sand lizard
madfall y dŵr Triturus vulgaris common newt
ETYMOLOGY: possibly a variant of mabddall
NOTE: also genau-goeg (‘empty
mouth’) = lizard
:_______________________________.
Madlen
[MAD-len] [ˡmadlɛn] feminine noun
1 Mair Fadlen Mary
Magdalen, in Christian tradition supposed to have been a prostitute. In Luke
she is referred to as a woman of Magdala who was cured of evil spirits
Luc 8:2 Mair yr hon a elwid Magdalen,
o'r hon yr aethai saith gythraul allan ...
Luke 8:2 Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils,
and is said to be the same as the sinful woman mentioned in verses in the
previous chapter
Luc 7:37-50 Ac wele, gwraig yn y ddinas,
yr hon oedd bechadures ...
Luke 7:37-50 And behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner......
2 woman's name = Madaleine
3 Coleg Madlen
.....(1) Magdalene (Móodlïn) College, at the University of Cambridge, England
.....(2) Magdalen (Móodlïn) College, at the University of Oxford, England
ETYMOLOGY: Madlen < Magdalen < Greek Magdalênê = (woman from) Magdala, a city on the Sea of Galilea
:_______________________________.
Madog [MAA-dog] [ˡmɑˑdɔg] (masculine noun)
1 man's name;
2 patronymic = ap Madog; basis of the English-language surname Maddock,
Maddocks, Maddox
:_______________________________.
Madog ab Owain Gwynedd [MAA-dog ab OU-ain GWI-nedh] [ˡmɑˑdɔg ab ˡɔʊaɪn ˡgʊɪnɛð
/ ˡgwɪnɛð]
1 (“Madog (the) son
(of) Owain Gwynedd”) (Owain Gwynedd is Owain (prince of the
land of) Gwynedd”)
A Welsh leader said to have sailed from Wales to the New World in 1169, landing
at the mouth of the Alabama river in the Gulf of Mexico; he returned to Wales
for reinforcements, and made a second trip in 1171, but never returned. It is
said that these followers of Madog had settled in North America, and that the
Mandan people, with whom the Europeans came into contact six hundred years
later, were their descendants. Later they were all but wiped out in 1838 by a
smallpox epidemic.
2 Madogiaid / Madogion / Madogwys the Welsh
Indians
:_______________________________.
y Madogiaid
[ma-DOG-yaid, -yed] [maˡdɔgjaɪd,
-ɛd] plural
1 the Welsh Indians
See Madog ab Owain Gwynedd
:_______________________________.
y Madogion [ma-DOG-yon] [maˡdɔgjɔn]
plural
1 the Welsh Indians
See Madog ab Owain Gwynedd
:_______________________________.
y Madogwys [ma-DOOG-uis] [ˡmaˡdoˑgʊɪs]
plural
1 the Welsh Indians
See Madog ab Owain Gwynedd
:_______________________________.
Madrun [MA-drin] [ˡmadrɪn]
1 (SH2836)
mansion in the district of Dwyfor (county of Gwynedd)
(obsolete (and less correct)
spelling: Madryn)
2
Garnfadrun (SH2735) locality in the
district of Dwyfor (county of Gwynedd) west of Pwllheli
Carn Fadrun is the name of a hill
(1218 peus) in the locality
On the Ordnnace Survey map the village is simply Garn (= Y Garn)
Garnfadrun (with anomolous initial
soft mutation) < Carnfadrun
(settlement names are spelt as a single word)
(carn = cairn) + soft mutation + (Madrun female personal name from Latin Matrôna)
Carn Fadrun is the name of the hill
itself (1218 feet)
Postal address: Garnfadrun, PWLLHELI, Gwynedd
NOTE: An older misspelt form is Madryn
(since y an u are pronounced the same in modern Welsh, this spelling represents
the same pronunciation as Madrun).
The use of this form with y may
possibly be through confusion with the word madryn, a by now obsolete name for a fox, a variant of madyn (= fox)
3 Porth Madryn (or as it
would be in a more modern spelling Porthmadryn,
since it is a settlement name, and these are spelt as one word in modern Welsh)
Name of a town in Patagonia
This was semi-translated into Castilian as Puerto
Madryn
4
“Madrin” (= Madrun) a house name in
Abergwyngregyn SH 6572 (county of Conwy), mentioned in the 1851 Census
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < British Matrôna.
This was also the Celtic name of the river Marne in France.
:_______________________________.
madryn [MA-drin] [ˡmadrɪn]
1 variant of madyn
(qv) = fox
2 Madryn (place name) = Madrun (qv)
3 Porth Madryn / Porthmadryn (place name in Argentina,
“Puerto Madryn”) See Madrun (qv)
:_______________________________.
madyn [MAA-din] [ˡmɑˑdɪn]
1 (obsolete) fox
ETYMOLOGY: probably the
personal name Madyn The personal
name Madog was also used for a fox.
Cf in the south cadno (= fox), from
a personal name.
In English, the fox was also referred to by a personal name, reynard.
However, the personal name may not be the origin of the word; in Irish there is
a word madra (= dog), and madra rua ‘red dog’ means ‘fox’. So
there was possibly a similar element in Welsh.
Also in Irish mathúin (a literary
word) = bear (as in the surname MacMathúna “MacMahoney”). In Gaulish names
there was also an element matu-
(possibly = bear).
The names Madyn, Madog were possibly
used because of their similarity to an original word for fox which had the
syllable mad-
NOTE: There is a variant form with [R] [r] madryn
:_______________________________.
mae [mai] [maɪ] (verb)
1 there is, it / she / he is
2 mae e ‹MAI e› (verb) he is (South)
mae o ‹MAI
o› (verb) he is (North)
3 mae hi ‹MAI hi› (verb) (she) she is
:_______________________________.
Mae aml lwyth
wedi troi yn y porth ‹mai
a-mal luith we-di troi ən ə porth›
1 don’t count your chickens before they’re hatched
(“many a load has rolled over at the (city) gate”; a cartload of goods may have
been transported a great distance without mishap yet at the last moment, when
almost at the destination, things may go wrong)
ETYMOLOGY: (mae = is) + (aml = frequent) + soft mutation + (llwyth = load) + (wedi = after) + (troi =
turn) + (yn y porth = in the
gate(way))
:_______________________________.
mae e ‹mae e› (verb)
1 he is (= mae ef) South Wales
:_______________________________.
maeddu ‹MEI dhi› (verb)
1 beat (an adversary)
2 (South Wales) maethgen
(f) beating
(maedd- root of maeddu = to beat) + (unknown element)
:_______________________________.
mae
ganddo... ‹mai gan -dho›
1 he has...
(South-west Wales) Mae ganddo eli at bob
clwyf
He has an excuse for everything (“he has a salve / he has an ointment for every
wound”)
Mae ganddo lygad yn ei ben
He’s all there, he’s as sharp as a razor, he’s got his wits about him (“he has
an eye in his head”)
ETYMOLOGY: (mae = there is) + (ganddo = with him)
:_______________________________.
1 mael
‹maail› masculine noun
1 obsolete lord, chieftain
2
element present in certain names of British origin
Arthfael (Arthfel),
Briafael,
Brochfael (broch = tumult) + soft mutation + ( mael = leader)
.....In British this would have been Brokko-maglo-s
Cadfael,
Caranfael,
Cynfael,
Derwfael (Derfel),
Mael,
Maelan,
Maeldderw,
Maelgwn,
Maelien,
Maelog,
Maelrys,
Meilyr,
Morfael
3 Occurs in place names which include some of these names above: Cinmael
(Cínmael > Cílmael < Cil-máel), Llandderfel, Maelienydd
ETYMOLOGY: British magl- (= big)
< Celtic;
It existed as a personal name in British Maglos;
and in Gaulish names the element maglo-
is to be found.
In Irish mál (= prince);
cf Latin magnus (= big);
cf Lowlandic (English language of Scotland) mickle (= big)
:_______________________________.
2 mael ‹maail› feminine or
masculine noun
1 (obsolete) profit, interest, gain
y fael / y mael = the profit
2 See: maelfa ‹meil-va› = shop
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh fael < English vail (= advantage), archaic form of avail (= advantage) < Old French valoir < Latin valêre (= be worth, be strong). The original Welsh form fael was given a radical form mael, since initial f ‹v› is generally a
soft-mutated initial in Welsh (from radical ‹m› or ‹b›)
e.g. mam = mother, y fam = the mother
:_______________________________.
3 mael
‹mail › masculine noun
1 mail = chainmail
crys mael coat of mail (Also cot haearn, llurig)
ETYMOLOGY: English < French maille
(= mesh) < Latin macula (= a
spot)
Modern French: maille (= stitch in
knitting, knitwear, link of a chain, mesh of a net)
:_______________________________.
maeldy
‹meil-di› masculine
noun
PLURAL maeldai
‹meil -dai›
1 obsolete shop
ETYMOLOGY: (mael = profit) + soft
mutation + (ty = house). A neologism
by the lexicographer William Owen-Pughe (1803) which did not find favour
:_______________________________.
maelfa ‹meil-va› feminine noun
PLURAL maelféydd
‹meil-veidh›
1 (obsolete) shop
y faelfa = the shop
Erbyn hyn daeth angen am faelfa (shop)
yn y lle, canys nad oedd yr un yn y cwm o'r naill ben i'r llall iddo Aeron
Afan (1855) page 94
Then there came the need for a shop in the place as there wasn't one in the
valley from one end to the other
Cychwynodd Miss Ann Prichard faelfa, neu
shop, yn y tŷ newydd, a chadwodd yn y blaen hyd y flwyddyn 1853 (Hanes
Tonyrefail, Thomas Morgan, Caer-dydd, 1899)
Miss Ann Prichard began a ‘maelfa’ or shop in the new house and kept ‹it› on until the
year 1853
2 (obsolete) market place
3 Maelfa name given to
the shopping area in Llanedern, Caer-dydd, in the 1960s
ETYMOLOGY: (mael = profit) + soft
mutation+ (-ma = place). A neologism
by the lexicographer William Owen-Pughe (1803) to replace the English loanword siop.
The word has not been adopted in ordinary speech
Note: also a masculine noun
:_______________________________.
maelfwrdd
‹meil-vurdh› feminine
noun
PLURAL maelfyrddau
‹meil-vər-dhe, -dhai›
1 (literary, obsolete)
counter (of a shop)
Cefais ef ar wastad ei gefn ar faelfwrdd ei siop
I found him lying on his back on his shop counter
ETYMOLOGY: (mael = profit; first
element of maelfa = shop) + soft
mutation+ (bwrdd = table; board).
:_______________________________.
maelgi
‹meil -gi› masculine
noun
PLURAL maelgwn
‹meil-gun›
1 (Squatina squatina)
angel-fish
ETYMOLOGY: (mael = mail, coat of
mail) + soft mutation + (ci = dog)
NOTE: In the district of Arfon (county of Gwynedd) it is pronounced malgi
:_______________________________.
Maelgwn
‹meil -gun› masculine
noun
1 man's name
2 Maelgwn Gwynedd (died
547) was king of Gwynedd, and the great-grandson of the king Cunedda, who came
to Wales from lands in present-day Scotland. Maelgwn’s court was at Degannwy,
3km south of Llandudno, in the present-day county of Conwy. In Llandudno there
is a public house called “Y Maelgwyn” (or at least, in English, “The
Maelgwyn”).
Why Maelgwyn instead of the correct
form Maelgwn?
In spoken Welsh the reduction of a diphthong to a vowel in a final syllable is
a common feature. In this way wy ‹ui› becomes w ‹u›, as in the river name Ebwy in the south-east, which colloquially is Ebw. The literary language prefers the forms without this reduction. Sometimes
there is hypercorrection – a word with an original final w is thought to be a reduced form, and
wy replaces it. This has happened in
the case of Maelgwn.
This mistaken ‘restoration’ of the diphthong would have seemed further
justified because a name with an opaque meaning (mael = lord, -gwn has
no apparent meaning, or a less than clear meaning) became meaningful (mael =
lord, gwyn = white)
(a les than clear meaning because it could be
interpreted as “dogs (of) (the) lord” (mael = lord) + soft mutation + (cw^n
= dogs)
It was probably not a spontaneous amendation as there
would be no reason to alter the colloquial pronunciation in the everyday
language to a supposed correct literary pronunciation. In addition, ‘mael’ is no longer generally understood as
‘lord’ except among the literati (to most people it would be a meaningless name
element), so it would seem to be a change made in learnèd Welsh.
------------------
Traeth Maelgwyn SN6194 sands near Ynys-las, Ceredigion
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1079735
-----------------
Castell Malgwyn SN2143 Llechryd, Ceredigion
This seems to be Maelgwn / Maelgwyn > Malgwyn
Cf maelgi > malgi in the entry for maelgi above
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/446989
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/446996
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < British maglo-kun-os
(magl- = chief) + (kun- = dog, warrior).
In Cornish the equivalent name is Mawgan
< Malgan < Malgon
NOTE: The Welsh name Cynfael has the
same elements, in reverse order (warrior + chief, cyn- + mael)
:_______________________________.
Maelgwyn
‹MEIL-gwin› masculine noun
1 man's name; See Maelgwn
‹MEIL-gun›
:_______________________________.
Maelienydd ‹mei-li-EE-nidh› (feminine noun)
1 History (cantref = “kantrev”) kantrev
of Rhwng Gwy a Hafren (North-east Wales)
:_______________________________.
Maelog ‹MEI-log› (masculine noun)
1 man’s name; saint's name (as in
Llanfaelog, Llandyfaelog)
:_______________________________.
Maelor ‹MEI-lor› (feminine noun)
1 area in medieval times in North-west
Wales, split into two kúmmuds. See below.
:_______________________________.
Maelor Gymraeg ‹mei-lor
gəm-raig›
1 medieval division ('cwmwd') in north-east Wales, one half of the
kántrev of Maelor, one of the thirteen kántrevs making up the medieval kingdom
(‘gwlad’) of Powys. Wrecsam was the main settlement.
(Maelor
Gymraeg is nowadays not in the modern county of Powys, which does not
correspond exactly to the old kingdom, but in the county of Wrecsam. The modern
county of Powys has an area to the south which was not historically part of the
kingdom, and the northernmost area is in the modern Wrecsam and Dinbych
counties)
ETYMOLOGY: “(the part of the district
called) Maelor (which is) Welsh-speaking / inhabited by Welsh people
/ abides by Welsh custom”
(delw 7472)
:_______________________________.
Maelor Saesneg ‹mei-lor
seis -neg›
1 medieval division ('cwmwd') of the country (‘gwlad’) of Powys (the
area is not in the modern county of Powys, but in the county of Wrecsam).
Owrtyn was the main settlement.
ETYMOLOGY: “(the part of the district
called) Maelor (which is) English-speaking / inhabited by English
people / abides by English custom”
(delw 7469)
:_______________________________.
maen ‹main› PLURAL meini ‹MEI-ni› (masculine noun)
1 stone
2 Nid hawdd tynnu mêl o faen You
can’t get blood out of a stone (“it is not easy to get honey from a stone”)
3 conglfaen cornerstone
4
Ni bydd mysyglog faen o’i fynych drafod
A rolling stone gathers no moss (“it will not be mossy a stone from its
frequent handling”)
5
cistfaen “cistfaen” prehistoric
sepulchre, in the form of a box, with four slabs forming the sides, and a
horizontal slab as a lid
(“chest-stone”) (cist = coffer) +
soft mutation + (maen = stone)
6
bedyddfaen baptismal font = stone
vessel for holding baptismal water in a church
(bedydd-
root of bedyddio = to baptise) +
soft mutation + (maen = stone)
7 maen trangwydd stumbling block
Eseia 8:13 ARGLWYDD y lluoedd ei hun a sancteiddiwch; a bydded efe yn ofn i
chwi, a bydded efe yn arswyd i chwi: (8:14) Ac efe a fydd yn noddfa; ond
yn faen tramgwydd
ac yn graig rhwystr i ddau dy Israel, yn fagl ac yn rhwyd i breswylwyr
Jerwsalem.
Isaiah 8:13 Sanctify the LORD of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and
let him be your dread. (8:14) And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone
of stumbling and for a rock of offense to both the houses of Israel, for a gin
and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
hirfaen
(qv) <HIR-vain> [ˡhɪrvaɪn] longstone,
standing stone
”long stone” (hir = long) + soft
mutation + (maen = stone)
:_______________________________.
Y Maen-coch
‹maain kookh›
1 farm 2km east of Llanboudy SN2123 (county of Caerfyrddin)
ETYMOLOGY: ‘the red stone’ (y =
definite article) + (maen = stone) +
(coch = red)
:_______________________________.
maendref (maendre) ‹MEIN-drev›
feminine noun
PLURAL maendrefi ‹mein-DREE-vi›
1 trêv with stone buildings
y faendref the stone trêv
In Llaneirwg,
Caer-dydd, there is Lôn y Faendre (“Vaindre Lane”), off which are two farms – Y Faendre Fawr (“Vaindre Vawr”) and Y
Faendre Fach (“Faendre Fach”)
ETYMOLOGY: (maen = stone) + soft
mutation + (tref = trêv, manor)
:_______________________________.
maen nhw ‹mai nhu› (verb)
1 they are
:_______________________________.
maen nw =
maen nhw ‹mai
nu› (verb)
1 they are
:_______________________________.
maenol ‹mei -nol› feminine noun
1 maenol is a northern form of
maenor (= residence of the district chief)
2 Parc y Faenol locality in
the county of Gwynedd
English name: Vaynol Park
“(the) field (of) the house of the district chief”
(parc = field) + (y = definite article) + soft mutation + (maenol)
:_______________________________.
maenor ‹mei -nor› feminine
noun
PLURAL maenorau ‹mei-
noo -re›
1 tract containing a number of
townships; a medieval administrative division
2 residence of the district chief
3 the residence with its
bond-dependent townships, hamlet
4 the residence and all townships
free and bound, hamlet
5 fertile low-lying land around this
residence
6 home farm = farm attached to a
great house (Scotland: mains < demesne)
7 valley
8 Y Faenor (SO0510) locality
in the district of Brycheiniog (county of Powys)
“the house of the district chief”
(y = definite article) + soft mutation + (maenor = house of the
district chief)
In fact, a short name for an original Maenorwynno (“(the) tract (of) Gwynno”)
(maenor = tract, administrative division) + soft mutation + (Gwynno =
saint’s name)
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/307513
(“The Geograph
British Isles project aims to collect geographically representative photographs
and information for every square kilometre of Great Britain and Ireland…”)
ETYMOLOGY: maenor < maenawr
(= stones) < (maen = stone) + (-awr plural suffix)
The sense is either
..a/ place enclosed by boundary stones < boundary stones < stones
..b/ stone-built residence of a chieftain < stones
The resemblance to English “manor” (from French) is fortuitous
NOTE: maenor > maenol in North Wales
:_______________________________.
Maenor-bŷr
‹mei-nor- biir ›
1 SS0697 locality in the county of Penfro
English name: Manorbier
2 a parish at this place
:_______________________________.
Maenordeilo ‹mei nor DEI lo› (feminine noun)
1 (cwmwd = “neighbourhood”) kumud of the
kantrev of Cantref Mawr (Ystrad Tywi) south-west Wales.
2 Village name.
:_______________________________.
maer, meiri ‹MAIR, MEI ri› (masculine noun)
1 mayor
maeres mayoress
:_______________________________.
maerdy ‹meir -di› masculine
noun
PLURAL maerdai ‹meir-dai
›
1 summer dwelling (by summer cattle
pasture), dairy farm
2 land supervised by a steward
3 mansion house, mayor’s residence
maerdy is “house of the steward of the trêv” (maer =
steward, overseer; modern Welsh = mayor) + soft mutation + (ty^ = house)
:_______________________________.
Y Maerdy ‹meir
-di›
NOTE:
Pronounced locally as Y Mardy ‹mar -di› in the south
1 locality in the county of Conwy, on the A5 west of Corwen SJ0144
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/243758
Tafarn yr Afr
2 locality north of Cefneithin SN5513 (county of Caerfyrddin)
3 locality in the county of
Caerfyrddin SN6220
http://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/SN6220
map
4 locality (northern distric of Y fenni) in the county of Mynwy SO3015
(on the map as “Mardy”)
http://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/SO3015
map
5 locality in county of Mynwy east of Brynbuga / Usk SO4001
http://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/SO4001
map
6 locality in county of Rhondda Cynon Taf, at the top of the Rhondda Fach
valley, by Glynrhedynnog SS9798
http://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/SS9798
map
Coedwig Fach y Maerdy ‹koid- wig vaakh a meir-di› woodland area in Y Maerdy, Rhondda Cynon Taf
Outlook / Issue 14 / September 2008/ www.rhondda-cynon-taf.gov.uk :
A wildlife
haven with open, green spaces for all to enjoy has been created from derelict
land in Maerdy… A community celebration launched the Maerdy woodland project,
which has taken months of work and a huge joint effort… the scheme… includes
woodland, pathways and open space as well as a fresh new look for Edward Street
and Springfield.
The
wood has been named “Coedwig
Fach y Maerdy”, following a suggestion by 10-year-old Corey Williams of
Maerdy Junior School.
“(the) little wood (of) Y Maerdy” (coedwig = bocs) + soft mutation + (bach
= small) + (Y Maerdy)
Y Maerdy was known in the 1930’s for its support for the Communist Party of
Great Britain, and was called by some Little Moscow. The title of Lewis Jones’s
documentary novel, Cwmardy, (1937), telling of the struggles of mining
community in the Rhondda valley in the first two decades of the 1900s probably
incorporates the name of the village – Cwm y Mardy / Cwm Mardy (“(the)
valley (of) Y Mardy”) > Cwmardy
7 locality in southern Shropshire, England
:_______________________________.
Mae’r ergyd
gyntaf yn werth dwy ‹mair
er-gid gən-tav ən werth dui›
1 the first blow is half the battle
ETYMOLOGY: “the first blow is worth two” (mae
= is) + (yr = the) + (ergyd = blow) + soft mutation + (cyntaf = first) + (yn linking particle) + soft mutation + (gwerth = worth) + (dwy =
two, feminine form – ergyd is a feminine noun)
:_______________________________.
maeres ‹meir -es› feminine noun
PLURAL maeresau ‹meir-es-ai
-e ›
1 mayoress
y faeres the mayoress
ETYMOLOGY: (maer = mayor) +
(-es suffix to indicate a female)
:_______________________________.
maer y biswail
‹maair ə bis-wail› masculine noun
PLURAL meiri'r
biswail ‹mei-rir bis-wail›
1 in the medieval period, the agent of the local ruler in charge of
the land; the land bailiff;
cf maerdref (= land worked by unfree
tenants to provide a court with food),
ETYMOLOGY: “steward of the (cattle) dung” (maer
= steward) + (y = the) + (biswail = dung)
:_______________________________.
..1 maes,
meysydd ‹MAIS,
MEI sidh› (masculine noun)
1 field
maes golff golf course
maes ymarfer golff golf driving range (“field (of) practising
golf”)
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/551486
Maes Ymarfer Golff Tre-borth, Ynys Môn
maes carafanau caravan park
2 Maes-llan (qv) street
name
maes y llan “(the) field (of) the church”, church field
(maes = field) + (y = definite article) + (llan = church)
The linking definite article is often omitted in place names
3
Llan-faes
“(the) church (of the) clearing” (llan
= church) + soft mutation + (maes =
clearing)
..a/ (SO0328) locality in the district of Brycheiniog (county of Powys);
formerly the centre of a kingdom centred around Dyffryn Wysg (the valley of the
river Wysg) ruled by Tewdrig, and of a
larger kingdom which replaced it, Brycheiniog, founded by Brychan, a chief of
Irish descent
..b/ (SH6077) locality in the county of Ynys Môn
..c/ (SS9869) locality in the county of Bro Morgannwg (South-east Wales)
4 maes teg a fair field
Apocrypha
Ecclesiasticus 24:14 Fel
palmwydden yn Engadi y dyrchafwyd fi, ac fel planhigyn rhos yn Jericho, fel
olewydden hardd mewn maes teg, ac fel planwydden wrth ddyfroedd y cynyddais.
Apocrypha Ecclesiasticus 24:14 I
was exalted like a palm tree in En-gaddi, and as a rose plant in Jericho, as a
fair olive tree in a pleasant field, and grew up as a plane tree by the water.
:_______________________________.
..2 maes
1 (South Wales) maes is
from i maes = out
(The spoken form maas and in the
South-east määs)
mynd määs / mynd maas < mynd maes
< mynd i maes to go out
:_______________________________.
Maesannedd
..a/ house name
in Llandanwg, Harlech (“Maes Annedd”)
..b/ street name in Derwen, near Corwen (county of Dinbych) (“Maes Annedd”)
ETYMOLOGY: maes yr annedd (maes = field) + (yr
definite article) + (annedd = dwelling)
See also Maesyrannedd
:_______________________________.
maes awyr,
meysydd awyr ‹mais
AU ir, mei sidh AU ir› (masculine noun)
1 airport
:_______________________________.
Maes Bronwen ‹mais BRON-wen›
1 playing fields in Brymbo (Wrecsam)
ETYMOLOGY: “(the) field (of) Bronwen”
...er cof am y Cynghorydd Bronwen Greenaway..., [a’i] hymdrechion diddiwedd
i gael ailddatblygiad safle'r hen waith dur wyneb yn wyneb â rhwystrau a
thwpdra o du'r Cyngor, y cwangos datblygu a'r llywodraeth
...in memory of Councillor Bronwen
Greenaway and her endless attempts to get the redevelopment of the site of the
old steelworks in the face of obstacles and stupidity on the part of the
Council, the development quangos and the Government (Nigel Steply)
http://www.ybarnwr.me.uk/Nid_Blog/Lluniau/OrTud_P0008.htm
:_______________________________.
maes carafanau ‹mais ka ra VA ne, mei sidh ka ra VA ne› (masculine noun)
1 caravan
park
:_______________________________.
Maesbriallu ‹mais bri-a-lhi›
1 street name in
..a/ Caerffili (spelt as two words “Maes Briallu”)
..b/ Llansamlet, county of Abertawe (spelt as two words “Maes Briallu”)
ETYMOLOGY: maes y briallu (“(the) field
(of) the primroses”, primrose field) (maes = field) + (y =
definite article) + (briallu = primroses)
:_______________________________.
Maescelyn
‹mais- ke -lin›
1 street name
..a/ Llanbedr Dyffryn Clwyd, Rhuthun (county of Dinbych) (spelt as two words “Maes Celyn”)
..b/ Llaneurgain (county of Y Fflint) (spelt
as two words “Maes Celyn”)
..c/ Coed-y-glyn (county of Wrecsam) (“Maes Celyn”)
ETYMOLOGY:
“maes y celyn” (“(the) field (of) the holly-bushes”)
(maes = field) + (definite article y) + (celyn holly-bushes)
:_______________________________.
maes chwarae ‹mais
khwaa -re› masculine noun
PLURAL meysydd chwarae ‹mei-sidh
khwaa -re›
1 playing field, sports
ground, sports field
2 Maeschwarae
Street name in Yr Ystôg, district of Maldwyn, county of Powys (spelt as two
words “Maes Chwarae”)
ETYMOLOGY: (“field (of) playing”) (maes
= field) + (chwarae = playing, to play)
:_______________________________.
Maescuhelyn
‹mais ki- he -lin›
1 street name Llannerch-y-medd (county of Môn) (spelt as two words “Maes Cuhelyn”)
ETYMOLOGY:
(“(the) field (of) Cuhelyn”)
(maes = field) + (Cuhelynn man’s name)
:_______________________________.
Maescwstennin
‹mais ku-ste-nin›
1 stret name in Cyffordd Llandudno, county of Conwy
(spelt as two words “Maes
Cwstennin”)
ETYMOLOGY:
“maes y celyn” (“(the) field (of) Constantine”)
(maes = field) + (definite article y) + (Cwstennin Constantine)
:_______________________________.
maesgampwr
‹meis- gam-pur › masculine noun
PLURAL maesgampwyr
‹meis- gamp-wir›
1 (obsolete) sportsman
ETYMOLOGY: (maes = field) + soft
mutation + (campwr = man of prowess)
:_______________________________.
maes glanio,
meysydd glanio ‹mais
GLAN yo, mei sidh GLAN yo› (masculine noun)
1 airfield
:_______________________________.
Y Maes-glas ‹mais- glaas ›
1 Locality name
a) SJ1977 locality in the county of Y Fflint; English name: Greenfield
(delw
7441)
b) ST2985 locality in the county of Casnewydd
2 Street name in:
..a/ Aberteifi (county of Ceredigion) (spelt as one word “Maesglas”)
..b/ Caer-dydd (county of Caer-dydd) (spelt as two words “Maes Glas”)
..c/ Caerffili (county of Caerffili) (spelt as two words “Maes Glas”)
..d/ Cefncribwr (county of Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr) (spelt as two words “Maes Glas”)
..e/ Degannwy, near Conwy (county of Conwy) (spelt as two words “Maes Glas”)
..f/ Diserth, near Y Rhyl (county of Y Fflint) (spelt as two words “Maes Glas”)
..g/ Ewlo, near Glandyfrdwy (county of Y Fflint) (spelt as two words “Maes
Glas”)
..h/ Llanaelhaearn, near Caernarfon (county of Gwynedd) (spelt as two words
“Maes Glas”)
..i/ Machynlleth (county of Powys)
..j/ Pont-tŷ-pridd (county of Rhondda Cynon Taf) (spelt as two words “Maes
Glas”)
..k/ Prestatyn (county of Y Fflint) (spelt as two words “Maes Glas”)
..l/ Treuddyn, near Yr Wyddgrug (county of Y Fflint)
..m/ Wrecsam (county of Wrecsam)
..n/ Y Barri (county of Bro Morgannwg) (spelt as two words “Maes Glas”)
..o/ Y Fflint (county of Y Fflint)
..p/ Y Pil, near Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr (county of Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr) (spelt as
two words “Maes Glas”)
..q/ Llandrillo yn Rhos, near Baecolwyn (county of Conwy) (spelt as two words
“Maes Glas”)
ETYMOLOGY: y maes glas
“the green field” (y = definite article) + (maes = field) + (glas
= green)
:_______________________________.
maes glo
‹mais gloo› masculine noun
PLURAL meysydd
glo ‹mei-sidh gloo›
1 coalfield = district with an abundance of coal
maes glo'r De the South Wales
coalfield
ETYMOLOGY: “field (of) coal” (maes =
field) + (glo = coal)
:_______________________________.
maesgoed ‹meis goid› masculine noun
1
(rare) woodland in open country
ETYMOLOGY: “field wood” (maes =
field) + soft mutation + (coed = wood)
:_______________________________.
Maesgogor ‹mais- go -gor› -
1 name of a street in Llansannan, county of Dinbych (spelt as two
words “Maes Gogor”)
ETYMOLOGY: Apparently the base
form is maes y gogr “(the) field (of) the sieve”, though earlier forms
of the name might lead to a different explanation of its meaning
:_______________________________.
maes golff,
meysydd golff ‹mais
GOLF, mei sidh GOLF› (masculine noun)
1 golf course
See maes
:_______________________________.
Maes-gwyn ‹mais- gwin ›
1 Street name in:
..a/ Aberdulais, near Castell-nedd (county of Castell-nedd ac Aberafan) (spelt
as two words “Maes Gwyn”)
..b/ Caerffili, county of Caerffili (spelt as two words “Maes Gwyn”)
..c/ Graeanrhyd, near Llanarmon yn Iâl, Yr Wyddgrug (county of Y Fflint) (spelt
as two words “Maes Gwyn”)
..d/ Llanddaniel, near Gaerwen, county of Môn (spelt as two words “Maes Gwyn”)
..e/ Llanddona, Bowmaris, county of Môn (spelt as two words “Maes Gwyn”)
..f/ Llanfair Caereinion, near Y Trallwng, county of Powys (spelt as two words
“Maes Gwyn”)
..g/ Pen-twyn-mawr, near Y Bontnewydd (county of Casnewydd) (spelt as two words
“Maes Gwyn”)
..h/ Y Fflint (county of Y Fflint) (spelt as two words “Maes Gwyn”)
ETYMOLOGY: y maes gwyn “the
white field” (y = definite article) + (maes = field) + (gwyn
= white)
:_______________________________.
Maes-hyfryd
‹mais- həv -rid›
1 street name in:
..a/ Biwmaris, (county of Môn) (spelt as two words “Maes Hyfryd”)
..b/ Bryncrug, Tywyn, (county of Gwynedd) (spelt as two words “Maes Hyfryd”)
..c/ Caernarfon (county of Gwynedd) (spelt as two words “Maes Hyfryd”)
..d/ Carmel, Caernarfon (county of Gwynedd) (spelt as two words “Maes Hyfryd”)
..e/ Coed-poeth (county of Wrecsam) (spelt as two words “Maes Hyfryd”)
..f/ Cynwyd, Corwen (county of Dinbych) (spelt as two words “Maes Hyfryd”)
..g/ Dwyran, Llanfairpwllgwyngyll (county of Môn) (spelt as two words “Maes
Hyfryd”)
..h/ Garndolbenmaen (county of Gwynedd) (spelt as two words “Maes Hyfryd”)
..i/ Glanconwy, Baecolwyn (county of Conwy) (spelt as two words “Maes Hyfryd”)
..j/ Graigfechan, Rhuthun, (county of Wrrecsam) (spelt as two words “Maes
Hyfryd”)
..k/ Llanfairpwllgwyngyll (county of Môn) (spelt as two words “Maes Hyfryd”)
..l/ Moelfre (county of Môn) (spelt as two words “Maes Hyfryd”)
..m/ Morfanefyn, Pwllheli (county of Gwynedd) (spelt as two words “Maes
Hyfryd”)
..n/ Rhosrobin, Wrecsam (spelt as two words “Maes Hyfryd”)
..o/ Rhuthun (county of Dinbych) (spelt as two words “Maes Hyfryd”)
..p/ Y Fflint, Flintshire (spelt as two words “Maes Hyfryd”)
..q/ Y Waun, Llanelwy (county of Dinbych) (spelt as two words “Maes Hyfryd”)
..r/ spelt as two words “Maes Hyfryd Terrace”, Dinbych (county of Dinbych)
(Translated, this would be “Teras Maes-hyfryd)
ETYMOLOGY: ‘y maes hyfryd’ the pleasant field
(y definite article) + (maes = field) + (hyfryd = pleasant)
NOTE: The examples above spell the name with the elements apart. But the
general rule in Welsh is to spell settlement names (and this in theory applies
to street names with the form of house or farm names) as a single word. This
would give Maeshyfryd, but as sh is a digraph in Welsh (as in
English) such names should perhaps be separated with a hyphen Maes-hyfryd.
(There are some examples of place names in England s-h in place names has come
to be misread as sh – Lewis-ham > Lewisham, etc)
:_______________________________.
maes jetiau,
meysydd jetiau ‹mais
JET ye, mei sidh JET ye› (masculine noun)
1 jetport
:_______________________________.
Maes-llan ‹mais- llan ›
1 As a street name:
..a/ Dolwyddelan (county of
Conwy) (spelt as two words “Maes Llan”)
..b/ Eglwys-bach, near Baecolwyn (county of Conwy) (spelt as two words “Maes
Llan”)
..c/ Gwernaffild, near Yr Wyddgrug (county of Y Fflint) (spelt as two words
“Maes Llan”)
..d/ Llanarmon yn Iâl (county of Dinbych) (spelt as two words “Maes Llan”)
..e/ Llandyrnog, near Dinbych (county of Dinbych) (spelt as two words “Maes
Llan”)
..f/ Mynyddcynffig (county of Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr) (spelt as two words “Maes
Llan”)
ETYMOLOGY: maes y llan “(the)
field (of) the church”, church field
(maes = field) + (y = definite article) + (llan = church)
The linking definite article is often omitted in place names Maes-y-llan
> Maes-llan
:_______________________________.
Maeslygan ‹mais-lə-gan›
1 (“(the) field (of) (the
village called) Helygain”)
Name of a street (appears as “Maes Lygan”) in the village of Pentrehelygain
SJ1972 / “Pentre Halkyn”, county of Y Fflint
(Lygan ‹lə-gan› is the local form of Helygain)
NOTE: In this part of the north-east a final ‹e› becomes ‹a›,
as in the north-west; thus, Helygain ‹he-lə-gain› > Helygan ‹he-lə-gan› > Lygan ‹(he-)lə-gan› (loss of the first syllable)
:_______________________________.
Maesnewydd
‹ə mais NEU idh›
1 minor place name (farms, houses, streets)
2 Name of street in Machynlleth, Powys
ETYMOLOGY: y maes newydd “the new field”
(y = the) + (maes = field) + (newydd
= new)
:_______________________________.
maes parcio,
meysydd parcio ‹mais
PARK yo, mei sidh PARK yo› (masculine noun)
1 parking lot (Englandic: car park)
:_______________________________.
maes pebyll,
meysydd pebyll ‹mais
PE bilh, mei sidh PE bilh› (masculine noun)
1 campsite
:_______________________________.
Maes Taf ‹mais-TAAV›
1 Heol Maes Taf street name in Pentre-bach, Merthyrtudful (“Maestaf
Street”)
ETYMOLOGY: “field (by the river) Taf” (maes = field, open land) + (Taf
= river name)
:_______________________________.
Maes-teg ‹mais-TEEG›
1 SS8591 village in Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr county
http://www.geograph.org.uk/browse.php?p=172309
cf maes teg a fair field
Apocrypha
Ecclesiasticus 24:14 Fel
palmwydden yn Engadi y dyrchafwyd fi, ac fel planhigyn rhos yn Jericho, fel
olewydden hardd mewn maes teg, ac fel planwydden wrth ddyfroedd y cynyddais.
Apocrypha Ecclesiasticus 24:14 I
was exalted like a palm tree in En-gaddi, and as a rose plant in Jericho, as a
fair olive tree in a pleasant field, and grew up as a plane tree by the water.
ETYMOLOGY: y maes teg “the fair field” (y = definite article) + (maes = field, open land) + (teg = fair)
:_______________________________.
maestir
‹meis -tir› m masculine
noun
PLURAL maestiroedd
‹meis- ti -rodh›
1 open country, plain
2 range = grazing ground
3 place names:
..a/ name of a farm near Llanbedr Pont Steffan
..b/ street name in Llanelli (county of Caerfyrddin)
ETYMOLOGY: (maes = field, open land)
+ soft mutation + (tir = land) >
*maesdir > maestir (sd > st)
:_______________________________.
maestref,
maestrefi ‹MEI
stre, mei STRE vi› (feminine noun)
1 suburb
2 (obsolete) village, town
There is a
street in Llanelli with the odd spelling “Maes Tref”, which would mean “(the)
field (of) a trêv or manor” or “(the) field (of) a town”. A comment on one
website states 2006-08-26 “I actually live on a
street
called Maes Tref which in English is
"Town" or "Home" Field”.
But the name should surely be Maestref / Maestre, or even more correctly Y
Faestref / Y Faesdre (= the village)
Samuel-1 27:5 A Dafydd a ddywedodd wrth Achis, O chefais yn awr ffafr yn dy
olwg di, rhodder i mi le yn un o’r maestrefi, fel y trigwyf yno: canys paham yr erys dy was di yn
ninas y brenin gyda thi?
Samuel-1 27:5 And David said unto Achish, If I have now found grace in thine
eyes, let them give me a place in some town in the country, that I may dwell
there: for why should thy servant dwell in the royal city with thee?
Sechareia 2:4 Ac efe a ddywedodd wrtho, Rhed, llefara wrth
y llanc hwn, gan ddywedyd Jerwsalem a gyfanheddir fel maestrefi rhag amled dyn ac anifail o'i
mewn.
Zecharia 2:4
And said unto him, Run, speak to this young man, saying, Jerusalem shall be
inhabited as towns without walls for the multitude of men and cattle therein:
ETYMOLOGY: (maes = field,
open land) + soft mutation + (tref =
trêv) > *maesdref > maestref (sd > st)
:_______________________________.
Maesyrannedd ‹mais ər A-nedh›
1 street in Treganna, Caer-dydd (spelt as “Maes yr Annedd”)
ETYMOLOGY: maes yr annedd (“(the) field (of) the abode”)
(maes = field) + (yr definite article) + (annedd = dwelling)
See also Maesannedd
:_______________________________.
Maesysiglen
‹mais ə si-len›
1 ‘wagtail field’ street name in Trecenydd (county of Caerffili) –
surrounding streets also have Welsh names referring to types of bird
ETYMOLOGY: ‘maes y siglen’ (“(the) field (of) the wagtail”)
(maes = field) + (y = the) + (siglen = wagtail)
:_______________________________.
maetheg ‹mei –theg› feminine noun
1 (science) nutrition = the
study of the assimilation of food by an organism
ETYMOLOGY: (maeth = sustenance,
food) + (-eg suffix for forming a noun indicating a science
:_______________________________.
maethegwr ‹meit-thee-gur› masculine
noun
PLURAL maethegwyr ‹meit-theg-wir›
1 (science) nutrition = the
study of the assimilation of food by an organism
ETYMOLOGY: (maetheg = nutrition)
+ (-i-wr suffix for indicating a device or an agent; literally = man)
:_______________________________.
maethgen
‹meith -gen› feminine noun
PLURAL maethgennau
‹meith- ge -ne›
1 (South Wales) beating
ETYMOLOGY: (maedd- root of maeddu = to beat) + (unknown element)
:_______________________________.
mafonen,
mafon ‹ma VO
nen, MA von› (feminine noun)
1 raspberry
y fanonen = raspberry
:_______________________________.
màg, màgs ‹MAG, MAGS› (feminine noun)
1 (North-west) - halfpenny. màgs = money
:_______________________________.
Magi ‹MA gi› (feminine noun)
1 diminutive of the woman's name Marged
(= Margaret)
:_______________________________.
magl, maglau ‹MA gal, MA gle› (feminine noun)
1 trap
y fagl = the trap
2 magl ffŵl booby
trap (“trap (of) fool”, fool’s trap) = (1) explosive trap (2) trap which is a
practical joke
gosod magl ffŵl set a booby
trap, to booby-trap
Roedd maglau ffŵl ym mhob ystafell
ym mhencadlys y gelyn There were booby traps in every room in the
headquarters of the enemy
3 In Yr Hob (county of Wrecsam) there is a street called “Fagl Lane”
(which would be Lôn y Fagl in Welsh)
4 Rhyd-y-fagl / Rhyd y Fagl (literary
Welsh) the town of Stafford, England (“(the) ford (of) the snare”)
:_______________________________.
magned
‹mag -ned› masculine
noun
PLURAL magnedi
‹mag- nee -di›
1 magnet
magned pedol horseshoe magnet
magned clymog compound magnet
2 magnet = object of great attraction, centre of attention or
attraction
Mae Ysgol Gymráeg Llundain yn fagned a
chanolbwynt i deuluoedd Cymraeg prifddinas Lloegr
The Welsh school in London is a magnet and a centre for Welsh-speaking families
in the capital of England
ETYMOLOGY: magned < English magnet < Middle English magnete
< Latin magnes (= magnet) <
Greek ho magnês (lithos) (= the
Magnesian stone, the stone from Magnês, a region abundant in minerals)
NOTE: colloquial form: magnet
:_______________________________.
magnel
‹mag -nel› feminine
noun
PLURAL magnelau
‹mag-nee-le›
1 cannon
pelen fagnel PLURAL pelenni magnel cannonball
2 (medieval period) kind of catapult for hurling stones to breach
defensive walls
ETYMOLOGY: magnel < mangnel < English mangnel < mangonel < Old French mangonel
:_______________________________.
magnet
‹mag -net› masculine
noun
PLURAL magnetau,
magnets ‹mag-nee-te, mag -nets›
1 (Colloquial) magnet. See magned
:_______________________________.
magnolia
‹mag-nol-yas › feminine
noun
PLURAL magnolias
‹mag-nol-yas›
1 magnolia = shrub or tree of the genus Magnolia, which have
attractive white or pinkish flowers and an exquisite fragrance
coeden fagnolia PLURAL coed magnolia magnolia tree
Any shrub or tree of the genus Magnolia; valued for their longevity and
exquisite fragrant blooms
2 magnolia = a flower of a magnolia bush
(delw 6912) Ffoto: wikipedia
3 street names:
..1/ Magnolia street name in Caerwedros, Llandysul (county of Ceredigon)
..2/ Clos y Fagnolia This would be the Welsh translation of various
streets called “Magnolia Close”
...a/ Caer-dydd
...b/ Y Porth (county of Rhondda Cynon Taf)
...c/ Merthyrtudful
...d/ Casnewydd
3/ Cwrt y Fagnolia Welsh
translation of Magnolia Court, street name in Y Rhyl (county of Dinbych)
4/ Rhodfa’r Fagnolia
Welsh translation of Magnolia Drive, Y Coed-duon (county of Caerffili)
5/ Rhestr y Fagnolia
Welsh translation of Magnolia Terrace, in Y Fenni (county of Mynwy)
6/ Heol y Fagnolia Welsh
translation of Magnolia Way in Llanilltud Faerdre (county of Rhondda Cynon Taf)
ETYMOLOGY: English < French, from the name of the French botanist Pierre
Magnol (1638-1715)
:_______________________________.
magu ‹MA gi› (verb)
1 (verb with an object) to raise; to
breed
2 caseg fagu plural cesig magu
brood mare, mare kept for producing foals
3 magu bol get a pot
belly, get potbellied
Mae e’n magu bol, ond yw e? He’s getting potbellied, isn’t he?
4 ailfagu
“raise, breed, etc again”
ailfagu archwaeth regain one’s
appetite
5 (verb without an object) breed,
reproduce
magu fel cwningod breed lke
rabbits
6
gardd fagu nursery garden
(gardd = garden) + soft mutation + ( magu = nurture, cultivate)
:_______________________________.
Magws ‹MA gus› (feminine noun) (diminutive form)
1 woman's name = Margaret
:_______________________________.
magwyr,
magwyrydd ‹MA
guir, ma GUI ridh› (feminine noun)
1 wall, dry-stone wall
y fagwyr = the wall
:_______________________________.
Magwyr ‹MA
guir› (feminine noun)
1 village in the south-east
:_______________________________.
maharen,
meheryn ‹ma HA
ren, me HE rin› (masculine noun)
1 ram
:_______________________________.
mai ‹MAI› (conj)
1 that-it-is
Cofia mai Dydd Gŵyl Ddewi yw hi heddiw
Remember that today’s Saint David’s Day
(“remember that-it-is Saint David’s Day that-it-is it today”)
Gwn mai ef yw'r dyn I know that he's
the man 'that it is / he / who is / the man') ‹gun
mai EEV iur DIIN›
ETYMOLOGY: A form of mae e (= it is)
A Welsh Grammar, Historical and Comparative. John Morris(-)Jones, 1913. Page
448: ymae, mae, Modern Welsh mae ‘that it is’, in the
late period written mai, also dialect (South Wales) taw
(delw
7263)
________________
Page 348. The Late Modern spelling mai of the conjunctive form
seems to come from mai e,; elsewhere the pronunciation is mae = may
or ma’; the form mai owes its adoption to the popular notion that a
conjunction ‘that’ must differ from a verb ‘is’. The word means, not ‘that’,
but ‘that it is’; as gwn mae Dafydd a’i gwnaeth ‘I know that it is
Dafydd who made it’.
(delw
7262)
________________
Page 430. To questions introduced by a, the answer is the verb repeated, or its
equivalent, as gwnaf, ‘I will do [so]’, except when it is aorist or perfect, in
which case the answer is do ‘yes’. To questions introduced by ai the
answer is Middle Welsh ief, ieu, Modern Welsh i-e; indirect,
Middle Welsh mae ef ‘that it
is’, Modern Welsh mai e
(delw
7260)
:_______________________________.
Mai (also mis Mai) ‹MAI / miis MAI› (masculine noun)
1 May
01 Mai (y cyntaf o Fai)
the first of May
Calan Mai
(“the) calend (of) May”)
...02 Mai (yr ail o Fai)
the second of May
...03 Mai (y trydydd o Fai)
the third of May
...04 Mai (y pedwerydd o Fai)
the fourth of May
...05 Mai (y pumed o Fai)
the fifth of May
...06 Mai (y chweched o Fai)
the sixth of May
...07 Mai (y seithfed o Fai)
the seventh of May
...08 Mai (yr wythfed o Fai)
the eighth of May
...09 Mai (y nawfed o Fai)
the ninth of May
...10 Mai (y degfed o Fai)
the tenth of May
...11 Mai (yr unfed ar ddeg o Fai)
the eleventh of May
...12 Mai (y deuddegfed o Fai)
the twelfth of May
...13 Mai (y trydydd ar ddeg o Fai)
the thirteenth of May
...14 Mai (y pedwerydd ar ddeg o Fai)
the fourteenth of May
...15 Mai (y pymthegfed o Fai)
the fifteenth of May
...16 Mai (yr unfed ar bymtheg o Fai)
the sixteenth of May
...17 Mai (yr ail ar bymtheg o Fai)
the seventeenth of May
...18 Mai (y deunawfed o Fai)
the eighteenth of May
...19 Mai (y pedwerydd ar bymtheg o Fai)
the nineteenth of May
...20 Mai (yr ugeinfed o Fai)
the twentieth of May
...21 Mai (yr unfed ar hugain o Fai)
the twenty-first of May
...22 Mai (yr ail ar hugain o Fai)
the twenty-second of May
...23 Mai (y trydydd ar hugain o Fai)
the twenty-third of May
...24 Mai (y pedwerydd ar hugain o Fai)
the twenty-fourth of May
...25 Mai (y pumed ar hugain o Fai)
the twenty-fifth of May
...26 Mai (y chweched ar hugain o Fai)
the twenty-sixth of May
...27 Mai (y seithfed ar hugain o Fai)
the twenty-seventh of May
...28 Mai (yr wythfed ar hugain o Fai)
the twenty-eighth of May
...29 Mai (y nawfed ar hugain o Fai)
the twenty-ninth of May
...30 Mai (y degfed ar hugain o Fai)
the thirtieth of May
...31 Mai (yr unfed ar ddeg ar hugain o Fai)
the thirty-first of May
:_______________________________.
maidd
‹maidh› masculine noun
PLURAL meiddion
‹meidh-yon›
1 whey, thin milk left over from cheesemaking
maidd glas whey (“blue whey”)
2 difeiddio separate
curds from whey
(di- negative prefix) + soft
mutation + (meidd- < maidd = whey) + (-io suffix)
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < British < Celtic
From the same British root: Cornish meidh
(= whey)
From the same Celtic root: Irish meadhg
(= whey), Manx meaig (= whey),
Also: French màgue (= whey) (from
Gaulish)
:_______________________________.
mail ‹mail› feminine noun
PLURAL meiliau,
meilau ‹meil –ye, mei-le›
South-east Wales
1 bowl, basin
y fail = the bowl
cael llond mail o uwd
have a bowlful of porridge
ETYMOLOGY: Probabably English (Old English mel-
= cup, bowl, basin)
:_______________________________.
main ‹MAIN› (adjective)
1 slender, narrow, thin
2 Llwybr Main name of a
road in Mynydd Llandygái, Bangor, county of Gwynedd
”y llwybr main” = the narrow path / way
(y = the) + (llwybr = path, way) + (main
= thin; narrow)
3 gefel fain ( Surgery)
forceps
(gefel = tongs) + soft mutation + (main = slender)
4 (voice) reedy, shrill, piping
llais main a reedy voice
5 thin = skinny, slim, lean, not fat
(ie = naturally thin)
ceffyl main = skinny horse
COMPARISONS:
mor fain â as thin / skinny as
cyn feined â as thin / skinny as
main fel as thin / skinny as (“thin / skinny like...”)
There are a number of expressions corresponding to English “as thin as a rake”
cyn feined â brwynen (“... as a rush”)
cyn feined â choes robin goch (“...as a leg of a robin”)
cyn feined ag asen (“...as a rib”)
cyn feined â phryf genwair (“...as a worm”) (“animal of fishing rod”)
cyn feined â'r gawnen (“...as the reed”)
cyn feined â slywen (“...as an eel”)
bod yn fain fel styllen (“be as thin as a board”)
:_______________________________.
mainc,
meinciau ‹MAINGK,
MEINGK ye› (feminine noun)
1 bench
y fainc = the bench
:_______________________________.
maint,
meintiau ‹MAINT› (masculine noun)
1 size
2 Mae’n rhy fach o dri maint
It’s three sizes too small
3 torri darn i’r iawn faint
cut a piece to the right size
4
Trech metel na maint “(it is)
stronger bravery / mettle than size”
5
cyfaint volume = space in a container
occupied by a liquid or gas
(cy- < cyf- prefix = ‘together’) + soft mutation + ( maint = size)
6
there is soft mutation after yr un (=
the same...), even though the word is masculine
yr un faint o the same amount of
bod o’r un faint â be the same size
as
:_______________________________.
maint,
meintiau ‹MAINT› (masculine noun)
1 size
:_______________________________.
maintioli ‹main ti OO li› (masculine
noun)
1 size
efallai ei fod ychydig yn fwy na'r maintioli canolig
he’s maybe a little bigger than average (“than the average size”)
:_______________________________.
Mair ‹mair› feminine noun
1 woman's name = Mary
2 the Virgin Mary
also Mair Wyryf the Virgin Mary
(“Mary Virgin”)
also Mair Forwyn the Virgin Mary
(“Mary Virgin, Mary Maiden”)
3 Gwenfair woman's name (gwen = holy) + (Mair); also Meirwen,
with the elements reversed (less correct but fairly common with ‘ai’ - Mairwen)
4 Eglwys Fair the Church
of Saint Mary, Saint Mary's Church;
(a) church of this name in Caer-dydd, (b) Heol
Eglwys Fair name of a street in central Caer-dydd leading down to the
church
5 In many village names, from the parish church; normally Llanfair ‹lhan-ver›
(accent on the first element) but sometimes Llan-fair ‹lhan-vair› (accent on the second
element)
6 in the names of plants and creatures
..1/ allwedd Mair ashkey =
winged seed of an ash tree (“(the) key (of) (the Virgin) Mary”)
..2/ celynnen Fair (Ruscus
aculeatus) butcher's broom (“holly (of) (the Virgin) Mary”);
..3/ colomen Fair Streptopelia turtur turtle dove (“dove
(of) (the Virgin) Mary”);
The standard name is turtur
..4/ esgid Fair Cypripedium calceolus Lady’s slipper (“(the) shoe (of the Virgin)
Mary”)
..5/ gold Mair Chrysanthemum
segetum corn marigold (“goldflower (of the) (Virgin) Mary”)
..6/ mantell Fair Alchemilla vulgaris Lady’s mantle
(“(the) matnle (of the Virgin) Mary”)
..7/ rhedynen Fair Athyrium filix-femina Lady fern (“(the)
fern (of the Virgin) Mary”)
..8/ ysgallen Fair Silybium marianum milk thistle (“(the)
thistle (of the Virgin) Mary”)
7 (Catholicism) various feast days dedicated to the Virgin Mary
Gwyl Fair (the) feastday (of) Mary
(gwyl = feastday) + soft mutation +
(Mair = Mary)
..(a) Gwyl Fair y Canhwyllau (2
February) = Candlemas. The day celebrating the presentation of Jesus in the
Temple, and the Purification of the Virgin Mary. ('Gwyl Fair' of the candles -
candles were blessed on this day).
Wyl Fair on the feastday of Mary, on
2 February (in adverbial phrases there is soft mutation of the initial
consonant, hence gwyl > wyl)
Occurs in the saying referring to the lengthening day after the winter solstice
which begins to be noticeable from the New Year
Awr fawr Calan, dwy Wyl Eilian, tair Wyl
Fair
‘big hour (on) the calend (“awr fawr y Calan”), two on Eilian’s feastday, and
three on Mary’s feastday’
that is, the day will have lengthened a full hour by New Year’s Day (Y Calan)
on January the first, (half an hour in the morning a half an hour in the
evening), two hours on Eilian’s feastday (Gwyl Eilian) on January the
thirteenth, and three hours by Lady Day (Gwyl Fair) on February the second
..(b) Gwyl Fair y Cyhydedd 25 March;
Lady Day, or Annunciation Day; the day of the annunciation of the Virgin, the
proclamation of the angel to the Virgin Mary. The name in Welsh means ‘Gwyl
Fair of the equinox’ (cyhydedd is
literally ‘equal length’) because it occurs just after the spring equinox.
Another name is Gwyl Fair hanner y
gwanwyn (= halfway through spring)
..(c) Gwyl Fair yn Awst (= in
August) the Assumption of the Virgin Mary (taking up into heaven) 15 August
..(d) Gwyl Fair ym Medi (= in
September) the Nativity of the Virgin Mary 8 September
8 y Tair Mair The three
Marys
The three Marys are depicted in illustrations in the Middle Ages standing
witnessing the Crucifixion of Christ. They are
(1) Mary, the mother of Christ,
(2) Mary Magdalen and
(3) Mary of Cleophas,
Sant Ioan 19.25 Ac yr oedd yn sefyll
wrth groes yr Iesu, ei fam ef, a chwaer ei fam ef, Mair gwraig Cleoffas, a Mair
Magdalen
Saint John 19.25 Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his
mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene
Llan-y-tair-mair (qv) SS4688 locality in the county of
Abertawe (“the church of the three Marys”).
English name: Knelston ‹nel-stən›. Also a parish at
this place.
9 Ffynnon Fair (“the)
well (of) Mair”, the Virgin Mary’s well)
Name of a well at a medieval shrine in Pen-rhys (county of Rhondda Cynon Taf)
NOTE: final syllable ai > e over most of Wales
Hence
Llanfair > “Llanfer”
Wigfair > Wigfer > Wicwer (SJ0271) (locality by Dinbych, North Wales)
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh Mair < Meir < British < Latin Maria < Greek Miriam (= wished-for young girl, or rebellious girl)
:_______________________________.
Mairwen ‹MEIR wen› (feminine noun)
1 form of Meirwen
:_______________________________.
maith ‹MAITH› (adjective)
1 long
:_______________________________.
majorét,
majoréts ‹ma jo
RET, ma jo RETS› (feminine noun)
1 majorette - one of a marching band of
young girls who play the kazoo to provide a musical accompaniment
:_______________________________.
*mal ‹mal ›
1 element found in cymal
(= joint, articulation; clause) and tryfal
(= triangle)
:_______________________________.
mâl ‹maal › masculine noun
1 act of milling
2 Y cinta i'r felin bia'r mâl
(county of Penfro)
first come, first served (“the first to the mill owns / gets the milling”)
3 (feminine noun) mill
y fâl the mill
4 ffrwd fâl millstream,
millrace
(ffrwd = fast-flowing stream; ffrwd
is a feminine noun) + soft mutation +
(mâl = mill)
Ffrwd-fâl mansion in the parish of Cynwyl Gaeo (county of Caerfyrddin)
ETYMOLOGY: stem of the verb malu
(= to grind)
:_______________________________.
Maldwyn ‹MALD-win› (m)
1 man’s name, from Maldwyn (f), a
short name for Sir Drefaldwyn = Montgomeryshire
Maldwyn was understood as
the name in Trefaldwyn (tre = town) + soft mutation + (Maldwyn), though in fact it is (tre = town) + soft mutation + (Baldwyn). Initial m and b, both soft-mutate to v, and somtimes there is confusion
in certain words about which is the radical form of a word – with m or b?
It is named after Baldwin de Bollers who took possession of the castle
here and built a new castell (Castell Baldwin) on top of a mound known today as
Hen Domen (“old castle-mound”)
Maldwyn as a given name probably began in the 1800s in bardic names or
pseudonyms for poets from the old county of Montgomery (now the northern part
of the county of Powys) , later becoming a middle name, and then a forename.
:_______________________________.
maleisus ‹ma LEI sis› (adjective)
1 malicious
2 difrod maleisus
malicious damage
:_______________________________.
Malen ‹MA len› (feminine noun)
1 woman's name = Mari (Mary)
:_______________________________.
Mali ‹MA li› (feminine noun)
1 woman's name = Mari (Mary)
:_______________________________.
Malláen ‹ma LHAIN› (feminine noun)
1 History (cwmwd = “neighbourhood”) kumud
of the kantrev of Ystrad Tywi (south-west)
:_______________________________.
Mallt ‹MALHT› (feminine noun)
1 woman's name (= Martha)
:_______________________________.
Malltraeth ‹MALH treth› (feminine noun)
1 History (cwmwd = “neighbourhood”)
(North-west Wales) kumud of the kantrev of Aberffraw (north-west)
:_______________________________.
malp ‹malp › masculine noun
PLURAL: malpau,
malps ‹mal–pe, malps›
(South Wales)
1 affectation, putting it on, false expression of emotion
gwneud malpau make a pretence, put
it on
Gad dy falpe! Stop pretending, Stop
putting it on
“Yr wyf yn penderfynu hoffi fy
ngwaith,” meddai, “ac ymgymodi âg ef. Mae hynny yn fwy dynol na
gwneyd malpai uwch ei ben.” Hunan-Gymorth / Samuel Smiles / Cyfiethieidig
gan J. Gwrhyd Lewis, Tonyrefail. 1898. t.49
I have decided to like my work, he said, and reconcile myself to it. That is
more manly than to make out I’m above it / pretend I’m too good for it
ETYMOLOGY: ??
:_______________________________.
malu ‹MA li› (verb)
1 to crush, grind
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < British < Celtic
Indo-European
mel(h) (= to crush, to grind) (also the origin of
English meal (= flour; food), and via Latin, to maul, molar (tooth) and mallet).
Malu is related to the words melin (= mill) (a word of
Latin origin), and blawd (=
flour) (a word of Celtic origin)
:_______________________________.
malwan
‹mal -wen› feminine
noun
PLURAL: malwod
‹mal-wod›
1 (North-west Wales) gastropod; snail or slug; see malwoden
y falwan = the snail, the slug
2 segment of an orange
ETYMOLOGY: north-western form of malwen (qv); in colloquial Welsh
:_______________________________.
malwen
‹mal -wen› feminine
noun
PLURAL: malwod
‹mal-wod›
1 (North-east Wales) gastropod; snail or slug; see malwoden
y falwen = the snail, the slug
:_______________________________.
malwoden
‹mal-woo-den› feminine noun
PLURAL: malwod
‹mal-wod›
1 gastropod; snail or slug
y falwen the gastropod; the snail;
the slug
Usually the two are not distinguished (other examples of creatures not
distinguished colloquially: llyffant
frog or toad,
madfall lizard or newt
But in less colloquial language, in general malwen / malwoden is
applied to snails, and gwlithen
(plural gwlithod) is used for a slug (“dew creature”,
from gwlith = dew, to which is added
the suffix –en)
(1) malwen gragen plural malwod cregyn snail (“gastropod (of)
shell”, gastropod with a shell) (Bangor district: malwan grogan)
(2) North-west Wales malwen noethlymun
= slug (“naked gastropod”)
(3) south Ceredigion malwaden â chragen
/ â cragen = snail (“gastropod with a shell”)
2 (Bible) malwoden dawdd
(plural malwod tawdd) “a snail which melteth”
Salmau 58:8 (y rhai annuwiol) Aed ymaith
fel malwen dawdd, neu erthyl gwraig; fel na welont yr haul
Psalm 58:8 (the wicked) As a snail which melteth, let every one of them pass
away: like the untimely birth of a woman, that they may not see the sun
(malwen + soft mutation + tawdd melted, root and past participle
of toddi = to melt)
Siad to refer to a popular belief thet the slimy trail of a snail results from
its body dissolving
3 cragen falwen plural cregyn malwod snail shell
gwlith-falwen plural gwlith-falwod slug (“dew- gastropod”,
“gastropod of the dew”)
llys malwen slime of a gastropod, of
a slug or snail
malwen ddu plural malwod duon slug (“black gastropod”)
malwen droellog / malwoden troellog,, plural malwod troellog Helix pygmaea whorl snail (“winding gastropod”)
malwen fôr, plural malwod môr sea-snail (“gastropod (of)
sea”, marine gastropod)
malwen Rufeinig / malwoden Rufeinig, plural malwod Rhufeinig Helix pomata Roman snail (“Roman gastropod”)
malwen y bresych Agriolimax agrestis field slug
(“gastropod (of) the cabbages”)
malwen y rhosod slugworm (“gastropod
of the moors”)
malwen yr ardd Arion hortensis field slug, garden slug (“gastropod (of) the
garden”)
malwoden fôr, plural malwod môr sea-snail
malwoden y rhosod slugworm
malwota gather snails
môr-falwen fioled, plural môr-falwod fioled Janthina janthina violet sea-snail
môr-falwen, plural môr-falwod sea-snail (“sea-gastropod”)
môr-falwoden, plural môr-falwod sea-snail (“sea-gastropod”)
pelen falwod plural pelenni malwod slug pellet
4 in comparisons to indicate slowness
..a/ mor araf â malwoden as slow as
a snail
..b/ mor ddeir â malwoden (South
Wales)
(deir southern form of dyhir = slow, tedious) as slow as a
snail
..c/ mor ddigyffro â malwoden as
sluggish as a snail
..d/ run fath â malwan mewn tar
(Bangor district) (move, go, etc) “like a snail in tar”
..e/ symud fel malwen go at a
snail’s pace, move sluggishly
5 cysgu yn llety'r falwen
sleep rough, sleep at the base of a hedgebank (“sleep in the lodging-house of
the snail”)
6 snail (= slow person, slow thing)
Twm Falwen epithet (Twm y falwen –
Tom the snail)
(Example from Llafar Gwlad, number 73, Haf (summer) 2001 an article by Bobi
Owen on nicknames in Dinbych (‘Denbigh’ in English): “Pwy gaech chi yn...
arafach ei gerddediad na Twm Falwen” – who would you find slower in gait than
Tom the Snail)
7 slug = metal piece fired from gun
8 lump on the blade of a scythe
9 district of Arfon (county of Gwynedd) malwan = segment of an orange
10 the symbol @, the commercial ‘a’ symbol, the ‘at’ symbol; used in
e-mail addresses
dafyddapgwilym@hotmail.com “Dafydd
ap Gwilym malwoden ‘hotmail’ dot com”
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < British
From the same British root:
Cornish melhwessenn (= snail); from this,
Melejann (Melledgan) – name of a
rock in the Scilly Isles;
(2) “melwidgeon” (= snail) in the English dialect of Cornwall;
Breton melc’hwedenn and melc’hwenn (= snail)
NOTE: The word has various forms in different parts of Wales.
(1) In the North malwen.
(2) In the South the standard form is malwoden.
This singular form is based on the plural malwod
with the addition of the singulative suffix -en.
Cf pysgodyn (= fish), llygoden (= mouse), both singulatives
based on a plural noun
Variants are
(a) South-west Wales: malweden (in
the county of Caerfyrddin: malhweden,
with aspirated ‘w’, which resembles the Cornish and Breton forms)
(b) Ceredigion: malwaden
(c) Brycheiniog: molwoden
(d) South-east Wales: molwetan <
molwedan
(delw 7397)
:_______________________________.
malwr cnau,
malwyr cnau ‹ma
lur KNAI, mal wir KNAI› (masculine noun)
1 nuthatch (bird)
:_______________________________.
mam, mamau ‹MAM, MA me› (feminine noun)
1 mother
y fam = the mother
2 bod ynghlwm wrth linyn ffedog
ei fam be tied to his mother’s apron strings
3 mam fedydd, mamau bedydd godmother
tad a mam bedydd godfather and godmother, godparents (no soft mutation,
as it does not refer solely to the mother)
:_______________________________.
mama ‹MA ma› (feminine noun)
1 mummy
:_______________________________.
mamaeth ‹ma -meth› feminine
noun
PLURAL: mamaethiaid,
mamaethod ‹ma- meith -yed, ma- mei -thod›
1 wet-nurse, nurse (usually in modern Welsh: llaethfam)
y famaeth = the wet-nurse
In Llandrillo yn Edeirnion, Gwynedd, there is a house called Tyddynyfamaeth (‘cottage / smallholding
of the wet-nurse’)
2 foster-mother (also: mam
faeth)
3 mother (i.e. woman who suckles / has suckled her child) (usually: mam)
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh mamaeth < mamfaeth (mam = mother) + soft mutation + (maeth = feeding, nutrition) < British
From the same British root: Cornish mammeth
(= wet nurse)
:_______________________________.
mam-gu,
mam-guod ‹mam
GII, mam GI od› (feminine noun)
1 grandmother (South)
y fam-gu = the grandmother
:_______________________________.
mamiaith
‹mam-yaith› feminine noun
PLURAL mamieithoedd
‹mam- yei-thodh›
1 native language, first language, mother tongue
y famiaith = the mother tongue
ETYMOLOGY: ‘mother language’ (mam = mother) + (iaith = language)
:_______________________________.
mamog,
mamogiaid ‹MA
mog, ma MOG yed› (feminine noun)
1 ewe
y famog = the ewe
:_______________________________.
mamolrwydd ‹ma MOL ruidh› (masculine noun)
1 maternity
:_______________________________.
mamwlad
‹mam -wlad› feminine noun
PLURAL: mamwledydd
‹mam- wlee -didh›
1 mother country, home country, homeland = (for a person living in
an adopted country) one's country of origin
y famwlad = the mother country
ETYMOLOGY: ‘mother country’ (mam = mother) + soft mutation + (gwlad = country)
:_______________________________.
mam-yng-nghyfraith,
mamau-... ‹mam
ə NGHƏ vreth, MA me...› (feminine
noun)
1 mother-in-law
y fam-yng-nghyfraith = the
mother-in-law
:_______________________________.
man, mannau ‹MAN, MA ne› (feminine or masculine noun)
1 place
y fan / y man = the place
2 man geni ‹man GE ni› place of birth
man gorffwys a place of rest, a resting place
3 unman same place (cf unman = any place)
troedio yn eich unfan = mark time
(“tread in your same place”)
4 ymhobman ‹ə MHOB man› (adverb)
everywhere
5 yn y fan yna in that
place
’Adawa i mohoni yn y fan yna I shall
not let it rest at that
6 culfan narrow street
Culfan name of a street in
Rhosllannerchrugog (county of Wrecsam)
7 cylchfan (USA: traffic
circle) (Englandic: roundabout) = central island at a road junction around
which traffic circulates in one direction; junction with such an island
(cylch- ‹ə›, penult form of cylch ‹i›
= circle) + soft mutation + ( man =
place)
8 Heulfan (House name or
street name) sunny place
(heul, tonic syllable form of haul) + soft mutation + (man = place)
(There is also an incorrect form Haulfan)
9 gwynfan fair place;
paradise
(gwynn-,
penult syllable form of gwyn =
white, fair) + soft mutation + (man
= place)
Gwynfan Street
name
..a/ Rhosllannerchrugog, county of Wrecsam
..b/ Nant-y-caws, county of Caerfyrddin
..c/ “Gwynfan Place”, Merthyrtudful (the Welsh name for this street would be
simply “Gwynfan” as in the two examples above)
10 Heddfan (house name) “peaceful spot”
(hedd = peace) + soft mutation + (man = place)
:_______________________________.
ma’n ‹ maan ›
1
southern form of maen (= stone)
Usually spelt (less correctly) mân
See aa / maan
:_______________________________.
mân ‹MAAN› (adjective)
It often precedes a noun.
1 small; fine; insignificant
mân bechod venial sin
glaw mân (qv) <glau MAAN> [glaʊ
ˡmɑːn] drizzle (“fine rain”)
cerrig mân (qv) small stones
2
plant mân young children
adar mân little birds
3
yr oriau mân the small hours; = the
early hours after midnight
yn yr oriau mân in the small hours
yn oriau mân y bore in the early
hours of the morning, in the small hours
4 in some phrases, placed
before the noun it qualifies:
mân glapiau small lumps (of coal, etc)
mân broblemau minor problems
mân us fine chaff
:_______________________________.
Manaw ‹MA nau› (feminine noun) ‹Ə-nis MAA-nau›
1 Isle of Mann. Also - Ynys Manaw
:_______________________________.
Manaweg ‹ma-NAU-eg› (feminine noun, adjective)
1 Manx (language)
y Fanaweg = the Manx language
:_______________________________.
Manawydan ‹ma-na-UI-dan› (masculine noun)
1 the third of the tales of the Mabinogi
:_______________________________.
Manceiniad ‹man-kein-yad› masculine or
feminine noun
PLURAL: Manceiniaid
‹man-kein-yed›
1 Mancunian, inhabitant of Manchester
y Manceiniad / y Fanceiniad = the
Mancunian
ETYMOLOGY: (Mancein- < Manceinion = Manchester) + (-iad, suffix to indicate ‘inhabitant’)
:_______________________________.
Manceinion ‹man-kein-yon› -
1 Manchester = city in northern England Manchester
ger Manceinion near Manchester
i Fanceinion to Manchester
o Fanceinion from Manchester
ym Manceinion in Manchester
The name in modern Latin is “Mancunium” (hence in English “Mancunian”,
inhabitant of Manchester) (“Mancunium” however is an erroneous form, and in the
Roman period the name was Mamucium)
2 Tŷ Manceinion
Manchester House. In names of emporia (retail stores selling a wide range of
goods) in certain Welsh towns the 1800s, where the goods came from Manchester.
(Usually the name of the store was in English and it indicated the provenance
of the merchandise). The Welsh forms are:
cf. Tŷ Llundain London House
(city in south-east England), Tŷ
Lerpwl Liverpool House (city in north-west England). Alos Ty^ Birmingham,
Birmingham House
ETYMOLOGY: The Welsh name seems to be an adaptation of the Latin form Mancunium
:_______________________________.
mân-ddanheddog ‹maan-
dha- nhee -dhog› adj
1 fine-toothed
helygen
fân-ddanheddog (helyg mân-ddanheddog)
(Salix breviserrata) finely-toothed willow
ETYMOLOGY: (mân = small, fine) +
soft mutation + ( danheddog = toothed)
:_______________________________.
maned
‹ma -ned› adjective
1 comparative equative of mân
= small, unimportant
2 mor faned â mes as
small / insignificant as acorns
ETYMOLOGY: (mân = small) + (-ed equative suffix)
:_______________________________.
maneg, menyg ‹MaA-neg, MEE-nig› (feminine noun)
1 glove
maneg baffio boxing glove
maneg focsio boxing glove
2 ffitio fel maneg fit like a glove
3
Gwlad y Menyg Gwynion (“The Land of
the White Gloves”) nickname for Wales, still in use - a name applied in century
1800 alluding to the comparatively low rate of crime in Wales. It was the
custom to present the visiting assize judge with a white pair of gloves when
there were no cases for trial.
(gwlad = country) + (menyg, plural of maneg = glove) + (gwynion,
plural of gwyn = white)
:_______________________________.
manesol
‹ma- ne -sol› adjective
(North Wales)
1 well-mannered, polite
ETYMOLOGY: manesol < *manersol (maners < English (good)
manners) + (-ol = suffix for
forming adjectives)
:_______________________________.
mân-flewog ‹maan- vleu -og› adj
1 fluffy
2 downy
helygen fân-flewog PLURAL: helyg
mân-flewog
(Salix lapponum) downy willow or Lapland willow
See: helygen wlanog hirddail
ETYMOLOGY: (mân = small, fine) +
soft mutation + ( blewog = hairy)
:_______________________________.
mangoed ‹man -goid› masculine
noun
South-east Wales
1 undergrowth; shrubs
2 Y Mangoed street name,
Hirwaun (county of Rhondda Cynon Taf)
ETYMOLOGY: (mân = small, little) +
soft mutation + (coed = trees, wood)
:_______________________________.
mangre
‹man -gre› feminine
noun
PLURAL: mangreoedd
‹man-gree-odh›
1 place
Genesis 19.12 A’r gwyr a ddywedasant
wrth Lot, A oes gennyt ti yma neb eto? mab yng nghyfraith, a’th feibion, a’th
ferched, a’r hyn oll sydd i ti yn y ddinas, a ddygi di allan o’r fangre hon
Genesis 19:12 And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in
law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city,
bring them out of this place
Aeth at hen fangre ei rhieni
He went to his parents’ old home
yn y fangre hon in this place
mangre baradwysaidd a paradise (“a
paradise-like place”)
Y pryd hwnnw, yr oedd gweithdy'r
cryddion yn fangre baradwysaidd
In those days the shoemakers’ workshop was a paradise
ETYMOLOGY: “place (of) horses” (man
= place) + (gre = troop of horses /
herd of horses)
:_______________________________.
Man-moel
‹man -moil›
1 village in Caerffili
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/637118
(“The Geograph British Isles project aims to collect geographically
representative photographs and information for every square kilometre of Great
Britain and Ireland…”)
ETYMOLOGY: ?? (moel = bare, barren)
NOTE: The local pronunciation would be Man-mool / Man-mo’l [man-mo:l]
:_______________________________.
ma'n nw ‹maan nu› (= maen nhw) (verb)
1 they are (South Wales)
:_______________________________.
man pasio,
mannau pasio ‹man
PAS yo, ma ne PAS yo› (masculine noun)
1 passing place (place on a narrow road
where the road broadens to allow a car to pull to one side to let another pass)
:_______________________________.
mantach
‹man -takh› adjective
1 having missing teeth, toothless; gap-toothed
2 (obsolete) (masculine noun) toothless jaw
3 medieval epithet (as an adjective in the radical form, or with
soft mutation
Also as a noun Y Mantach = the
toothless man, the man who has lost some teeth, the gap-toothed man
Maredudd ap Cadwgan Mantach =
Maredudd (the) son (of) Cadwgan with no teeth / Cadwgan with missing teeth /
gap-toothed Cadwgan
Ieuan ab Einion Fantach = Ieuan
(the) son (of) Einion with no teeth... (etc)
Bleddyn ab y Mantach = Bleddyn (the)
son (of) the (man) with no teeth... (etc)
(Welsh Surnames, T J Morgan / Prys Morgan, 1985)
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < Irish mantach
(= gap-toothed, toothless)
:_______________________________.
mantais,
manteision ‹MAN-tes,
man-TEIS-yon› (feminine noun)
1 advantage
y fantais the advantage
priodas fantais marriage of convenience
2
Mae hi ar ei mantais She’s sitting
pretty, She’s in an advantageous position
:_______________________________.
manteisio ‹man-TEIS-yo› (verb)
1 manteisio ar take advantage of
2 manteisio i’r eithaf ar
(rywbeth) = make the most of (“take advantage to-the-furthest on
something”)
:_______________________________.
mantol ‹man -tol› feminine
noun
PLURAL mantolion
‹man-tol-yon›
1 literary balance, pair
of scales (usually clorian, or in
the South tafol)
2 troi'r fantol = tip the
scales; influence decisively
3 dal y fantol = maintain
a balance
4 swingletree (crossbar in a horse's harness)
5 balance = difference in value
mantol fasnach = balance of trade,
difference in value between imports and exports
mantol daliadau = balance of
payments, difference in value between payments made by a state to foreign
states (payments for imports, transfers of capital abroad, payments of
interest, payments of grants, etc) and payments of this type received from
foreign states
mantol anweledig = invisible
balance, difference in value between total exports and imports of services
6 bod â'r fantol yn eich
erbyn have the odds against you, have the scales weighted against you, be
in a disadvantageous position (“have the scale against you”)
7 bod yn y fantol = be at
stake, be in the balance, hang in the balance; be in an uncertain situation, be
in an indecided state
popeth yn y fantol wrth i glwy'r traed
a'r genau ledu
everything in the balance as foot and mouth disease spreads
8 y Fantol = Libra,
constellation between Virgo and Scorpius
9 Astrology y Fantol = Libra, seventh sign of the
Zodiac; the sun is in this sign Sept 23 - Oct 22
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < British
There is no corrresponding word in modern Breton, but Old Breton had “montol”
(= balance)
:_______________________________.
manwl
‹ma -nul› adjective
1 detailed, precise thoroughgoing, very thorough
cyfarwyddydau manwl detailed
instructions
2 edrych yn fwy fanwl
look more closely
3 golwg fanylach a closer
look
4 strict, particular
5 (South Wales) beautiful, perfectly formed
Dacw'r feinwen hoenus fanwl, Beth wyf
well heb gael ei meddwl
Over there is the beautiful lively maiden, how does it benefit me not to have
her mindful of me (“what am I better without her mind”)
From the folk song Dacw nghariad i lawr
yn y berllan (Over there down in the orchard is my sweetheart)
6 manwl gywir precise
bod yn fanwl to be precise
a bod yn fanwl to be precise (phrase to introduce more detailed
information about a matter)
7 yn fanwl (adverb)
carefully
gwybod yn fanwl beth yw... to know
precisely what....
ETYMOLOGY: possibly a variant of manol
(= exact, careful), earlier manawl
:_______________________________.
map ‹map› masculine noun
PLURAL mapiau
‹map -ye›
1 map = two-dimensional representation of the earth's surface; shows
areas of land and of water (rivers, seas, etc); hills and mountains;
settlements (villages, towns, cities), and political and administrative
boundaries
map o’r byd a map of the world
map o Gymru a map of Wales
2 map = plan of the solar system showing the positions planets and
stars
map amlinell outline map
map bras sketch map, rough map, simplified map
map cyfuchlin contour map
map cau tir enclosure map
map defnydd tir land utilisation map
map degwm tithe map
map ordnans ordnance survey map
map stad / map ystâd estate map
map tirwedd relief map
llinfap sketch map (llin = line) + soft mutation + ( map = map)
3 map = plan of a zone giving special informnation – weather
conditions, geology, dialects, etc
map tywydd weather chart, weather
map
4 map = plan showing the frontiers and territories of states in
relation to each other
5 map = something similar to a map
6 town plan, town map
map o’r dre town plan, town map
7 rhoi (lle) ar y map, to
put (a place) on the map; = make (a place) well-known
Beth allwn ni wneud i roi Llangurig ar y
map? What can we do to put Llangurig on the map?
rhoi ar y map, put on the map = make
(a place) well-known
ETYMOLOGY: English map < Latin mappa < mappa mundî (= map of the world) < mappa (= cloth; painted cloth) < Punic
:_______________________________.
maplath
‹ma -plath›
1 (South-east Wales) lizard. See mabddall
:_______________________________.
marc, marciau
‹MARK, MARK ye› (masculine noun)
1 mark, indication, sign
:_______________________________.
marc post
‹mark post› masculine noun
PLURAL: marciau
post ‹mark-ye
post›
1 postmark, an inked cancellation on a stamp indicating the date,
time and place it was cancelled
Mewn llythyr a ddyddiwyd ar Orffennaf 25
- er bod y marc post yn dangos Gorffennaf 29...
In a letter dated July 29 - although the postmark is (“shows”) July 29
ETYMOLOGY: (marc = mark) + (post = post); a translation of English
'postmark'
:_______________________________.
..1 march,
meirch ‹MARKH,
MEIRKH› (masculine noun)
1 horse, stallion
2 sefyll allan fel llaid ar farch gwyn
stick out like a sore thumb = be very obvious
“stand out like mud on a white horse” (sefyll allan = stand out) + (fel
= like) + (llaid = mud) + (ar = on) + soft mutation + (march
gwyn = white horse)
3 in river names
..1/ Afon Camarch (SN9521) = river in the district of Brycheiniog,
county of Powys
Camarch < Camfarch (“(the) winding (river / stream called)
March”)
(cam = winding) + soft mutation + (March = stream name, literally
“horse”)
There is a village on this river Llangamarch (SN9347) (“the) church (by
the river) Camarch”)
4
(Aesculus hippocastanum) marchgastan horse
chestnut (fruit)
(march = horse) + soft mutation + (castan = chestnut)
The Welsh name is a translation of English horse
chestnut, itself a translation of Latin castanea equîna
Also: castan y meirch horse chestnut
(fruit)
(castan = chestnut) + (y definite article) + (meirch = horses, plural of march = horse)
5 Naid-y-march <naid ə MARKH> [naɪd ə
ˡmarx]
1 hamlet SJ1675 and farm SJ1675 in the county of Sir y Fflint.
“(the) leap (of) the horse”
(naid = leap) + (y definite article) + (march = horse)
The English name is “Horse’s Leap”.
http://www.geograph.org.uk/browse.php?p=337878 map
:_______________________________.
..2 march-
intensifying prefix
1 (+ noun) big, large
marchlyffant bullfrog (llyffant = toad, frog)
marchredynen polypody fern (rhedynen = fern)
marchwellt tall coarse grass (gwellt = grass)
marchwialen (obsolete) sapling (gwialen = rod, switch)
2 (+ adjective) very (in place names as the name of a hill Y Farteg)
teg (= fair, beautiful), marchdeg (qv) (= very beautiful)
ETYMOLOGY: special use of the word march
(= horse)
:_______________________________.
marchdeg ‹markh-deg›
adj
1 very beautiful; occurs only in place names
See Y Farteg, Penmarteg, Pont Marteg
ETYMOLOGY: (march = horse; used as an intensifying prefix) + soft
mutation + (teg) > marchdeg
In the name Y Farteg, we can suppose a sequence such as
marchdeg > marchteg > mar’teg > Y Farteg
NOTE:
..1/ There is soft mutation t > d after words ending in ch
Mochdre (the trêv of the pigs) (moch = pigs) + soft mutation + (tre
= trêv, farmstead)
gwychdeg (a literary word – splendid and fair; magnificent) (gwych
= fine) + soft mutation + (teg = fair)
Either there was a devoicing of d > t after ch – a somewhat unusual
occurrence, and then a loss of ch – again, such a loss is unusual.
Y Farteg is in fact an adjective
used as a noun.
The fact that the noun is feminine is perhaps unusual, as it is a hill name,
though there are soem hill words feminine in gender – bron (= round
hill, woman’s breast), copa (= summit, hilltop).
There is also the case of an adjective being used as a feminine noun in the
sense of a hill – moel (= bald), moel / y foel (= bare hill; the
bare hill)
:_______________________________.
marchgastan ‹markh- ga -stan› masculine noun
PLURAL marchgastanau
‹markh-ga- staa -ne›
1 horse chestnut
ETYMOLOGY: (march = horse) + soft
mutation + (castan = chestnut)
A translation of English horse chestnut,
itself a translation of Latin castanea
equîna
:_______________________________.
marchgastanwydden ‹markh-ga-stan-wə-dhen› feminine noun
PLURAL marchgastanwydd
‹markh-ga-stan-widh›
1 horse chestnut tree
y
farchgastanwydden the horse chestnut tree
ETYMOLOGY: (marchgastan = horse chestnut) + soft mutation + (gwydden = tree)
:_______________________________.
marchlyffant
‹markh-lə -fant› masculine noun
PLURAL llyffantod,
llyffaint ‹markh-
lə- fan-tod, markh -lə-faint ›
1 bullfrog
marchlyffant Americanaidd (Rana catesbeiana) American bullfrog
ETYMOLOGY: (march- prefix = big,
large, < march = horse) + soft
mutation + (llyffant = toad, frog)
:_______________________________.
marchnad,
marchnadoedd ‹MARKH nad, markh NA
dodh› (feminine noun)
1 market
y farchnad the market
:_______________________________.
marchnata ‹markh NA ta› (verb)
1 to trade
ETYMOLOGY: (marchnad =
market) + (-ha, suffix for forming
verbs) > *marchnád-ha > *marchnát-ha > marchnata
The h of the suffix devoices the preceding d > t and is
lost
:_______________________________.
marchog
‹MAR-khog › masculine noun
PLURAL: marchogion
‹mar-KHOG-yon›
1 (obsolete) horseman, horse rider
2 knight = soldier on horseback serving
a feudal leader
3 knight = nobleman who has served as a page and a squire, and is granted the
rank of knight
4 (England) man given the title of Sir by the English prime minister and
monarch
for services to the English state
5 (gwyddbwyll / chess) knight
6 (South-east Wales) jug, large earthernware jug; jug holding about a gallon
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh marchog (now a
noun, but originally an adjective – ‘ relating to a horse’ < British <
Celtic (march = horse) + (-og adjectival suffix)
From the same British root: Breton marc’heg, Cornish markhog
From the same Celtic root: Irish marchac (= horseman)
:_______________________________.
marchogaeth ‹mar KHO geth› (verb)
1 to ride a horse
:_______________________________.
marchoges
‹mar-khoo-ges › masculine
noun
PLURAL: marchogesau
‹mar-kho-ge-se ›
1 horsewoman
y farchnoges the horsewoman
ETYMOLOGY: (marchog = horseman) + (-es, suffix for forming feminine nouns)
:_______________________________.
marchoglu
‹mar- khog-li › masculine
noun
marchogluoedd
‹mar-khog-lii-odh›
1 cavalry
ETYMOLOGY: (marchog = knight,
horseman) + soft mutation + (llu =
force, army)
:_______________________________.
Marchudd
‹markh-idh › masculine noun
1 man's name (obsolete)
ETYMOLOGY: Marchudd (= March’udd) < *Marchiudd
”horse lord” (march = horse) + (-iudd = lord)
:_______________________________.
marchynys <MARKH-ənis> [ˡmarxənɪs]
1 horse island
Y Farchynys SH6617
Farm east of Y Bermo
http://www.geograph.org.uk/browse.php?p=285728
map
ETYMOLOGY: “horse-island” marchynys < (march = horse) + (ynys = island)
Cf Scottish Gaelic Marginis (English: Markinch) in
Fìobha / Fife, said to have been an island in a lake existing in 1200.
:_______________________________.
Mardy
‹mar-di› [ˡmardɪ]
1 Y Mardy [ə ˡmardɪ] south-eastern
pronunciation of the place-name Y Maerdy (qv) [ə
ˡməɪrdɪ] , the most notable village of this name
being in the at the top of the Rhondda Fach valley
2 male forename
Mardy Griffith Thomas, (author of Lloffyn Olaf O Faes Hynafiaethau Capel Y
Gyfylchi, Ger Pontrhydyfen, Port Talbot, 1899; “last gleaning from the
field of the antiquities of Capel y Gyfylchi, near Pont-rhyd-y-fen, Port
Talbot”)
:_______________________________.
marcio ‹MARK yo› (verb)
stem: marc-i-
1 to mark = place a mark on
2 mark = to correct and grade (an
essay, an exercise, an exam)
ETYMOLOGY: (marc = mark) + (-io verbal suffix)
:_______________________________.
Marged
1 woman's name (Margaret)
:_______________________________.
Margwen
1 woman's name (rare)
ETYMOLOGY: (Marg- first syllable of Marged = Margaret
) + (-wen suffix used in frmale
names; soft-mutated form of gwen, feminine form of gwyn – white; holy,
heavenly; pure)
:_______________________________.
Mari ‹MA ri› (feminine noun)
1 woman's name (Mary)
:_______________________________.
Mari Lwyd ‹ma ri LUID› (feminine noun)
1 (South) horse's skull decorated with
ribbons carried from house to house before Epiphany (January 6); the ceremony
with this skull, where the group with the skull ask to enter a house by singing
verses, and the householder replies in verse that entrance is denied; later
they are allowed to go in, and they are given beer, cakes or coins
See our Mari Lwyd pages at 0915e and 0976e
:_______________________________.
marl ‹marl › m
PLURAL: marliau, marlau ‹marl
–ye, mar-le›
1 marl = soil made up of
clay and lime
2 fertile land
3 in place names:
..a/ Plas-marl (county of Abertawe)
From “plas y marl” (the) mansion (of) the marl
..b/ Bryn Marl (Caernarfon, Gwynedd)
From “bryn y marl” (the) hill (of) the marl
..c/ Pant-y-marl (Yr Eglwysnewydd, Caer-dydd / Cardiff) (name now lost?)
The name “pant y marl” means (the) hollow (of) the marl
According to John Hobson Mathews (Mab Cernyw) in 'Cardiff Records' (1889-1911):
“PANT-Y-MARL. (the hollow of the marl.) A place in the chapelry of Whitchurch.)
(Note:
..a/ chapelry = district serving an Anglican chapel
..b/ Whitchurch > Yr Eglwysnewydd
Mentioned in the 1891 Census for Caer-dydd / Cardiff in Enumeration
District 12, which is: “Whitchurch: All that part
of the parish of Whitchurch comprising Providence Place, Grove, Pentwyn,
Ffynonwen, Pantymarl, Pantmawr, Rhubina Road, Wenallt, Graig Farm, Green Hill,
Deri Road and Hill, Caerphilly Road and New Inn.”
ETYMOLOGY: English marl
(=soil made up of clay and lime) < French marle (modern French: marne
= marl) < Late Latin margila,
diminutive form of marga (= marl)
:_______________________________.
marlat ‹mar -lat› masculine
noun
PLURAL: marladiaid
‹ mar- lad -yed›
1
drake = male duck
2
(insult) yr hen farlat gwirion = you
daft fool
NOTE: also in mid-Wales and the south the variants:
maelad, meilat, milat, milart (mileti),
merlat, marled, marlet
ETYMOLOGY: From English < French,
if not directly from French.
English mallard (Anas platyrhynchos), which is from
Middle French malard (= drake) (male = male, masculine animal) + (-ard suffix).
French male (= male animal) < masle < Latin masculus male (mās = male) +
(-culus
diminutive suffix)
The modern French word is unchanged: malart
(= drake, male duck)
The species of duck mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) is in Welsh hwyaden wyllt “wild duck”
:_______________________________.
mármaled
‹mar-ma-led› masculine
noun
NOTE: also with the stress on the final syllable – marmalêd ‹mar-ma-leed›
1 marmalade = preserve made from the pulp and rind of oranges, or
other citrus fruits
2 coeden fármaled
marmalade tree (Calocarpum sapota) A tropical American tree the fruit of which
is used for making preserves
ETYMOLOGY: English marmalade <
French marmelade < Portuguese marmelada < marmelo (= quince) < Latin melimêlum
< Greek melimêlon (= sweet
apple), (meli = honey) + (mêlon = apple, fruit)
:_______________________________.
marmor ‹MAR mor› (masculine noun)
1 marble
:_______________________________.
Marsli
‹mar -sli› feminine
noun
1 woman's name (English: Marjorie)
:_______________________________.
mart ‹mart› masculine noun
PLURAL: marts
‹marts›
1 mart, cattle market
mynd â'r defaid i'r mart take the
sheep to the cattle market
Mae etifeddion y porthmon i'w gweld ym
mhob mart ac ocsiwn
The heirs / descendents of the 'porthmon' (cattle dealer, cattle drover) are to
be seen in every cattle market and auction
criw fu'n protestio ger mart Caerfyrddin
a group of people who were protesting by Caerfyrddin cattle market
ETYMOLOGY: English mart < Dutch markt (= market)
:_______________________________.
marteg
1 very beautiful, very fair
………………………………….
…1/ Y Farteg SN7707
hill above Ystalyfera (Powys) (Anglicised as “Varteg Hill”)
“the fair place / the fair hill”
(y definite article) + soft
mutation + (marteg)
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/18476
Penrhiwfarteg place near here
pen rhiw’r farteg “(the)
bottom-end (of the) hillside (of) the Farteg”
(pen = end; top) + (rhiw = slope, hillside) + (Y Farteg hill
name).
The loss of the linking definite article is a common feature of place names
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/917581
Penrhiwfarteg
Street name Cwmfarteg (“Cwm Farteg”) in Y Bryn
cwm y farteg “(the) valley (of)
Y Farteg”
(cwm = valley) + (Y Farteg hill name).
………………………………….
…2/ Y Farteg SO2605
village near Pont-t-pw^l in Torfaen
Mynydd y Farteg Fawr “(the) uplands (at) Y Farteg Fawr / the Greater
Marteg”
Mynydd y Farteg Fach “(the) uplands (at) Y Farteg Fach / the Lesser
Marteg”
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/678880
Mynydd y Farteg Fawr
http://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/SO2605
Y Farteg
………………………………….
…3/ Penfarteg SN5162
farm south of Pennant, Ceredigion
pen y farteg “(the) top (of) Y
Farteg”
(pen = end; top) + (Y Farteg hill
name).
http://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/SN5162
………………………………….
…4/ Afon Marteg SN9974 by Pant-y-dŵr
Pont Marteg SN5971 near Rhaeadr-gwy “(the) bridge (at) (the place called) Marteg”
(pen = bridge) + (Marteg
= ?hill name).
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/481527
………………………………….
(delw 7428)
ETYMOLOGY: Marteg was originally marchdeg (qv)
(march = horse; also used as an intensifying
prefix) + soft mutation + (teg
= fair)
NOTE: There has been a tendency to spell it with English ‘v’ in place names, as
to an Anglicised mind the correct Welsh spelling resembles the unpleasant
English word ‘fart’.
:_______________________________.
1 marw ‹MA ru› (adjective)
1 dead
yn farw ‹ən VA ru›) dead
2 (North Wales) byw na marw no stopping “(no) living or
dying” (byw = living) + (na = nor) + (marw = dying)
Doedd dim byw na marw There was no stopping him, He would take no
refusal (“There was no living nor dying”)
Doedd dim byw na marw na châi fynd He was impatient to go
3 codi o farw’n fyw come back from the dead (“rise from dead
alive”)
4 gadael
(rhywun) fel petái’n farw leave somebody for dead (“leave somebody as if he
were dead”)
5 bod bron marw o chwerthin
die of laughter (“be nearly dead from laughing”)
Bûm bron marw o chwerthinn I nearly
died laughing
6 meirw used as a noun =
dead people
y byw a’r meirw the quick and the
dead
Noswyl y Meirw Eve of All Souls Day
(the evening of November 1, All Souls being on November 2)
:_______________________________.
2 marw ‹MA ru› (verb)
1 to die
marw o dorcalon die of a broken heart, die heartbroken
ymbaratói i farw prepare oneself for
death
Mae e wedi marw He's died
yn marw ‹ən MA ru› (verb) dying
2 marw ar y don (literary) to drown at sea (“die on the wave
/ on the sea”)
:_______________________________.
marw-anedig
‹ma-ru-a-nee-dig› adjective
1 still-born = (animal or human) born dead at the end of the
gestation period
ETYMOLOGY: (marw = dead) + soft
mutation + (ganedig = born)
:_______________________________.
marweiddiad
‹mar- weidh -yad› masculine
noun
1 (religion) mortification (of the flesh), control by self-denial
2 (medicine) mortification, tissue death
ETYMOLOGY: (marweidd- stem of marweiddio = mortify) + (-i-ad suffix)
:_______________________________.
marwolaeth,
marwolaethau ‹mar
WO leth, mar wo LEI the› (feminine noun)
1 death
y farwolaeth the death
2 bod dan ddedfryd marwolaeth
be under sentence of death
:_______________________________.
ma’s ‹ maas›
1
southern form of maes (= field), or ’maas < i maes (= outside)
Usually spelt (less correctly) mâs
See aa / maas
:_______________________________.
masarnen
‹ma- sar -nen› feminine noun
PLURAL masarn
‹ma sarn›
1 maple, maple tree
y fasarnen the maple tree
also: coeden fasarn = maple, maple
tree
2 deilen fasarn plural: dail masarn maple leaf
3 sudd masarn maple syrup
4 siwgwr masarn maple
sugar
5 Coedmasarn
‹koid –MA-sarn›
(as “Coed Masarn”) street name in
Abergele (Sir Conwy), “(y) coed masarn”
“(the) maple wood”, (y definite
article) + (coed = wood) + (masarn = maple)
ETYMOLOGY: (1) Welsh masarn < masar < English mazer < Old English maeser-
(2) the addition of the final -n
also occurs in
..1/ siswrn < siswr (= scissors),
..2/ adarn, a dialect form of adar (= birds).
(3) The English word mazer, now
generally obsolete, but in use in specialist language, denotes a wooden
drinking bowl, originally made of burr maple (Acer campestre). Mazer was
“maple”, and “object made from maple; drinking bowl”.
NOTE: Colloquially with the loss of the first syllable: masarnen > sarnen
(and sarnan in the north-west, which
has ‘a’ instead of ‘e’ in final syllables)
:_______________________________.
masarnen fawr ‹mar-
sar –nen vaur› feminine
noun
PLURAL: masarn mawr ‹ma
–sarn maur›
1 (tree) (Acer
pseudoplatanus) = sycamore, great maple
NOTE: (masarnen > maple) + soft mutation + (mawr = great)
:_______________________________.
masgl
‹ma -skal› masculine
noun
PLURAL: masglau
‹ma -skle›
1
pod = long seed-case of peas and beans
masglyn pys peapod
masgl ffa beanpod
2
shell = nutshell, hard outer covering of a nut
3
shell = eggshell, hard outer covering of an egg
ETYMOLOGY: unknown
NOTE: suffixed forms: mesglyn, masglyn,
masglen
Southern forms: masgal, mashgal
:_______________________________.
masnach,
masnachau ‹MA
snakh, ma SNA khe› (feminine noun)
1 trade, commerce
y fasnach the trade
2
llynges fasnach merchant navy =
ships engaged in commerce
:_______________________________.
masnachol ‹ma SNA khol› (adjective)
1 commercial
2 llynges
fasnachol merchant navy = ships engaged in commerce
:_______________________________.
masnachwr,
masnachwyr ‹ma
SNA khur, ma SNAKH wir› (masculine noun)
1 merchant
:_______________________________.
masnachwr
arfau ‹ma
SNA khur AR ve› (masculine noun)
1 arms dealer
:_______________________________.
masnachwr
cyffuriau ‹ma
SNA khur kə FIR ye› (masculine noun)
1 drug dealer
:_______________________________.
mastyrbaidd ‹ ma- stər -bedh› adjective
1
masturbatory
ETYMOLOGY: (mastyrb- stem of mastyrbio = masturbar) + (-aidd, suffix for forming adjectives)
:_______________________________.
mastyrbiad ‹ ma- stərb -yo› masculine
noun
PLURAL: masturbiadau
‹ ma-storb- yaa -de›
1
masturbation, wank
ETYMOLOGY: (mastyrb- stem of mastyrbio = masturbar) + (-i-ad noun-forming suffix)
:_______________________________.
mastyrbio ‹ ma- stərb -yo› verb
1
(verb with an object) masturbate, wank
2
(verb without an object) masturbate, wank, have a wank
ETYMOLOGY: (mastyrb- from English masturbate) (-io suffix for forming verbs)
English masturbate is a loan in the
1800s from Latin mastubârî (unknown
origin)
:_______________________________.
mastyrbiol ‹ ma- stərb -yol› adjective
1
masturbatory
ETYMOLOGY: (mastyrb- stem of mastyrbio = masturbar) + (-iol, suffix for forming adjectives)
:_______________________________.
mastyrbiwr ‹ ma- stərb -yur› masculine
noun
PLURAL: masturbwyr
‹ ma- stərb -wir›
1
masturbater
ETYMOLOGY: (mastyrb- stem of mastyrbio = masturbar) + (-i-wr suffix = man)
:_______________________________.
mat, matiau ‹MAT, MAT ye› (masculine noun)
1 mat
:_______________________________.
mat bwrdd ‹mat burdh› masculine noun
PLURAL: matiau
bwrdd ‹mat-ye burdh›
1 table mat, place mat (South Wales: mat bord)
ETYMOLOGY: (mat = mat) + (bwrdd = table)
:_______________________________.
mat cwrw ‹mat ku-rw› masculine noun
PLURAL: matiau
cwrw ‹mat-ye ku-ru›
1 beer mat = cardboard table mat placed under a beer mug to absorb
small amounts of beer spilled from the glass, and to advertise brewery products
2 casglwr matiau cwrw
beer mat collector = person whose hobby is collecting different kinds of beer
mats
ETYMOLOGY: (mat = mat) + (cwrw = beer)
:_______________________________.
mat drws ‹mat druus› masculine noun
PLURAL: matiau
drws ‹mat-ye druus›
1 doormat
ETYMOLOGY: “mat (of) door” (mat =
mat) + (drws = door)
:_______________________________.
mate ‹MA te› (masculine noun)
1 (Patagonian Welsh) mate (drink in
Patagonia, from the leaves of a tree related to the holly)
:_______________________________.
maten PLURAL matiau ‹MA ten, MAT ye› (feminine noun)
1 turf sod
y faten the turf sod
cysgu fel maten sleep like a log
(“sleep like a turf sod“)
:_______________________________.
mater,
materion ‹MA
ter, ma TER yon› (masculine noun)
1 matter
2 os daw’n fater o raid
should it become necessary
:_______________________________.
math, mathau ‹MAATH, MA the› (masculine noun)
1 type
2 y gorau o’i fath the best of its kind
3 bod rhyw fath ar (wneud
rhywbeth) be sort of (doing something)
4 yr un fath the same
type, the same thing
Does dim dau yr un fath
No two people are alike "there isn't a two the same sort" "
(does dim = there isn't) + (dau = two) + (yr = the) + (un
= one, same) + soft mutation + (math = type)
Maen nhw i gyd yr un fath â’i gilydd They’re all the same (“the same
with / as its fellow”)
5 unfath
identical
gefeilliaid unfath identical twins
(un = one) + soft mutation + (math = type)
anunfath = non-identical
(an = negative prefix) + (unfath = identical)
6 o’r math gwaethaf of
the worst sort
cnaf o’r math gwaethaf the worst of
rogues, a rogue of the first order
7
Mae agos yr un fath It’s almost the
same
:_______________________________.
Math ‹MAATH› (masculine noun)
1 fourth of the tales in the Mabinogi
:_______________________________.
Mathemateg ‹ma the MA teg› (feminine noun)
1 mathematics
:_______________________________.
Mathew ‹MA theu› (masculine noun)
1 man's name
:_______________________________.
Matho
‹maa -tho› masculine
noun
1 man’s name (= Matthew)
Graig Fatho (“(the) crag (of)
Matthew”) a farm east of Coedelái ST0185 (near Tonyrefail, county of Rhondda
Cynon Taf)
:_______________________________.
mathru ‹MA thri› (v)
1 crush
mathru (rhywbeth) dan eich traed
crush something underfoot
Galarnad Jeremeia 3:34 I fathru holl garcharorion y ddaear dan ei
draed,
Lamentations 3:34 To crush under his feet all the prisoners of the earth,
:_______________________________.
Mati ‹MA ti› (feminine noun)
1 woman's name, Mattie; = Martha
:_______________________________.
matras
‹ma-tras› masculine
noun
PLURAL: matresi,
matrasau ‹ma-tre-si, -se›
1 mattress
matras sbrings spring mattress
ETYMOLOGY: English < French < Italian materasso < Arabic almatrah
(=
place where something is thrown); taraha
(= to throw)
:_______________________________.
matshen,
matshus ‹MA
chen, MA chis› (feminine noun)
1 match (for lighting a fire)
y fatshen the match
Maw ‹MAU› feminine noun
1 River name
Wnion I cannot explain, nor can I find any trace as to when the river was first called Wnion. A very old name for it is undoubtedly “Maw", its
confluent being Mawddy, then Mawddach.
:_______________________________.
Mawddwy
‹mau -dhui› feminine
noun
1 division (kumud / “cwmwd”) of the (kantrev / “cantref”) of Cyfeiliog
(in the modern county of Gwynedd)
(a) Aran Fawddwy “(the) Aran
(mountain) (belonging to) (the kumud of) Mawddwy”;
There are two neighbouring peaks with the name Aran; the other is Aran
Benllyn (the) Aran (mountain) (belonging to) (the kumud of) Penllyn
(b) Llanymawddwy SH3180 village and
parish name (= “Llan ym Mawddwy”, “the place called “Llan” in the kumud of
Mawddwy”, “the parish church in the kumud of Mawddwy”)
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/507603
(“The Geograph British Isles project aims to collect geographically
representative photographs and information for every square kilometre of Great
Britain and Ireland…”)
ETYMOLOGY: ??
:_______________________________.
mawnbwll ‹maun -bulh› masculine
noun
PLURAL: mawnbyllau ‹maun-
bə -lhe›
1 peat bog
ETYMOLOGY: (mawn = peat) + soft
mutation + (pwll = pool, hollow, pit)
:_______________________________.
mawr ‹maur› adjective
1 big = of great size
bys mawr minute hand (“big finger”)
mor fawr â as big as
hanner mor fawr â half as big as
2 big = of great height
3 big = of great weight
4 big = of great number
5 big = of great capacity
6 big, important
7 (sea) stormy, rough; môr
mawr a rough sea
8 great (intensity)
used before a noun (which has soft mutation)
trwy fawr lafur with great toil,
through hard work
9 strong = (wind) of great intensity;
treio darllen papur newydd mewn gwynt
mawr trying to read a newspaper in a strong wind
10 (person) big, corpulent, fat, large
11 great, prominent;
Cymro mawr arall oedd John Morris-Jones
John Morris-Jones was another great Welshman
12 (money) indicating large quantities; gwario arian mawr spend a lot of money
13 big = bigger than usual, in order to reflect higher status
breuddwydio am dy mawr a char mawr
dream of a big house and a big car
14 (weather) stormy; tywydd
mawr stormy weather;
Tydi hi'n noson fawr, Mr Williams?
Isn't it a stormy night, Mr Williams?
tywydd mawr bad weather (“big
weather”)
15 (letters) capital llythyren
fawr capital letter; a fawr A,
capital a
16 fully-grown, of adult age;
Beth wyt ti am neud wedi mynd yn fawr?
What do you want to do when you grow up? (“after becoming big”)
17 (time) refers to length -
amser mawr a long time
awr fawr a good hour, an hour and more
blynyddoedd mawr yn ôl many years ago
sbel fawr a good while, a long time
18 fawr o not much...
(with the negator ni or the
preposition heb = without)
heb fawr o lwc without much luck
(“without (a) great (amount) of luck”)
fawr o dro = not long, not much time
19 great, big = enthusiastic, avid, keen; mae hi'n ddarllenreg fawr
she's a big reader, an avid reader
20 (friends) great, close; maen
nhw'n ffrindie mawr they're great friends
21 (age) great bod mewn oed
mawr be very old (“be in a big age”)
22 posh, complicated; Cymraeg
mawr (“big Welsh”) term for a register of Welsh used by people who have had
an education in the language; often implies that it is unnatural and too close
to literary Welsh
23 in some place names in the reduced form -mor, -for, etc
For whatever reason, the noun and adjective become a compound form and the
accent has shifted to the penultimate syllable
The diphthong aw in the final syllable is reduced to the simple vowel o, as is usual in literary and colloquial Welsh.
Coetmor: (coed mawr = big wood)
coed-máwr > cóetmawr > Cóetmor
Dwyfor: (Dywy fawr = the bigger of the two rivers)
Dywy Fáwr > Dywyfawr > D’wyfawr
> Dwyfor
Llannor: (llan fawr =
big church)
llan-fáwr > llánfawr > llánfor > Llánnor
Trefor: (tref fawr =
big trêv, big farmstead)
tref-fáwr > tréfawr > Tréfor
Ynysfor: (ynys fawr =
big island)
ynys-fáwr > ynýsfawr > Ynýsfor SH6042 Name of a farm, near Porthmadog; from the name of a
rocky outcrop on which it stands
24
(in a competition) gwneud sioe dda ohoni
put up a good show, perform well, give a creditable performance (“make a good
show of it”)
25 Y Sioe Fawr a popular
name for Sioe Amaethyddol Cymru
(Welsh Agricultural Show) held at end of July in Llanelwedd, county of Powys
Cf the facetious name for this event Steddfod
y Buarth “the eisteddfod of the farmyard”. It is held just one week before
the national eisteddfod
26 gwneud eira mawr snow
heavily (“make big snow”)
27 o fawr bwys of little
importance
(ni = not)..... + (o = of) + soft mutation + (mawr = big, great) + soft mutation + (pwys = importance)
Nìd yw o fawr bwys It’s of little
importance
28 mawr o...
Nid yw’n fawr o beth It’s nothing
sensational, It’s nothing grand
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < mâr- <
British < Celtic môr-
From the same British root: Breton meur
(= big), Cornish meur (= big)
From the same Celtic root: Irish mór
(= big), Scottish mòr (= big), Manks
mooar (= big)
Occurs in place names from Gaulish
The highest hill in the département
of L’Oise (220m) is Mont Pagnotte, also called Haut Merdun; and Merdun
is said to be from Gaulish Mar-o-dun-on “big hill”, corresponding to
modern Welsh mawr (= big), din (= fort).
:_______________________________.
mawrddrwg
‹maur -dhrug› masculine
noun
1 great evil
(in rebuking someone for having done something) Y mawrddrwg! You villain!
Y mawrddrwg o frawd sy gen ti
wnaeth e, siwr iawn That rascal of a brother of yours did it, without a
doubt
ETYMOLOGY: (mawr = big) + soft
mutation + (drwg = evil, badness)
:_______________________________.
mawredd ‹MU redh› (masculine noun)
1 greatness
:_______________________________.
mawrhydi ‹maur HƏ di› (masculine noun)
1 majesty
2
address to a royal personage
Eich Mawrhydi Your Majesty, Your
Majesties
Ei Mawrhydi Her Majesty
Ei Fawrhydi His Majesty
Eu Mawrhydi Their Majesties
:_______________________________.
Mawrth (mis Mawrth) [maʊrθ,
miːs ˡmaʊrθ] ˡ (masculine noun)
1 Mars
2 (month) March;
Mae cyn sicred aa Mawrth yn y Grawys
It’s absolutely certain, It’s a sure as eggs is eggs (“as sure as Tuesday in
Lent”; this is Lenten Tuesday / the first
Tuesday in Lent / Pancake Tuesday)
3 dydd Mawrth = Tuesday
...01 Mawrth (y cyntaf o Fawrth)
the first of March
Gwyl Ddewi or Gwyl Dewi Saint David’s Day, patron of Wales
See Page 0842
“Gwyl Ddewi or Gwyl Dewi?”
...02 Mawrth (yr ail o Fawrth)
the second of March
...03 Mawrth (y trydydd o Fawrth)
the third of March
...04 Mawrth (y pedwerydd o Fawrth)
the fourth of March
...05 Mawrth (y pumed o Fawrth)
the fifth of March
...06 Mawrth (y chweched o Fawrth)
the sixth of March
...07 Mawrth (y seithfed o Fawrth)
the seventh of March
...08 Mawrth (yr wythfed o Fawrth)
the eighth of March
...09 Mawrth (y nawfed o Fawrth)
the ninth of March
...10 Mawrth (y degfed o Fawrth)
the tenth of March
...11 Mawrth (yr unfed ar ddeg o Fawrth)
the eleventh of March
...12 Mawrth (y deuddeg o Fawrth)
the twelfth of March
...13 Mawrth (y trydydd ar ddeg o Fawrth)
the thirteenth of March
...14 Mawrth (y pedwerydd ar ddeg o Fawrth)
the fourteenth of March
...15 Mawrth (y pymthegfed o Fawrth)
the fifteenth of March
Gwyl Fair y Cyhydedd (“dydd pen
tymor” – a quarter day, day at the end of a three-month period when rents were
paid)
...16 Mawrth (yr unfed ar bymtheg o Fawrth)
the sixteenth of March
...17 Mawrth (yr ail ar bymtheg o Fawrth)
the seventeenth of March
Gwyl Badrig Saint Patrick’s Day
...18 Mawrth (y deunawfed o Fawrth)
the eighteenth of March
...19 Mawrth (y pedwerydd ar bymtheg o Fawrth)
the nineteenth of March
...20 Mawrth (yr ugeinfed o Fawrth)
the twentieth of March
...21 Mawrth (yr unfed ar hugain o Fawrth)
the twenty-first of March
Gwyl Bened / Gwyl Sant Benedict feast of Benedict
...22 Mawrth (yr ail ar hugain o Fawrth)
the twenty-second of March
...23 Mawrth (y trydydd ar hugain o Fawrth)
the twenty-third of March
...24 Mawrth (y pedwerydd ar hugain o Fawrth)
the twenty-fourth of March
...25 Mawrth (y pumed ar hugain o Fawrth)
the twenty-fifth of March
Gwyl Cyfarchiad Mair Forwyn
Annunciation
...26 Mawrth (y chweched ar hugain o Fawrth)
the twenty-sixth of March
...27 Mawrth (y seithfed ar hugain o Fawrth)
the twenty-seventh of March
...28 Mawrth (yr wythfed ar hugain o Fawrth)
the twenty-eighth of March
...29 Mawrth (y nawfed ar hugain o Fawrth)
the twenty-ninth of March
...30 Mawrth (y degfed ar hugain o Fawrth)
the thirtieth of March
...31 Mawrth (yr unfed ar ddeg ar hugain o Fawrth)
the thirty-first of March
:_______________________________.
Mebwynion [me-BUIN-yon] [mɛˡbʊɪnjɔn] (feminine noun)
History (cwmwd = “neighbourhood”) kumud of the kantrev of Is Aeron (South-west
Wales)
:_______________________________.
mebyd [MEE-bid] [ˡmeˑbɪd]
(masculine noun)
1 boyhood
:_______________________________.
mecanic,
mecanics [me-KAA-nik, me-KAA-niks] [mɛˡkɑˑnɪk,
mɛˡkɑˑnɪks] (masculine noun)
1 (Colloquial) mechanic (standard:
mecanydd)
:_______________________________.
mecanydd,
mecanyddion [me-KAA-nidh, me-ka-NƏDH-yon] [mɛˡkɑˑnɪð,
mɛkaˡnəðjɔn] (masculine
noun)
1 mechanic
:_______________________________.
Mechain [MEE-khain,
-khen] [ˡmeˑxaɪn, -ɛn] (feminine
noun)
1 kantrev of the medieval country of
Powys Wenwynwyn (North-east)
Llanfechain SJ1820 [lhan-VEE-khain] [ɬanˡveˑxaɪn] village on the river Cain, 5km east of
Llanfyllin in Powys. Population:
(1961) 461; proportion of Welsh-speakers: (1961) 41%. Also the name of a
parish.
The name as it stands is “church (of the kántrev called) Mechain”
(llan = church) + soft mutation + (Mechain, division (‘kantrev’) of the
country of Powys Wenwynwyn).
However, the original name is Llanarmon ym Mechain “(the) Llanarmon
(which is) (in the kántrev of) Mechain”
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/750165
(“The Geograph British
Isles project aims to collect geographically representative photographs and
information for every square kilometre of Great Britain and Ireland…”)
ETYMOLOGY: Mechain “(the)
plain (of) (the river) Cain” < *Machain
(ma = plain) + spirant mutation
+ (Cain river name, = ‘beautiful’,
but possibly a personal name – otherwise Afon Gain would be expected, but it is
called Afon Cain).
:_______________________________.
medal,
medalau [MEE-dal, me-DAA-lai,
-e] [ˡmeˑdal,
mɛˡdɑˑlaɪ, -ɛ] (feminine
noun)
1 medal
y fedal the medal
:_______________________________.
medd 01 [MEEDH] [meːð] masculine noun
1 mead = alcoholic drink made of fermented honey and water
Llannerch-y-medd village in Sir Fôn
(‘the clearing of the mead’, explained as a woodland clearing with beehives for
mead production)
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < British *med-
< Celtic < Indoeuropean *medhu
(= honey, mead)
From the same British root: Breton mez
(= mead), Cornish medh (= mead)
From the same Common Celtic root: Irish miodh
(= mead), Manks medd (= mead)
From the same Indoeuropean root:
..a/ Greek methu (= wine),
..b/ English mead (Old English meodu)
..c/ Cf Sanskrit mádhu (= honey).
The Welsh word meddw (= drunk) is
based on medd (= mead); the equivalents
in the other British languages are:
..a/ Cornish medhow (= drunk)
..b/ Breton mezo, mezv (= drunk)
:_______________________________.
*medd 02 [MEEDH] [meːð] masculine noun
1 element (= measure) found in some compound words
dyrnfedd = handbreadth (“hand
measure”)
modfedd = inch (“thumb measure”)
troedfedd = foot (“foot measure”)
tonfedd = wavelength (“wave
measure”)
ETYMOLOGY: medd < British *med-; cf Latin mêtîrî (= to measure)
:_______________________________.
medd 03 [MEEDH] [meːð]
1 says (in quoting exact words)
Efallai na bydd hi byw tan y bore, medd
y doctor He might not live to see the morning, the doctor says
medd yr hen air or so the saying
goes, is what they say (“says the old word / the old saying”)
“Gorau arfer, daioni” medd yr hen air
“The best thing you can do is to do good”, or so the saying goes
2 meddaf I say (‘I shall
say’)
meddwn I say (‘I was saying’)
medd he / she says (‘he / she shall
say’)
meddai he / she says (‘he / she was
saying’)
meddan nhw they say (“they shall
say”)
medden nhw they say (“they were
saying) [MEE-dhe-nu, -nhu] [ˡmeˑðɛnʊ,
-nhʊ]
3
Tinddu medd y frân wrth y wylan
(It’s a case of / It’s) the pot calling the kettle black (“black-arse says the
crow to the seagull”)
4 say = give as a reading (on a dial, clock face)
camu o’r cawod a sefyll ar y glorian...
un stôn ar ddeg a hanner, medda hi
walk from the shower to the scales... eleven and a half stone, it says
“Sympian saint” - “súmffoni y mynachod”
medd Dafydd ap Gwilym am yr organ yn Eglwys Deiniol ym Mangor
“Sympian saint” - “the symphony of the monks” says Dafydd ap Gwilym (= foremost
medieval Welsh poet) about the organ in Eglwys Deiniol (the church of Deiniol)
in Bangor
NOTE: Also the forms myntwn i = I
said, mynte fe = he said.
(1) meddai yntau = he-for-his-part
said;
(2) colloquially: medde ynte (final
“au” > “e”)
(3) loss of medial dd, which results
in: me’ ynte
(4) coalescence of the two words: mente
(5) derivation of a new root ment or
mynt from this
(6) addition of personal endings to this new root
myntwn i, mentwn i, etc
ETYMOLOGY: Cf Cornish in-medh (=
said), Breton eme (= said) < emez
:_______________________________.
medd.
1 abbreviation = meddiannol
:_______________________________.
meddai [MEE-dhai, -e] [ˡmeˑðaɪ, -ɛ] (v)
1 he / she / it said
See medd (3)
:_______________________________.
meddal [MEE-dhal] [ˡmeˑðal] (adjective)
1 soft = not hard
2 soft = (person) easy to pressure, not firm in character
Nid oedd ei larieidd-dra yn peri iddo fod yn feddal a gwasaidd.
His gentleness did not make him (“did not cause him to be”) soft and servile
3 (Grammar) mutation soft
(Affects nine consonants: c > g, p > b, t > d, g > ZERO, b > f,
d > dd, m > f, ll > l, rh > r)
treiglad meddal soft mutation
Abbreviation: ml.
:_______________________________.
meddiannol [medh-YAnol] [mɛðˡjanɔl]
1 (Grammar) possessive
Abbreviation: medd.
:_______________________________.
medde
[MEE-dhe] [ˡmeˑðɛ] verb
1 colloquial form of meddai
(= (he / she / it) says, said)
NOTE: (-ai in the final syllable of
a word in colloquial Welsh > e
(and a in the north-west and
south-east)
:_______________________________.
medden nhw
[MEE-dhe-nu, -nhu] [ˡmeˑðɛnʊ,
-nhʊ]
verb
1 they say, it is said (in repeating a rumour, news), or so they
say, or so they tell me
NOTE: also written medde’ nhw / nw,
medden hw; (nord-oest, sud-est) meddan
nhw / nw, medda’ nhw / nw
:_______________________________.
meddgi
[MEDH-gi] [ˡmɛðgɪ] masculine noun
PLURAL meddgwn [MEDH-gun] [ˡmɛðgʊn]
1 drunkard
ETYMOLOGY: meddgi < méddw-gi < (meddw = drunk) + soft mutation + (ci = dog)
:_______________________________.
meddiant,
meddiannau [MEDH-yant, medh-YA-nai,
-e] [ˡmɛðjant,
mɛðˡjanaɪ, -ɛ] (masculine
noun)
1 ownership
meddiannau property (= land, buildings, etc)
:_______________________________.
meddw [MEE-dhu] [ˡmeˑðʊ] (adjective)
1 drunk
See medd (= mead)
:_______________________________.
meddwen ‹medh -wen› feminine noun
PLURAL meddod;
meddwennod ‹medh-wod; medh-we-nod›
1 female drunkard, drunken woman
y feddwen the drunken woman
ETYMOLOGY: (meddw = drunk) + (-en suffix added to nouns to make a
noun from an adjective)
:_______________________________.
meddwi ‹MEDH wi› (verb)
1 to get drunk
:_______________________________.
..1 meddwl ‹ME dhul› (verb)
1 to think
ailfeddwl to think again
Beth wyt ti’n feddwl amdano fe? (= Beth wyt ti’n ei feddwl...) What do you think about it?
lleisio’ch meddwl to think aloud
(“to voice your mind”)
meddwl drosoch eich hun to think for
yourself
meddyliwch cyn siarad think before
you speak
meddwl eilwaith to think again
meddwl yn ddwys to think hard
meddwl yn galed to think hard
feddyliwn i (colloquially, ’ddyliwn
i) I should think, I should have
thought, I’d’ve thought
go brin, ’ddyliwn i it’s hardly
likely, I’d’ve thought
pwy fydde wedi meddwl! (pwy a
fyddai wedi meddwl!) Who’d’ve thought it!
wn i ddim beth i’w feddwl I don’t know what to think
2 meddwl fel arall think otherwise
3 erbyn
meddwl all things considered, considering the circumstances, in view of the
situation, now that I think of it
4 rw i’n meddwl nad oedd hi’n deall y
sefyllfa
I don’t think she understood the situation (“I think she didn’t understand
the situation”)
:_______________________________.
..2 meddwl,
meddyliau ‹ME
dhul, me DHƏL ye› (masculine noun)
1 mind
rhoi’ch meddwl ar waith ynghylch
rhywbeth give careful thought to something
mynd trwy’ch feddwl go through your
mind
bwrw’ch meddwl yn ôl to think back
taflu’ch meddwl yn ôl to think back
2 thought
3 regard, consideration
meddwl mawr high opinion (“big
thought”)
Mae ganddi feddwl fawr ohoni ’i hun
She thinks a lot of herself, she has a high opinion of herself, she really
fancies herself
:_______________________________.
meddwl llai na
‹mee-dhul lhai naa›
1 ni + meddwl llai na not
think for a moment that
Fel yr awgrymwyd o’r blaen, nid oedd yn meddwl llai na gwella drwy
y misoedd y bu yn glaf.
As we have mentioned, he always believed he would get better during the months
he was ill.
NOTE: (ni = negative particle;
colloquially it is omitted) + (meddwl
= to think) + (llai = less) + (na = than)
:_______________________________.
meddwol
‹medh -wol› adjective
1 alcoholic, intoxicating; = containing alcohol;
diod feddwol = alcoholic drink,
intoxicating liquor
2 drunken, alcoholic = given to drinking large amounts of alcoholic
drink, inclined to drink;
Dyma rai o'r bobl fwyaf meddwol sydd i'w cael ar glawr daear
They are some of the people most inclined to drink on the face of the earth
ETYMOLOGY: (meddw = drunk) + (-ol = suffix for forming a masculine
noun from an adjective)
:_______________________________.
meddwyn
‹medh -win› masculine
noun
PLURAL meddwon ‹medh-won›
1 drunk, drunkard, sop, inebriate, (American: also souse); =
a person who drinks to excess habitually
ETYMOLOGY: (meddw = (adjective)
drunk) + (-yn = suffix for forming a
masculine noun from an adjective)
:_______________________________.
meddyg
‹mee-dhig› masculine
noun
PLURAL meddygon ‹me-dhə-gon›
1 doctor (man doctor) (woman doctor) (informal: doc)
mynd at y meddyg to go to the
doctor’s, to visit the doctor
2 y Meddyg (as a title)
the doctor (man, woman);
y Meddyg Siân Gruffudd = Doctor Siân
Gruffudd
(colloquially, Doctor Siân Gruffudd)
3 informal medic = medical
student
4 in medieval times an epithet = doctor; it survives as the (rare)
anglicised surname “Meddick”
5 county of Caerfyrddin
medicine, remedy
6 Amser yw'r meddyg gorau
Time heals all, Time is the great healer (“(it is) time that-is the best
doctor”)
7 bod dan law'r meddyg be
receiving medical treatment (“be under the hand of the doctor”)
Roedd llawer o'r milwyr dan law'r meddyg
gydag archollion cyllyll
Many of the soldiers were receiving medical treatment for knife wounds
8 South Wales Does gyda fi feddyg gyda... I can't
stand, I can't abide (“there isn't with me a remedy with...”)
Does gennyf feddyg i neb arall wybod lle
rw i'n mynd
I can't stand other people knowing where I'm going
9 llawfeddyg = surgeon
(“hand-doctor”) (llaw = hand) + soft
mutation + (meddyg = doctor)
10 parafeddyg =
paramedic, person who helps in medical work
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < British < Latin medicus
< medêri (= to cure).
From the same British root: Cornish medheg
(= doctor), Breton mezeg (= doctor)
Also from Latin medicus is the Irish
word miodhach (= doctor)
:_______________________________.
Meddyg.
1 abbreviation = Meddygaeth
Medicine
:_______________________________.
meddygaeth
‹me- dhə -geth› feminine
noun
1 medicine = medical science
Abbreviation: Meddyg.
2 ysgol feddygaeth medical
school, place where doctors are trained
3 llawfeddygaeth surgery
(llawfeddyg = surgeon) +(-aeth suffix for forming nouns)
4 Meddygaeth Medicine (Subject label in a
dictionary, etc)
Abbreviation: Meddyg.
ETYMOLOGY: (meddyg-,
penult form of meddyg = doctor) + (-aeth)
Cornish medhygieth = medicine,
Breton mezegiezh = medicine
:_______________________________.
meddyg corff
‹mee -dhig korf› masculine noun
PLURAL meddygon corff ‹me- dhə -gon korf›
1 colloquial physician
(doctor, especially one who practises general medicine, not a surgeon, or a
specialist)
(Literal translation: “body doctor”)
:_______________________________.
meddyges
‹me- dhə -ges› feminine
noun
PLURAL meddygesau ‹me-dhə- ge -se›
1 doctor (woman doctor)
y feddyges the doctor
ETYMOLOGY: (meddyg-, penult form of meddyg = doctor) + (-es)
:_______________________________.
meddyg esgyrn
‹mee -dhig e -skirn›
masculine noun
PLURAL meddygon esgyrn ‹me-dhə-gon e -skirn›
1 formerly bonesetter =
doctor who treats broken bones
2 colloquial osteopath
(the formal word is ósteopath)
(“doctor (of) bones”)
:_______________________________.
meddygfa
‹me- dhəg -va› feminine
noun
PLURAL meddygféydd ‹me-dhəg- veidh›
1 (American: doctor's office), (Englandic: doctor's surgery,
doctor's consulting room) - the room in which a patient visits a doctor
y feddygfa the doctor’s office
2 surgery = a place with a doctor's consulting room, waiting room,
and dispensary; colloquial name: lle doctor (“(a) place (of a) doctor”),
lle'r doctor (“(the) place (of the)
doctor”)
Meddygfa Cadwgan name of a surgery in Hen Golwyn
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/527407
(“The Geograph British
Isles project aims to collect geographically representative photographs and
information for every square kilometre of Great Britain and Ireland…”)
ETYMOLOGY: (meddyg-, penult form of meddyg = doctor) + (-fa, suffix = 'place')
:_______________________________.
meddyg geni
‹mee -dhig gee -ni›
masculine noun
PLURAL meddygon geni ‹me-dhə-gon gee -ni›
1 colloquial obstetrician
(the formal word is obstetrydd),
specialist in childbirth and the treatment of women during pregnancy and after
giving birth (“doctor (of) giving birth”)
:_______________________________.
meddyg gwaed
‹me -dhig gwaaid› masculine noun
PLURAL meddygon gwaed ‹me-dhə-gon gwaaid›
1 colloquial (American:
hematologist) (Englandic: haemotologist) (“doctor (of) blood”) (the formal word
is hematolegydd)
:_______________________________.
meddyginiaeth
‹me-dhə- gin -yeth› feminine noun
PLURAL meddyginiaethau ‹me-dhə-gin- yei -the›
1 medicine = remedy, medicament;
y feddyginiaeth the medicament
meddyginiaeth i ladd poen an
analgesic, a painkiller (“medicine to kill pain”)
2 treatment = application of a remedy;
Tamaid o we pry cop ar y cwt - dyna
feddyginiaeth syml i atal lli'r gwaed
A bit of spider's web on the cut - that's a simple treatment to stop the
bleeding (“to prevent the flow of blood”)
3 medicine = discipline of the study and application of medicine,
application of medical skills (in this case “meddyginiaeth” is used incorrectly
instead of “meddygaeth”)
ETYMOLOGY: (meddygin- from Latin medicîna = medicine) + (-aeth)
:_______________________________.
meddyginiaeth
gartref ‹me-dhə-
gin -yeth gar -tre› feminine
noun
PLURAL meddyginiaethau cartref ‹me-dhə-gin- yei -the kar -tre›
1 home remedy - medicines prepared at home usually from traditional
knowledge which may or may not have scientific value
Mawr iawn oedd y defnydd a wneid gynt o
saim gwydd mewn meddyginiaethau cartre
In the past a lot of use was made of goose fat in home remedies
ETYMOLOGY: (meddyginiaeth =
medicine) + soft mutation + (cartref =
home)
:_______________________________.
meddyginiaethol
‹me-dhə-gin- yei -thol› adjective
1 medicinal, medicated; siampw
meddyginiaethol medicated shampoo
ETYMOLOGY: (meddyginiaeth =
medicine) + (-ol, suffix for forming
adjectives)
:_______________________________.
meddyginiaethu
‹me-dhə-gin- yei -thi› verb
1 to medicate = put ointment on a wound
2 to medicate = treat a patient with medicine
3 to medicate = add a medication to a bandage, shampoo, etc
ETYMOLOGY: (meddyginiaeth =
medicine) + (-u, suffix for forming
verbs)
:_______________________________.
meddyglyn
‹me- dhə-glin› masculine
noun
1 obsolete metheglin ‹məthéglin› =
medicated mead; spiced mead
2 obsolete medicine
ETYMOLOGY: (meddyg = doctor) + soft
mutation + (llyn = liquid)
:_______________________________.
meddygol ‹me DHƏ gol› (adjective)
1 medical
:_______________________________.
meddyliol ‹me DHƏL yol› (adjective)
1 mental
2
cyffro meddyliol mental disturbance
:_______________________________.
Medi (mis Medi) ‹ME di› ‹miis ME di› (masculine noun)
1 September
...01 Medi (y cyntaf o Fedi)
the first of September
...02 Medi (yr ail o Fedi)
the second of September
...03 Medi (y trydydd o Fedi)
the third of September
...04 Medi (y pedwerydd o Fedi)
the fourth of September
...05 Medi (y pumed o Fedi)
the fifth of September
...06 Medi (y chweched o Fedi)
the sixth of September
...07 Medi (y seithfed o Fedi)
the seventh of September
...08 Medi (yr wythfed o Fedi)
the eighth of September
(1) Gwyl Eni'r Arglwyddes Fair
(“the) feastday (of) the birth (of) (the) lady Mary”) Nativity of Saint Mary,
(2) Gwyl Fair (“the) feastday (of)
Mary”)
(3) Gwyl Fair ym Medi (“the) ‘gwyl
Fair’ in September”, the feastday (of) Mary in September)
(4) Gwyl Fair Ddiwethaf (“final
‘gwyl Fair’)
...09 Medi (y nawfed o Fedi)
the ninth of September
...10 Medi (y degfed o Fedi)
the tenth of September
...11 Medi (yr unfed ar ddeg o Fedi)
the eleventh of September
...12 Medi (y deuddegfed o Fedi)
the twelfth of September
...13 Medi (y trydydd ar ddeg o Fedi)
the thirteenth of September
...14 Medi (y pedwerydd ar ddeg o Fedi)
the fourteenth of September
Gwyl y Grog = Holy Cross Day, Holy
Rood Day (“the) feastday (of) the cross”)
...15 Medi (y pymthegfed o Fedi)
the fifteenth of September
...16 Medi (yr unfed ar bymtheg o Fedi)
the sixteenth of September
...17 Medi (yr ail ar bymtheg o Fedi)
the seventeenth of September
...18 Medi (y deunawfed o Fedi)
the eighteenth of September
Gwyl y Ddelw Living Image “(the)
feastday (of) the image”
...19 Medi (y pedwerydd ar bymtheg o Fedi)
the nineteenth of September
...20 Medi (yr ugeinfed o Fedi)
the twentieth of September
...21 Medi (yr unfed ar hugain o Fedi)
the twenty-first of September
Gwyl Fathew yr Apostol “(the)
feastday (of) Matthew the Apostle”
...22 Medi (yr ail ar hugain o Fedi)
the twenty-second of September
...23 Medi (y trydydd ar hugain o Fedi)
the twenty-third of September
...24 Medi (y pedwerydd ar hugain o Fedi)
the twenty-fourth of September
...25 Medi (y pumed ar hugain o Fedi)
the twenty-fifth of September
...26 Medi (y chweched ar hugain o Fedi)
the twenty-sixth of September
...27 Medi (y seithfed ar hugain o Fedi)
the twenty-seventh of September
...28 Medi (yr wythfed ar hugain o Fedi)
the twenty-eighth of September
...29 Medi (y nawfed ar hugain o Fedi)
the twenty-ninth of September
Gwyl Fihangel “(the) feastday (of)
Michael Archangel” or
Gwyl Sant Mihangel “(the) feastday
(of) Saint Michael Archangel”
...30 Medi (y degfed ar hugain o Fedi)
the thirtieth of September
:_______________________________.
medr ‹me-der › masculine
noun
PLURAL medrau ‹me
-dre›
1 skill, ability, dexterity,
capacity
dangos eich medr
fel adeiladwr show one’s skill as a builder
Yr oedd yr adeiladwyr wedi dangos eu medr fel adeiladwyr, a'u gwybodaeth wyddonol,
wrth drefnu y pen nesaf i'r haul o'r tŷ i fod yn lle i J. R. gadw ei win,
ei laeth, a'i ymenyn,
The builders had shown their skill as builders, and their scientific knowledge,
in arranging the end of the house nearest the sun to be the place for J. R. to
keep his wine, his milk, and his butter
:_______________________________.
medru ‹ME dri› (verb)
1 be able
2 O’r braidd
y medr hi ddarllen She’s scarcely able to read, She can hardly read
:_______________________________.
medrus ‹ME dris› (adjective)
1 skilful
yn fedrus skilfully
Halier oedd Isaac wrth
ei alwedigaeth; ond gallai dori glo yn fedrus
Issac was a haulier by trade, but he was a skilful coal-cutter(“he could
cut coal skilfully”)
2 accomplished
:_______________________________.
medrusrwydd ‹me DRIS ruidh› (masculine noun)
1 skilfulness
:_______________________________.
mefl, meflau ‹ME vel, MEV le› (masculine noun)
1 (literary) shame
:_______________________________.
mefus
‹mee -vis› plural
1 (North Wales) strawberries See mefusen
:_______________________________.
mefusbren
‹me- vis -bren› masculine
noun
PLURAL mefusbrennau
‹me-vis-bre-ne›
1 (Arbutus unedo) strawberry tree
ETYMOLOGY: (mefus = strawberries) +
soft mutation + (pren = tree)
:_______________________________.
mefusen ‹me-vi-sen› feminine noun
PLURAL mefus
‹mee-vis›
North Wales
1 strawberry
y fefusen the strawberry
mefus a hufen strawberries and cream (a bowl of strawberries with
clotted cream on top)
Cawson ni fefus a hufen iâ i bwdin We had strawberries and ice cream for
pudding / for dessert
salad mefus a
chiwcymbr cucumber and strawberry salad.
NOTE: variants: meddusen / meddysen,
plural meddus (with dd instead of f)
In the South, another word is in use: syfïen,
plural syfi, corresponding to
Cornish and Breton forms
ETYMOLOGY: origin unknown; first example in 1300s
:_______________________________.
Mèg ‹MEG› (feminine noun)
1 woman's name Mèg (a diminutive of Marged =
Margaret)
:_______________________________.
Megan ‹MEE gan› (feminine noun)
1 woman's name (Mèg, a diminutive of Marged
= Margaret), (+ -an)
:_______________________________.
megin ‹mee -gin› feminine
noun
PLURAL meginau ‹me-gii-ne›
1 bellows = pair of bellows
y fegin the bellows
megin dan draed foot bellows, bellows operated by the feet (Cambrian
Journal 1858)
2 lungs, pair of lungs
Y gyfrinach sylfaenol i gantores yw cael
megin dda
The fundamental secret for a singer is to have good lungs
3 North Wales Gwasga dy fegin! (“squeeze your bellows
/ lungs”) Don't let on! Don't say a word! Don't tell a soul!
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < British; Cornish megin
(= bellows), Breton megin (=
bellows); possibly based on an element found in Celtic *mâk (= leather bag)
:_______________________________.
Mehefin ‹me- hee -vin› masculine
noun
1 June
mis Mehefin June, the month of June
yr ail o Fehefin the second of June,
June the second
Mehefin yr ail June the second, the
second of June
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh Mehefin < *Meihefin < British *medio-sâmîn-os (“mid” + “summer”). Cf
Welsh haf (= summer) < sâm-
From the same British root: Cornish medh-
(= half), Breton Mezheven, Even (= June);
In the Hibernian languages, Irish: Meitheamh
(= June)
...01 Mehefin (y cyntaf o Fehefin)
the first of June
...02 Mehefin (yr ail o Fehefin)
the second of June
...03 Mehefin (y trydydd o Fehefin)
the third of June
...04 Mehefin (y pedwerydd o Fehefin)
the fourth of June
...05 Mehefin (y pumed o Fehefin)
the fifth of June
...06 Mehefin (y chweched o Fehefin)
the sixth of June
...07 Mehefin (y seithfed o Fehefin)
the seventh of June
...08 Mehefin (yr wythfed o Fehefin)
the eighth of June
...09 Mehefin (y nawfed o Fehefin)
the ninth of June
...10 Mehefin (y degfed o Fehefin)
the tenth of June
...11 Mehefin (yr unfed ar ddeg o Fehefin)
the eleventh of June
Gwyl Fárnabas (“the) feastday (of)
Barnabas”)
...12 Mehefin (y deuddegfed o Fehefin)
the twelfth of June
...13 Mehefin (y trydydd ar ddeg o Fehefin)
the thirteenth of June
...14 Mehefin (y pedwerydd ar ddeg o Fehefin)
the fourteenth of June
...15 Mehefin (y pymthegfed o Fehefin)
the fifteenth of June
...16 Mehefin (yr unfed ar bymtheg o Fehefin)
the sixteenth of June
Gwyl Gurig (“the) feastday (of)
Curig”)
...17 Mehefin (yr ail ar bymtheg o Fehefin)
the seventeenth of June
...18 Mehefin (y deunawfed o Fehefin)
the eighteenth of June
...19 Mehefin (y pedwerydd ar bymtheg o Fehefin)
the nineteenth of June
...20 Mehefin (yr ugeinfed o Fehefin)
the twentieth of June
...21 Mehefin (yr unfed ar hugain o Fehefin)
the twenty-first of June
...22 Mehefin (yr ail ar hugain o Fehefin)
the twenty-second of June
...23 Mehefin (y trydydd ar hugain o Fehefin)
the twenty-third of June
...24 Mehefin (y pedwerydd ar hugain o Fehefin)
the twenty-fourth of June
Gwyl Ioan Fedyddiwr (“the) feastday
(of) John (the) Baptist”) or
Gwyl Ifan yr Haf (“the) ‘gwyl Ifan’
(of) the summer”, the feastday (of) John in the summer) (to differentiate it
from the feast of St John on December the twenty-seventh)
...25 Mehefin (y pumed ar hugain o Fehefin)
the twenty-fifth of June
...26 Mehefin (y chweched ar hugain o Fehefin)
the twenty-sixth of June
...27 Mehefin (y seithfed ar hugain o Fehefin)
the twenty-seventh of June
...28 Mehefin (yr wythfed ar hugain o Fehefin)
the twenty-eighth of June
...29 Mehefin (y nawfed ar hugain o Fehefin)
the twenty-ninth of June
Gwyl Bedr a Phawl (“the) feastday
(of) Peter and Paul”)
...30 Mehefin (y degfed ar hugain o Fehefin)
the thirtieth of June
:_______________________________.
meheryn ‹me HE rin› (plural noun)
1 rams; see maharen
:_______________________________.
mei- ‹mei›
1 element meaning ‘half, middle’. See meidd-
:_______________________________.
meibion
‹meib -yon›
1 plural of mab = son; man
côr meibion male-voice choir (“choir
(of) men”)
:_______________________________.
Meic ‹MEIK› (masculine noun)
1 Mike
:_______________________________.
meichiau
‹meikh -ye› masculine
noun
PLURAL meichiafon
‹mei-chi-aa-von›
1 bail, surety
sefyll yn feichiau dros to stand
surety for, give security as a guarantee that an obligation will be met that
will be forfeited if it is not; act as agents who will make sure that a
commitment will be observed
Mae'r Eglwys Wladol yn gosod pwys mawr
ar fedydd, - dywed fod rhyw gyfnewidiad gwyrthiol yn cymeryd lle drwy'r
ordinhad, a mynna gael tad a mam bedydd i sefyll yn feichiau dros y baban bach.
The state church attaches great importance to baptism – it says that a
miraculous change takes places through this religious observance, and insists
on having a godfather and godmother to stand surety for the little baby
ETYMOLOGY: meichiau is the plural
form of mach (= hostage; guarantee,
security for a loan)
:_______________________________.
meidd-
‹meidh›
1 ‘middle, half’.
Meidd- does not exist in Welsh as an
independent word,
but it occurs (without the final ‘dd’) (mei-,
me-) in some compound words.
(1) Mehefin (= June) < *mei-hefin < *meidd-hefin < British *medio-samîn-os (cf Irish Meitheamh
= June)
(2) Meifod: Possibly in the place name Meifod ‘half house, lodging’ < *meiddfod (meidd- = half) + soft mutation + (bod = house); the same idea is to be seen in llety ‘half house, lodging’ < lléd-dy (lled = mig) +
soft mutation + (ty = house);
(3) meigoed: This obsolete word (meaning
uncertain, but proabably ‘small trees’) is possibly originally meiddgoed (from coed = trees)
There is at least one neologism with mei-
(4) e.g. the musical term meidon (= mediant);
(mei- = half) + soft mutation + (ton = tone);
ETYMOLOGY: Meidd- is from Celtic medio-
In the modern Hibernian languages, Irish has mí = half
(The Celtic word medio- is related
to Latin medius = half, middle, in
Catalan as mig = half, middle).
This element medio- is seen in
various Celtic place names some of which have survived until today in some form
or other. For example Medio-lan-
(‘middle land’), Latinised as ‘Mediolanum’.
....(1) The name of the Roman settlement at Whitchurch, Shropshire, England,
....(2) The Roman name of the place at Cae Gaer (SN8281) 6km south-east of
Pumlumon mountain, mid-Wales
It was also the original name of the following places:
....(3) Medelingen (Mosel, Germany),
....(4) Meilen (Zürich, Switzerland),
....(5) Milan / Milano (Italy)
....(6) Chateaumeillant (Cher, France) (= Mediolanum Biturigum)
:_______________________________.
Meifod
‹mei -vod› feminine
noun
1 Meifod SJ1513 locality
in the district of Maldwyn (county of Powys)
.....(1) a parish at this place
.....(2) seat on Cyngor Sir Powys (the county council)
2
Y Feifod (English name: Vivod)
.....(1) SJ 191423 Victorian house 2km west of Llangollen and hamlet CAT-Z
.....(2) location noted in a list of Llangollen area street names (postcode:
LL20 7LU) at Ffynnon-las 2km south-west-west of Llangollen
.....(3) Plasynfeifod address of the
executor of a will in the year 1869 (“Richard Ellerton of Plas-yn-Vivod,
Llangollen, Denbigh”)
.....(4) On English-language maps there is “Vivod Mountain”, 4km sww of
Llangollen, which is surely a translation of the Welsh name, which would be Mynydd y Feifod
3 Meifod township in
Abergele SH9477, in parish of Llan-sain-siôr (county of Dinbych)
4 Meifod township in the
parish of Llanrhaeadr yng Nghinmeirch SJ0863 (county of Dinbych)
Nantmeifod SH9773 A farm by Y Glasgoed, county of Dinbych
http://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/SH9773
map
5 SH8576 locality in the county of Conwy
6 Gwernfeifod farm in
Llanrhaeadr ym Mochnant SJ1225 (county of Dinbych) (gwern = alder swamp)
8 Meifod Isaf, Meifod Uchaf farms in the parish of
Llanenddwyn, county of Gwynedd
ETYMOLOGY: Possibly ‘half house, lodging’ < *meidd-fod (meidd- =
half) + soft mutation + (bod =
place; house).
The same idea is to be seen in llety
‘half house, lodging’ < lled-dy (lled = mig) + soft mutation + (ty = house);
Another suggestion, though less likely, is that ‘meifod’ = summer farmstead (mei- penult form of Mai = month of May) + soft mutation + (bod = place; house), since removal to
the highland pastures began traditionally on Calan Mai, the first day of
May.
Such a name would be similar to hafod (= summer pasture, summer farm) (haf
= summer) + soft mutation + (bod
= place; house);
:_______________________________.
meillionen,
meillion ‹mei
lhi O nen, mei LHI on› (feminine noun)
1 clover leaf;
y feillionen the clover leaf
2 meillion
= clover
3 Cilgant y Meillion name of a street
in Rhws (county of Bro Morgannwg)
(“(the) crescent (of) the clover”)
:_______________________________.
meingefn
‹mein -gevn› masculine
noun
PLURAL meingefnau
‹mein- gev -ne›
1 small of the back
2
spine, backbone (usually: asgwrn cefn)
(Bible) milgi cryf yn ei feingefn
strong-spined greyhound
Diarhebion 30:31 Milgi cryf yn ei
feingefn, a bwch, a brenin, yr hwn ni chyfyd neb yn ei erbyn.
Proverbs 30:31 A greyhound; an he goat also; and a king, against whom there is no
rising up.
3 (book) (USA: backbone) (Englandic: spine)
ETYMOLOGY: (mein-, penult form of main = slender) + soft mutation + (cefn = back)
:_______________________________.
meinir
‹mei -nir› adjective
1 (obsolete) tall and slender
2 (feminine noun) in medieval poetry = beautiful young woman, fair
maiden; girl, sweetheart
y feinir = the fair maid
ETYMOLOGY: meinir < méin-hir (mein- penult form of main
= slender, slim, thin) + (hir =
tall, long)
:_______________________________.
Meinir
‹mei -nir› feminine noun
1 woman's name
ETYMOLOGY: See meinir
:_______________________________.
meinwe
‹mein –we› feminine
noun
PLURAL meinweoedd
‹mein-we-odh›
1 tissue = aggregate of cells
y feinwe the tissue
meinwe bloneg adipose tissue
meinwe craith scar tissue
meinwe feithrin tissue culture,
tissue formed in a culture
meinwe greithiol scar tissue
meinwe gyhyrol muscular tissue
meinwe gyswllt connective tissue
meithrin meinwe process of forming
tissue in a culture
2 gauze = loosely woven cotton fabric used as a dressing for wounds
or incisions made during surgery
ETYMOLOGY: (mein-, penult form of main = slender) + soft mutation + (gwe = web, something woven)
:_______________________________.
meinwen
‹mein -wen› feminine
noun
PLURAL meinwennod
‹mein-we-nod›
1 maiden
y feinwen the maiden
Dacw'r feinwen hoenus fanwl, Beth wyf
well heb gael ei meddwl
Over there is the beautiful lively maiden, how does it benefit me not to have
her mindful of me (“what am I better without her mind”)
From the folk song Dacw nghariad i lawr
yn y berllan (Over there down in the orchard is my sweetheart)
ETYMOLOGY: < meinwen (adjective)
(= slim and fair) < (mein-,
penult form of main = slender) +
soft mutation + (gwen, feminine form
of gwyn = white, fair, beautiful)
:_______________________________.
meinwych
‹mein -wikh› adjective
1 slender and fine
In Llyfr Eseia / the Book of Isaiah:
(3:18) Yn y dydd hwnnw y tyn yr ARGLWYDD
ymaith addurn yr esgidiau, y rhwydwaith hefyd, a'r lloerawg wisgoedd
Isaiah (3:18) In that day the Lord will take away the bravery of their tinkling
ornaments about their feet, and their cauls, and their round tires like the
moon,
(3:19) Y cadwyni, a'r breichladau, a'r
moledau,
(3:19) The chains, and the bracelets, and the mufflers,
(3:20) Y penguwch, ac addurn y coesau,
a'r ysnodennau, a'r dwyfronegau, a'r clustlysau
(3:20) The bonnets, and the ornaments of the legs, and the headbands, and the
tablets, and the earrings,
(3:21) Y modrwyau, ac addurn y trwyn,
(3:21) The rings, and nose jewels,
(3:22) Y gwisgoedd symudliw, a'r
mentyll, a'r misyrnau, a'r crychnodwyddau
(3:22) The changeable suits of apparel, and the mantles, and the wimples, and
the crisping pins,
(3:23) Y drychau hefyd, a'r lliain meinwych, a'r cocyllau, a'r gynau
(3:23) The glasses, and the fine linen, and the hoods, and the veils.
ETYMOLOGY: (mein-, penult form of main = slender) + soft mutation + (gwych = splendid)
:_______________________________.
meiri ‹MEI ri› (plural noun)
1 mayors; plural of maer
:_______________________________.
Meirion 1
‹meir -yon› masculine
noun
1 Man's name. The short form is Mei
‹mei›. The name was revived in the 1800s and 1900s.
Used in Early Welsh, it has survived incorporated in place names – as “Marion”
in Llanfarion (old name of a village
on the island of Môn, now Llangadwaladr), and in particular Meirionnydd, 'the territory of
Meirion', now part of the county of Gwynedd. Colloquially, this district is
known by the short form Meirion, and
this has become, especially in the 1900s, a male name (often there is a direct
connection with the area of Meirionnydd). ;
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh Meirion < Meiriawn < British < Latin Mariân(us)
:_______________________________.
Meirion 2
‹meir -yon› feminine
noun
1 colloquial form for Sir Feirionnydd
2 Meirionnydd part of the
county of Gwynedd which was formerly Sir Feirionnydd
3 Coleg Meirion-Dwyfor
tertiary education college in Gwynedd (“college (of the districts of) Meirion
(and) Dwyfor”)
4 There are rare instances of Meirion
as a woman's name in the modern period; normally though it would be the
equally rare Meiriona, with a final -a to distinguish it from the male name
:_______________________________.
Meiriona
‹meir- yoo -na› feminine noun
1 woman's name
ETYMOLOGY: (Meirion, male name) + (-a suffix for forming feminine nouns)
:_______________________________.
Meirionnydd
‹mei-ri- o -nidh› feminine noun
1 (a) This was an independent district until the 800s;
(b) it was incorporated as a “cantref” (division of a country) into Gwynedd,
(c) later into Powys,
(d) and in 1123 it was again part of Gwynedd.
(e) With the successful English invasion of north-west Wales, under the Statute
of Rhuddlan (1284) and the imposition of an English administrative pattern it
became the basis of a county 'Merionethshire' (Sir Feirionnydd), through the
addition of the neighbouring cantref of Penllyn and the kumuds of Ardudwy and
Edeirnion.
(f) With the annexation of Wales to England in 1536 and the division of the
whole of the country into shires, some changes were made to the existing
shires, and the kumud of Mawddwy was added to Merionethshire
2 for twenty-three years (1974-1997) a district in Gwynedd, with its
administrative centre in Dolgellau.
Proportion of Welsh-speakers: 71% (1981)
3 The English form is ‘Merioneth’ ‹me-ri-o-nəth›
or ‘Merionethshire’. Early Welsh settlers from the area to Pennsylvania gave
this English form of the name (Merioneth) to one of the settlements; later the
name was reduced to Merion.
(In Welsh Meironydd is often reduced
to Meirion as a fond name; and this
has also become a male forename. The reduction to Merion in Pennsylvania may
have had something to do with this, if this short form ‘Meirion’ in Welsh goes
back that far)
See Sir Feirionnydd
ETYMOLOGY: (Meirion = Marianus)
+ (-ydd suffix indicating
‘territoriy).
Although etymologically a single ‘n’ would be more correct (Meirionydd) it is written with
a ‘nn’ in modern Welsh (Meirionnydd) (in either case the pronunciation is the same)
:_______________________________.
Meirionwen ‹meir YON wen› (feminine noun)
1 woman's name; man's name Meirion + -wen
:_______________________________.
meirw
‹mei -ru›
1 plural of marw (adj) =
dead
2 used as a noun = dead people
y byw a’r meirw the quick and the
dead
Noswyl y Meirw Eve of All Souls Day
(the evening of November 1, All Souls being on November 2)
:_______________________________.
Meirwen ‹MEIR wen› (feminine noun)
1 woman's name = 'blessed Mary'
:_______________________________.
Meirwyn ‹MEIR win› (m)
1 male forename
ETYMOLOGY: Apparently (Meir- first syllable of Meirion ) +
(-wyn suffix for male names, soft-muated form of gwyn = white;
fair)
:_______________________________.
Meisgyn
‹mei -skin› feminine noun
1 medieval divison (‘cwmwd’, ‘commote’) of the ‘kántrev’ (or
district) of Penychen, in south-east Wales
2 (ST0498) locality in the county of Rhondda-Cynon-Taf, south-east
Wales
The English call it “Miskin”, which is in fact the traditional local
pronunciation in Welsh.
Population: 4,070 (1961); 3,510 (1971)
Proportion of Welsh-speakers: 12% (1961); 5% (1971)
3 Waun Meisgyn (= “Gwaun
Meisgyn”), near Meisgyn (= the moor of Meisgyn). The English call it ‘Miskin
Meadow’.
ETYMOLOGY: ??
NOTE: In the south, penultimate ei
becomes i, hence Misgyn, the origin of the English form
“Miskin”
:_______________________________.
meistr,
meistri ‹MEI
stir, MEI stri› (masculine noun)
1 master = teacher
2 master = employer
postfeistr, postfeistri ‹POST vei stər, post VEI stri› postmaster'post
master' (post = post) + soft
mutation + (meistr = master)
porthfeistr,
porthfeistri ‹PORTH veis tir, porth VEI stri› harbourmaster
'port master' (port = port) +
soft mutation + (meistr = master)
:_______________________________.
meistri ‹mei -stri›
1 masters; Messrs; see meistr
:_______________________________.
meistres,
meistresi ‹MEI
stres, mei STRE si› (feminine noun)
1 mistress = teacher
y feistres the mistress
2 mistress = employer
:_______________________________.
meithrin ‹MEI thrin› (verb)
1 to nurse, nurture, educate, raise
:_______________________________.
meitin
‹mei -tin› masculine
noun
1 obsolete morning
2 ers meitin North Wales for a while (today), South Wales for a while (= for days, for
weeks)
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh meitin < British
*matîn < Latin mat'tîn < matutîn < mâtûtîn
From the same British root: Cornish mitin
(= morning), Breton mintin (=
morning)
In Hibernian Celtic (from Latin): Irish maidin
(= morning)
:_______________________________.
mêl ‹MEEL› (masculine noun)
1 honey
2 hel mêl i’r cwch feather one’s nest = make oneself comfortable
financially (ignoring the well-being of others); be on the fiddle (“gather
honey to the hive”)
3 Maen nhw mor wahanol â mêl
a menyn They’re as different as chalk and cheese (“as different as honey
and butter”)
4 Nid hawdd tynnu mêl o faen You
can’t get blood out of a stone (“it is not easy to get honey from a stone”)
5 Y Felallt (SJ5458)
Welsh name for the village of Beeston, Cheshire, England; 4km south of
Tarporley
(y = definite article) + soft
mutation + (melallt honey hill): (mêl = honey) + (allt = hill)
6 gwlad sy’n llifeirio o
laeth â mêl a land flowing with milk and honey , a place of abundance and
contentment
Exodus 3:8 A mi a ddisgynnais i'w gwaredu hwy o law yr
Eifftiaid, ac i'w dwyn o'r wlad honno i wlad dda a helaeth, i wlad yn llifeirio
o laeth a mêl; i le y Canaaneaid, a'r Hethiaid, a'r Amoriaid, a'r Pheresiaid,
yr Hefiaid hefyd, a'r Jebusiaid.
Exodus 3:8 And
I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring
them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with
milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the
Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
Exodus 33:2 A mi a anfonaf angel o'th flaen di, ac a
yrraf allan y Canaanead, yr Amoriad, a'r Hethiad, y Pheresiad, yr Hefiad, a'r
Jebusiad: (33:3) I wlad yn llifeirio o laeth â mel: oherwydd
nid af fi i fyny yn dy blith; oblegid pobl wargaled wyt: rhag i mi dy ddifa ar
y ffordd.
Èxode 33:2 And I will send an angel before thee; and I will drive out
the Canaanite, the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and
the Jebusite: (33:3)
Unto a land flowing with milk and honey: for I will not go up in the midst of
thee; for thou art a stiffnecked people: lest I consume thee in the way.
7 mêl ar eich bysedd
(“honey on your fingers”) music to one’s ears (in expressing Schadenfreude, or
one’s delight in or satisfaction at the misfortune of somebody else)
Mêl ar ei fysedd fu clywed fod llwynog
wedi lladd bob un o ieir Jac Tyn-y-wern
It was wonderful to hear that a fox had killed every one of Jac (of) Tyn-y-wern
(farm)’s chickens
8 terfel (obsolete)
refined honey (têr + soft mutation +
mêl = honey)
9 Sayings:
Tri enllyn iechyd: mêl, ymenyn a llaeth
The three companages for health are honey, butter and milk
10 Glɥn-y-mêl ‹glin ə MEEL› “honey valley”
(glyn = valley) + (y definite article) + (mêl = honey)
Street name in Pen-coed
(Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr)
:_______________________________.
’mela
‹me la › (verb)
1
colloquial form of ymhela < ymhél (qv)
ymhél â (rhywbeth) become involved
with
:_______________________________.
’melach
‹me lakh › (verb)
1
colloquial form of ymhelach < ymhél (qv)
ymhél â (rhywbeth) become involved
with
:_______________________________.
melaidd
‹ mee-ledh› adj
1
sweet, honey-like
ETYMOLOGY: (mêl = honey) + (-aidd suffix for forming nouns
indicating the content or capacity of a container )
:_______________________________.
melen
‹mee -len› adj
1 This is the feminine form of melyn
= yellow. Usually found in the soft-mutated form felen after a feminine noun, especially in place names.
(1) Y Gellifelen ‹ə ge-lhi- vee -len›
SO 2111 locality in the district of Brycheiniog in the county of Powys
“the yellow wood” (y = definite
article) + soft mutation + (celli =
wood) + soft mutation + (melen,
feminine form of melyn = yellow)
(2) Ffosfelen street name in
Tre-gwyr, Abertawe
y ffos felen = the yellow ditch (ffos
= ditch) + soft mutation + (melen)
:_______________________________.
melfed ‹MEL ved› (masculine noun)
1 velvet
:_______________________________.
Melfyn ‹MEL vin› (masculine noun)
1 man's name
:_______________________________.
melin PLURAL
melinau ‹ME lin, me LI ne› (feminine noun)
1 mill
y felin the mill
2 fel clap y felin (also fel clap
melin) (said of a talkative person)
..a/ fel clap y felin “like (the) clack (of) the mill”
..b/ fel clap melin “like (a / the) clack (of a) mill”
3 Parcyfelin locality in the
county of Caerffili
“(the) field (of) the mill” (parc = field) + (y = definite
article) + soft mutation + (melin = mill)
4 ffrwd fâl millstream,
millrace
Ffrwd-fâl mansion in the parish of Cynwyl Gaeo (county of Caerfyrddin)
5 ffrwd felin millstream,
millrace
ffrwd y felin the millstream, the millrace
siarad fel ffrwd y felin talk non-stop, talk incessantly, prattle on
(“talk like the millstream”)
6 melin law hand mill, quern (= primitive mill
for grinding grain where the upper grindstone is turned by hand). (An upper
grindstone is placed on a slightly smaller lower grindstone which has a central
pivot. A stick is placed in a hole on the edge of the upper grindstone. This is
turned round – for ease of operation usually by two people, one sitting on
either side, and the grain is poured into it through an opening in the centre.
Matthew 24: 41:
Dwy a fydd yn malu mewn melin – un a
gymerir a’r llall a adewir
(King James Bib le) Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be
taken and the other left
(Weymouth New Testament: There will be two women turning the mill together: one
will be taken away and the other left behind.)
Dôlymelinau, Tregynon Powys SO0999 “(the) meadow (of) the mills” (?=
millstones)
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/553395
8 melin ddŵr, melinau dŵr water mill
9 mill =
factory (since the mill was a familiar mechanical device used in production,
the word became generic in English for a factory – hence cotton mill, steel
mill, paper mill. This usage was imitated in Welsh, hence melin gotwm / cotton mill, melin ddur / steel mill, melin bapur / paper mill.)
:_______________________________.
melin bapur
‹mee-lin ba-pir› feminine noun
PLURAL melinau
papur ‹me-lii-ne pa-pir›
1 paper mill
“Paper Mill Road”, a street in Caer-dydd, would be Heol y Felin Bapur in Welsh
ETYMOLOGY: (melin = mill, factory) +
soft mutation + (papur = paper)
:_______________________________.
Melinclydach
‹me-lin klə-dakh›
1 (“(the) mill (of the stream) Clydach (Isaf)”)
Another name for Melin-cwrt (SN8101)
locality of Castell-nedd ac Aberafan 10km north-east of Castell-nedd at the
confluence of the Clydach Isaf stream (“Melin Court Brook”) and the river Nedd
ETYMOLOGY: (melin = mill) + (Clydach stream name)
:_______________________________.
Melin-cwrt
‹me-lin kurt›
1 (SN8101) locality of Castell-nedd ac Aberafan 10km north-east of
Castell-nedd at the confluence of the Clydach Isaf stream (“Melin Court Brook”)
and the river Nedd
Also: Melinclydach (“(the) mill (of
the stream) Clydach (Isaf)”)
ETYMOLOGY: Melin-cwrt < Melin-y-cwrt (In place names, the
linking definite article frequently is lost) (“the) mill (of) the court”)
(melin = mill) + (y definite article) + (cwrt = court)
The Englished form “Melincourt / Melin Court” misleadingly suggests a form with
an English word order meaning “the court called Melin”!
:_______________________________.
melin eithin
‹mee-lin ei-thin› feminine noun
PLURAL melinau eithin
‹me-lii-ne ei-thin›
1 machine for crushing gorse for animal feed
ETYMOLOGY: (melin = mill) + (eithin = gorse)
:_______________________________.
melinffrwd ‹me-lin-frud› feminine
noun
1 (literary compound word)
millstream, millrace
The usual form is
..a/ ffrwd felin millstream, millrace
..b/ ffrwd y felin the millstream, the millrace
Y Felinffrwd street name in Caerffili (misspelt as if two words – “Y
Felin Ffrwd”). Street names resembling house names / farm names / village names
should really be spelt as a single word, as if a habitative name
ETYMOLOGY: (melin = mill)
+ (ffrwd = stream)
:_______________________________.
melin flawd
‹mee-lin vlaud› feminine noun
PLURAL melinau
blawd ‹me-lii-ne blaud›
1 flour mill
ETYMOLOGY: (melin = mill) + soft
mutation + (blawd = flour)
:_______________________________.
melin wynt,
melinau gwynt ‹ME
lin WINT, me LI ne GWINT› (feminine noun)
1 windmill
:_______________________________.
melin wlân
‹mee-lin wlaan› feminine noun
PLURAL melinau
gwlân ‹me-lii-ne gwlaan›
1 (American: woolen mill) (Englandic: woollen mill)
Siop Felin Wlân Penmachno
(the) shop (of) (the) woolen mill (of) Penmachno
:_______________________________.
Melin-y-cwrt
‹me-lin ə kurt›
1 (SN8101) locality of Castell-nedd ac Aberafan 10km north-east of
Castell-nedd at the confluence of the Clydach Isaf stream (“Melin Court Brook”)
and the river Nedd
See Melin-cwrt
:_______________________________.
mellten,
mellt ‹MELH
ten, MELHT› (feminine noun)
1 (North Wales; standard) flash of lightning
(in South Wales, this is: llucheden)
y fellten the lightning flash
2 mellt a tharanau ‹melht a tha RA ne› thunder and lightning ('lightning and thunder' in Welsh -
a more logical order, perhaps! As in Catalan - llamps i trons)
:_______________________________.
melltith,
melltithion ‹MELH
tith, melh TITH yon› (feminine noun)
1 curse, malediction
y felltith the curse
2 cause of trouble, badly-behaved child
Am felltith weles i ddim o’i debyg e I’ve never seen such a
badly-behaved boy before (“for a badly-behaved boy I never saw anything of his
like of-him”)
2 (after a noun) felltith
damned, bloody, goddam
y gath felltith that bloody cat
y ddynes felltith that bloody woman
yr ast felltith that goddam bitch
y plismon felltith that goddam cop /
policeman
:_______________________________.
melyn ‹ME lin› (adjective)
1 yellow
2 Nid aur popeth melyn
All that glitters is not gold (“(it is) not gold everything yellow”)
3 ffawydden felen (district of
Arfon, county of Gwynedd) = yellow pine ('yellow beech')
4
colour of flowers
pabi corniog melyn (Glaucum flavum)
round prickly-headed poppy (“yellow horned poppy”)
5 brithfelyn (horse)
dapple bay
(brith = speckled, dappled) + soft
mutation + (melyn = yellow)
6 helygen felen (helyg melyn)
(Salix alba ssp. vitellina) golden willow. More usually: helygen euraidd
7 the colour of death personified
yr Angau melyn Death (“the yellow
death”)
:_______________________________.
melyn ‹mee-lin› masculine noun
PLURAL melynion
‹me-lən-yon›
1 something yellow
2 melyn wy the yolk of an
egg, egg yolk (“yellow (part) (of) egg”)
3 yellow bird
..1/ melyn yr eithin (qv) Emberiza citrinella = yellowhammer
4 yellow flower
..1/ melyn Mair (“yellow (flower)
(of) (the Virgin) Mary”) Calendula
officinalis marigold, garden marigold
..2/ melyn y gors (qv) (“yellow
(flower) (of) the marsh”) Caltha
palustris marsh marigold
..3/ melyn y gwanwyn (“yellow
(flower) (of) the spring”) Ranunculus
ficarialesser celandine; alternative name for llygad Ebrill (“eye (of) April”)
5 yellow butterfly
..1/ melyn y rhafnwydd (qv) =
brimstone butterfly
ETYMOLOGY: See melyn adjective
:_______________________________.
melynboeth
‹me- lən -boith› adj
1 yellow-hot, orange-hot (the stage intermediate between red-hot and white-hot
in heating metals)
ETYMOLOGY: (melyn = yellow) + soft
mutation + ( poeth = hot)
:_______________________________.
melyngoch
‹me- lən -gokh› adjective
1 yellowy red; orange
2 (North-west Wales) auburn (hair)
ei gwallt yn donnau melyngoch her
hair in auburn waves
3 amber
4 sandy
5 (skin) red (supposed skin colour of native Americans)
ETYMOLOGY: (melyn-, penult form of melyn = yellow) + soft mutation + (coch = red)
:_______________________________.
melynwyn
‹me- lən -win› adjective
1 yellowish white
2 gwallt melynwyn
ash-blond hair
ETYMOLOGY: (melyn-, penult form of melyn = yellow) + soft mutation + (gwyn = white)
:_______________________________.
melyn y
rhafnwydd ‹mee-lin ə hravn-widh› masculine
noun
PLURAL melynion
y rhafnwydd ‹me-lən-yon ə hravn-widh›
1 (“(the) yellow (butterfly) (of) the buckthorns”) Gonepteryx rhamni (= brimstone
butterfly)
:_______________________________.
melyn y gors
‹me-lin ə gors ›
masculine noun
1 (Caltha palustris) marsh marigold
Melyn-y-gors street name in Y Barri
(county of Bro Morgannwg) (spelt officially “Melyn y Gors”)
ETYMOLOGY: ("yellow (flower) (of) the marsh")
(melyn = yellow flower) + (y = definite article) + soft mutation +
(cors = marsh, bog)
:_______________________________.
melyn yr eithin
‹mee-lin ər ei-thin›
masculine noun
PLURAL melynion
yr eithin ‹me-lən-yon ər ei-thin›
1 Emberiza citrinella =
yellowhammer; alternative name for bras
melyn
ETYMOLOGY: yellow (bird) (of) the gorse
:_______________________________.
melys ‹ME lis› (adjective)
1 sweet
melys gofio sweet remembrance
2
(Castanea sativa) castan felys
PLURAL castanau melys sweet chestnut
(fruit)
y gastan felys the sweet chestnut
:_______________________________.
melysu
‹me- lə -si› verb
1
(verb with an object) sweeten
ETYMOLOGY: (melys = sweet) + (-u suffix for forming verbs)
:_______________________________.
melysydd
‹me-LƏ-sidh › masculine
noun
PLURAL melysyddion
‹me-lə-sədh-yon›
1 sweetener = something, such as sugar, added to a food to make it
taste sweeter
ETYMOLOGY: (melys- form of the
penultimate syllable of melys =
sweet) + (-ydd suffix for forming
nouns)
:_______________________________.
memrwn ‹mem -run› masculine
noun
PLURAL memrynau ‹mem-rə-ne›
1 (county of Ceredigion and South–east Wales) dewlap
Tir Iarll, south-east Wales: mamrwn
ETYMOLOGY: Apparently from Latin membrum
(= member, limb) (a learnèd loan Latin > Welsh, rather than a popular loan
Latin > British > Welsh). Change of final m- > n-.
:_______________________________.
memrwn ‹mem -run› masculine
noun
PLURAL memrynau ‹mem-rə-ne›
1 parchment = material
2 parchment = manuscript
Timotheus-2 4:13 Y cochl a adewais i yn
Nhroas gyda Carpus, pan ddelych, dwg gyda thi, a’r llyfrau, yn enwedig y
memrwn.
Timothy-2 4:13 The cloak that I left at Troas with Carpus, when thou
comest, bring with thee, and the books, but especially the parchments.
3 vellum (skin of a sheep / goat / calf treated to make material for
writing on)
4 (adjective) made of parchment
5 (adjective) written on parchment
ETYMOLOGY: First example in the 1300s (“o venrvn” = o femrwn). Apparently
from Latin membrâna (= skin,
membrane), later confused with memrwn
(= breast, chest; dewlap) < Latin membrum
(= member of the body, limb).
Modern Irish has meamram (=
parchment)
:_______________________________.
men ‹men› feminine noun
PLURAL menni,
mennau ‹me-ni, -ne›
1 obsolete cart
y fen the cart
Eseia 28:27 Canys nid ag og y dynrir
ffacbys, ac ni throir olwyn men ar gwmin; eithr dyrnir facbys â ffon, a chwmin
â gwialen
Isaiah 28:27 For the fitches are not threshed with a threshing instrument,
neither is a cart wheel turned about on the cummin; but the fitches are beaten
out with a staff, and the cummin with a rod
2 Pont-rhyd-y-fen SS7994 locality in the county of Castell-nedd ac
Aberafan
“the bridge by the ford called Rhyd y Fen”
(pont = bridge). Rhyd y Fen is “(the) ford (of) the
cart” (rhyd = ford) + (y definite article) + soft mutation + (ben = cart)
3 mendy (qv) carthouse
(men = cart) + soft mutation + (tŷ = house)
ETYMOLOGY: variant of ben (=
cart), with changed initial consonant. There are other examples of this change b > m (the confusion probably because the soft-mutated form of both ‹m› and ‹b› is ‹v› “f”)
..1/ Manon (woman's name,
'princess') < Banon,
..2/ mainc (= bench) < bainc,
..3/ menthyg (= loan) < benthyg,
..4/ menyw (= woman) < benyw,
..5/ modfedd (= inch) < bodfedd,
..6/ mwydyn (= earthworm) < bwydyn < abwydyn
:_______________________________.
Menai
‹mee -nai› feminine noun
1 (SH5167) Afon Menai =
strait in Gwynedd, between Môn and Arfon
y Fenai the Menai (strait)
mynd am dro i lawr at y Fenai go for
a walk down to the Menai
Also Afon Fenai
2 Menai woman's name
(from the name of the strait)
3 (History) division ('cwmwd') of Rhosyr
4 Minmenai / Min Menai street
name in Bangor (“(the) bank (of the) Menai (strait)”)
5 Gwelfenai view of the Menai Strait
Street name in Niwbwrch, county of Môn
(gwêl = view) + soft mutation + (Menai = name of a strait)
6 Rhydyfenai
(“Rhyd y Fenai”) (“(the) ford (of) the Menai”) Street name in Y Felinheli
(county of Gwynedd)
7 Trefenai (“(the) village (by) (the) Menai”) Street name in
Brynsiencyn (county of Ynys Môn)
:_______________________________.
mendy ‹men -di› masculine noun
PLURAL mendai ‹men
-dai›
1 carthouse
2 According to one Welsh street gazetteer, there is a street called Clerc
y Mendy in Owrtyn, county of Wrecsam. Apparently “(the) clerk (of) the
carthouse”. A mistake for colomendy = dovecot? (Can anybody happening to
read this explain the name? Please send us a message via the guestbook)
ETYMOLOGY: (men = cart) +
soft mutation + (tŷ = house)
:_______________________________.
Menna ‹ME na› (feminine noun)
1 woman's name
:_______________________________.
menter
‹men -ter› feminine
noun
1 venture
y fenter the venture
2 enterprise
y Gweinidog dros Fenter, Arloesi a Rhwydweithiau the Minister for Enterprise, Innovation and Networks
menter breifat private enterprise
menter rydd free enterprise
2 risk
menter noeth a complete gamble
Dyw e ddim yn werth y fenter It’s
not worth the risk / the gamble
:_______________________________.
mentergar
‹men-ter-gar› adjective
1 venturesome; entrepreneurial = willing to set up a business even
though it might fail and cause financial loss to the founder
ETYMOLOGY: (menter = venture) + (-gar suffix, ‘wanting to)
:_______________________________.
mentergarwch
‹men-tre-GAA-rukh› masculine noun
1 entrepreneurship = willingness to set up a business even though it
might fail and cause financial loss to the founder
Dyma enghreifftiau eraill o fentergarwch
Cymry Cymraeg ifainc ym myd busnes
These are other examples of the entrepreneurship of young Welsh speakers in the
world of business
ETYMOLOGY: (mentergar =
entrepreneurial, venturesome) + (-wch
suffix for forming nouns)
:_______________________________.
mentro ‹MEN-tro› (verb)
1 to venture
2 mentro i’r môr set out
to sea (“venture to the sea”)
mentro i’r dwfn set out to sea
(“venture to the deep”)
3 ei mentro-hi have a go;
risk it; stick one's neck out
mentro’ch pen risk it
mentro’r cyfan go for broke
(“venture the whole lot”)
4 mentro colli risk defeat
5 mentro
ar dir anodd tread on delicate ground, be in a delicate situation
mentro ar dir peryglus tread on
delicate ground, be in a delicate situation
:_______________________________.
menyg ‹MEE-nig› (plural noun)
1 gloves (see maneg)
:_______________________________.
’menyn ‹MEE-nin› (masculine noun)
1 butter; see ymenyn
:_______________________________.
merbwll ‹MER-bulh› (m)
1 stagnant pool
Occurs in place names
Merbwll House in Pen-lôn, Trefor SH3746, Llanaelhaearn, Gwynedd
ETYMOLOGY: (merf
= insipid; lifeless) + soft mutation + (pwll = pool)
:_______________________________.
merch,
merched ‹MERKH,
MER khed› (feminine noun)
1 girl, woman
y ferch the girl
2 daughter
3 Merched
(sign) “Ladies”, “Ladies' Toilets”
4 gwrferch virago,
amazon; mannish woman (“man-woman”, a woman who is like a man)
(gŵr = man) + soft mutation + (merch = woman)
5 mynd ar gefn merch have
sex with a girl (coarser synonymous English expressions: get one's leg over,
give a girl the jump, screw a girl, etc)
Literally: “to go on (the) back (of a) girl”, “to cover” – in allusion to how
animals copulate - the mating of dogs and bitches, bulls and cows, stallions
and mares, boars and sows, stags and hinds, rams and ewes, etc.
6 girl, woman as a sexual object
merch hawdd ei chael an easy piece,
an easy lay, girl “of easy virtue”; a girl considered to be easy to convince to
have sexual intercourse (“girl easy her getting”)
7 croesawferch receptionist (woman)
(croesaw-, stem of croesawu = to welcome) + soft mutation + (merch
= girl, woman)
:_______________________________.
Mercher ‹MER kher› (masculine noun)
1 planet Mercury
2 the god Mercury (Roman messenger god); dydd Mercher = Wednesday, nos Fercher = Wednesday night
ETYMOLOGY: Mercher < Merchyr < British
< Latin Mercurius
The change of y > e in a final syllable is
evidenced in other words in Welsh
See the entry e < y
:_______________________________.
mercheta
‹ mer- khe -ta› verb
1
(verb sense objecte) chase women, be a womaniser
ETYMOLOGY: (merched = dones) + (-ha
suffix for forming verbs from nouns, usually plural nouns). (-d + ha > ta)
Probably existing in British, since Breton has a corresponding form
From the same British root: Breton
merc’heta
:_______________________________.
merchetwr
‹ mer- khe -tur› masculine noun
PLURAL merchetwyr
‹ mer- khet -wir›
1
womaniser, philanderer = one who seeks to conquer women
ETYMOLOGY: (merchet- stem of the verb mercheta
= womaniser) + (-wr
suffix = man)
:_______________________________.
merchlyn
‹MERKH-lin› feminine
noun
PLURAL merchlynoedd
‹merkh-LƏ-noidh, -odh›
1 horse pool
Occurs in the
name of a farm Merchlyn SH7673 by Henryd, county of Conwy
ETYMOLOGY: (march
= horse) + soft mutation + (llyn = pool) > *march-lyn > merchlyn (vowel affection, a > e in the penult
through the influence of y in the following final syllable)
:_______________________________.
merch radd
‹merkh raadh › feminine noun
PLURAL merched
gradd ‹mer-khed graadh ›
1 graduate (female) of a university
ETYMOLOGY: “graduated woman” (merch
= girl, daughter, woman) + (gradd =
graduated, stem used as a past participle of graddio = to graduate)
:_______________________________.
merch-yng-nghyfraith,
merched... ‹merkh
ə NGHƏ vreth. MER khed...›
(feminine noun)
1 daughter-in-law
:_______________________________.
merddwr ‹MER-dhur› (m)
1 stagnant pool
Occurs in place names
Afon Merddwr SH8950 River by Rhydlydan, Conwy
http://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/SH8950
Afon Merddwr SJ0043 River by Glanyrafon, Conwy
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/242555
Banc y Merddwr “(the) bank (overlooking) (the) Merddwr (stream)”
Near Y Parc, Gwynedd
http://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/SH8335
ETYMOLOGY: (merf
= insipid; lifeless) + soft mutation + (dw^r = water)
:_______________________________.
merddyn ‹mer -dhin› masculine noun
1 In the district of Penllyn in the county of Gwynedd, a form of murddun
(= ruin)
:_______________________________.
Meredudd =
Maredudd ‹me RE
didh› (masculine noun)
1 man's name; patronymic = ap Meredudd; basis of the surname
Meredith
:_______________________________.
Meredydd
1 variant
of Meredudd, in turn from Maredudd
:_______________________________.
Mererid ‹me RE rid›
1 (Margaret) woman's name
:_______________________________.
Merffordd ‹mer -fordh›
1(SJ3556) locality in the county of Wrecsam, 1km north of Wrecsam
English name: Marford
ETYMOLOGY: From an earlier form of the
English name, before the change er > ar in English
:_______________________________.
merfog ‹mer
-vog› masculine noun
PLURAL merfogiaid ‹mer-vog-yed›
1 (Abramis
brama) bream
2 merfog môr (Pagellus
centrodontus) sea bream
3 merfog gwyn (m), merfogiaid gwyn / gwynion (Blicca
bjoerkna) silver bream
ETYMOLOGY: Apparently (merf (now
obsolete) = insipid, weak) + (-og suffix for forming adjectives)
:_______________________________.
Merfyn ‹MER vin› (masculine noun)
1 man's name
:_______________________________.
merhelygen ‹mer-he-lə-gen› feminine noun
1 (Salix alba ssp.
vitellina) golden willow
y ferhelygen the golden willow
See: helygen euraidd
:_______________________________.
merin
‹mee -rin› feminine
noun
PLURAL meriniau
‹me-rin-ye›
1 (obsolete) inlet of the sea, sea
y ferin the sea inlet
ETYMOLOGY:
..a/ probably British < Latin marîna
< marînus < mare (= sea);
..b/ if not from Latin, then from a British source *môrin- related to modern Welsh môr (= sea), as in the name of a tribe in Gaul Môrîni (probably “dwellers by the sea”)
:_______________________________.
Merin Rheged
‹mee-rin hree-ged›
-
1 inlet of the Irish Sea between Scotland and England.
English name: Solway Firth
ETYMOLOGY: ‘inlet of the sea (of the territory of) Rheged’
(merin = inlet of the sea, sea) + (Rheged = kingdom either side of the
Solway estuary with its capital in Caerliwelydd / Carlisle – comprising the
modern areas of Galloway in Scotland and Cumbria in England)
:_______________________________.
merllyn
‹MER-lhin› feminine
noun
PLURAL merllynnoedd
‹mer-LHə-noidh, -odh›
1 stagnant pool
.........................................
Farm SJ2768 west of Ceiconna, county of Y Fflint
http://www.geograph.org.uk/browse.php?p=331567 map
.........................................
Farm SJ1356 by Llanfair Dyffryn Clwyd (county of Dinbych)
http://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/SJ1356 map
.........................................
Farm SH7868 near Dolgarrog (county of Conwy)
http://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/SH7868 map
.........................................
Farm SJ0849 near Brynsaithmarchog (county of Dinbych)
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/440969
ETYMOLOGY: “dead pool” (merf = inspid, tasteless, lifeless) + soft
mutation + (llyn = pool, lake) > merflyn > merlyn (loss of
the consonant [v] )
This seems to be the more likely explanation.
However it could also be:
“dead pool” (marw = dead) + soft mutation + (llyn
= pool, lake) > márw-lyn > mérw-lyn (vowel affection; a
> e due to the influence of the y in the final syllable) > merlyn
loss of the consonant w) > mérllyn (combination r-l becomes
r-ll)
But since the element mer- occurs in names where if
could not be from an original mar- / marw (because the final vowel in
the compund name would not cause vowel affection a > e) it would seem
that the firsat element is merf
merddwr stagnant water (dw^r = water)
merbwll stagnant pool (pwll = pool)
NOTE: merllyn (= stagnant pool) occurs in the present-day Welsh of north-east Wales
:_______________________________.
merth
‹merth› adjective
1 (obsolete) fair, beautiful
ETYMOLOGY: variant of berth (= fair,
beautiful) – showing the change b
> m, which also occurs in other
words in Welsh.
The confusion occurs with feminine nouns and with adjectives because the
mutation of both ‹b›
and ‹m› m is ‹v› f;
benyw (= woman), also menyw;
ben (= cart), also men, etc
:_______________________________.
merthyr ‹mer -thir› masculine
noun
PLURAL merthyron
‹mer-thə-ron›
1 martyr = person who accepts death rather than give up a religion
2 martyr = person who is killed or who suffers for any belief or
cause
3 martyr = person who suffers a lot
4 martyr = person with a martyr complex, putting himself / herself to
a lot of trouble for the sake of another person or other people in order to
feel self-righteous and cause others to feel guilty or sympathetic
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < British < Latin martyr-em
(= martyr);
From the same British root: Breton merzher
(= martyr), Cornish merther (=
martyr)
:_______________________________.
merthyr ‹mer -thir› masculine
noun
1 (obsolete) martyry = shrine erected in memory of a martyr (modern
name: merthyrfan)
2 place names grave,
burial place, cemetery
Numerous examples in Wales (especially in south-east Wales) (and corresponding
names in Cornwall and Brittany).
Popularly – though incorreectly - interpreted as ‘martyr’ in some cases, since the word for “martyr” in Welsh is identical (merthyr), with local traditions explaining the martyrdom.
Strictly speaking, such names when they refer to a settlement (village, town) should be spelt as one word, as in the case of llan, but this is one of the many inconsistencies in the Rhestr o Enwau Lleoedd, the Prifysgol Cymru / University of Wales list of recommended spellings.
Here though we shall use the form Merthyrtudful, for example, in
referring to the town.rather than Merthyr
Tudful
See Merthyrcaffo, Merthyr Celer, Merthyr Clydog, Merthyr
Cynfall, Merthyrcynog, Merthyr Dunod, Merthyrdyfan, Merthyrdingad,
Merthyr Elfed, Merthyr Gerain, Merthyr
Glywys, Merthyr Ilan, Merthyr Isw, Merthyr Iul ac Aaron, Merthyr
Maches, Merthyr-mawr, Merthyr Meirion, Merthyr Onfryd, Merthyr
Tegfedd, Merthyr Tewdrig, Merthyrtudful, Merthyr Tudwystl
3 place names church
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < British < Latin martyrium
(= church on the site of a saint’s grave,
or church commemorating a saint) < Latin martyr- (= martyr)
Found in Cornish place names (merther)
and Breton place names (merzher).
Cf the town named Martorell in
Catalonia < Vulgar Latin (*martyretulu(m)
(= little cemetery), or *martyretula
(= little cemeteries).
Cf Irish martra (= relics of a
martyr or saint)
NOTE: Since merthyr with the sense of “church” is not included usually in Welsh-language dictionaries (as it is an obsolete word), whereas merthyr (= martyr), being a contemporary word, does occur, such names are often to be seen interpreted as ‘the martyr Cynog’, ‘the martyr Tudful’, etc, as if it was a title in the same way as sant / sain in some place names (in place names, sant / sain is usually a latecomer, and refers to a saint within the Catholic Church).
Even if it is accepted that the word actually means a burial place, rather than a person, there seems still to be a temptation that it continued to mean “burial place of a martyr”, the martyr in question being the name of the saint which follows it.
But it seems that the sense of the word had broadened
and was no longer the resting place of a martyr, in the same way that a
“cupboard” in English no longer has its literal meaning of a table on which
cups were placed.
:_______________________________.
Merthyr
‹mer -thir›
1 short name for places with Merthyr as the first element
......(1) Merthyr Elfed (now simply Merthyr)
......(2) Ym Merthyr ma fa’n byw he
lives in Merthyr. Short for ym Merthyrtudful
= in Merthyrtudful
:_______________________________.
Merthyr Caffo ‹mer-thir-kaa-fo›
1 (‘tomb / church of Caffo’) former name of Llangaffo SH 4468, village and parish of the island of Môn
:_______________________________.
Merthyr Celer ‹mer-thir-kee-ler›
1 (‘tomb / church of Celer’) former name of Llangeler SN 3739, village and parish in the county of Caerfyrddin
:_______________________________.
Merthyr Clydog ‹mer-thir-klə-dog›
1 (‘tomb / church of Clydog’) former name of Clydog a parish in Herefordshire, England (“Clodock”)
:_______________________________.
Merthyr Cynfall ‹mer-thir-kən-valh›
1 (‘tomb / church of Cynfall’) former name of Llangynfyl, a church in Herefordshire, England (in English as
“Llangunville”), earlier Llangynfall.
:_______________________________.
Merthyrcynog
‹mer-thir kə-nog›
feminine noun
1 SN9837 locality in the
district of Brycheiniog (county of Powys)
2 a parish at this place
Population: (1961) 288; (1971) 235
Proportion of Welsh-speakers: (1961) 32%; (1971) 24%
Nid oeddynt ond tua phymtheg mewn nifer pan anturiwyd ar godi y capel, ac yn
aelodau gan mwyaf yn Siloa, a Mr. Price fu yn benaf yn gofalu am danynt wedi eu
ffurfio yn eglwys, hyd ddiwedd y flwyddyn 1846, pan y rhoddasant alwad i Mr.
Thomas Jones, yr hwn a urddasid yn Merthyrcynog, ond a fuasai am dymor yn
weinidog yn Adulam, Tredegar. Llafuriodd Thomas Jones yma yn ddiwyd hyd 1849. Hanes
Eglwysi Annibynnol Cymru, Thomas Rees and John Thomas, published from 1871
onwards
They were only about fifteen in number when they ventured to built the chapel,
and mostly members in Siloa (chapel), and it was Mr. Price who looked after
them mainly after they were formed as a church, until the end of !846, when
they gave a call to Mr. Thomas Jones, who was ordained in Merthycynog, but who
had been for a term minister of Adulam, Tredegar. Thomas Jones laboured here
assiduously until 1849.
ETYMOLOGY: 'cemetery (of) Cynog' (merthyr
= cemetery) + (Cynog = saint's name)
:_______________________________.
Merthyrdingad ‹mer-thir-di-ngad›
1 (‘tomb / church of Dingad’) former name of Llanddingad ST 4510, locality in the county of Mynwy (English name:
Dingestow)
:_______________________________.
merthyrdod
‹mer-thər-dod› masculine
noun
1 martyrdom = sufferings and death of a martyr
2
martyrdom = extreme suffering
Merthyrdod fu ei bywyd hi
Her life was a martyrdom
ETYMOLOGY: (merthyr = martyr) + (-dod, suffix for forming abstract nouns)
:_______________________________.
Merthyr Dunod ‹mer-thir-dii-nod›
1 (‘tomb / church of Dunod’) name of a church in Tyddewi (county of
Penfro)
:_______________________________.
Merthyrdyfan ‹mer-thir-də-van›
1 (‘tomb / church of Dyfan’) ST 1169 locality in the county of Bro Morgannwg
(South-east Wales)
:_______________________________.
Merthyr Elfed ‹mer-thir-el-ved›
1 (‘the place called Merthyr in the kumud (cwmwd, = medieval
administrative unit) of Elfed’) Nowadays it is simply Merthyr SN 3520 (county of Caerfyrddin)
:_______________________________.
Merthyr Gerain ‹mer-thir-ge-rain›
1 (‘tomb / church of Gerain’) church in the locality of Magwyr ST
4287 in the county of Mynwy (South-east Wales)
:_______________________________.
Merthyr Glywys ‹mer-thir-glə-uis›
1 (‘tomb / church of Glywys’) church in the locality of Drenewydd yn
Notais SS 8377 in the county of Bro Morgannwg (South-east Wales)
:_______________________________.
Merthyrilan ‹mer-thir-ii-lan›
1 (‘tomb / church of Ilan’) former name of Eglwysilan ST 1288 (county of Caerffili) (South-east Wales)
:_______________________________.
Merthyr Isw ‹mer-thir-i-su›
1 (‘tomb / church of Isw’) former name of Pertrisw SO2722 (South-east Wales) (county of Powys)
:_______________________________.
Merthyr Iul ac
Aaron ‹mer-thir-ii-il ag aa-ron›
1 (‘tomb / church of Jul and Aaron’) former name of Sain Silian ST3289 district of Casnewydd
(South-east Wales) 2km north-east of the centre
:_______________________________.
Merthyr Maches ‹mer-thir-maa-khes›
1 (‘tomb / church of Maches’) former name of Llanfaches ST4391, village and parish in the county of Casnewydd
:_______________________________.
Merthyr-mawr ‹mer-thir-maur›
1 SS8877, village in the
county of Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr
Old name: Llandeilo Merthyr Myfor
(“the place called Llandeilo which is by Merthyr Myfor”)
2
a parish at this place
..1961 population: 531, proportion of Welsh-speakers: 14%
..1971 population: 470, proportion of Welsh-speakers: 12%
ETYMOLOGY: On the face of it, this is ‘big Merthyr’ (merthyr = tomb) + (mawr
= big).
But the current name is a corruption of an original Merthyr Myfor ‘the tomb / church of Myfor’.
Probably mawr < mowr < mywor < myfor.
The same name is found in Llanfyfor
(now Llanofer, SO 3108, a village in
the county of Mynwy)
:_______________________________.
Merthyr Meirion ‹mer-thir-meir-yon›
1 (‘tomb / church of Meirion’) alternative name of Llanfeirian, now Llangadwaladr SH3869, a village and parish on the island of Môn
:_______________________________.
Merthyr Onfryd ‹mer-thir-meir-yon›
1 (‘tomb / church of Onfryd’) church formerly in Caer-dydd
:_______________________________.
Merthyrtegfedd ‹mer-thir-teg-vedh›
1 (‘tomb / church of Tegfedd’) former name of Llandegfedd ST3395 (county of Mynwy)
:_______________________________.
Merthyr Tewdrig ‹mer-thir-teu-drig›
1 (‘tomb / church of Tewdrig’) former name of Matharn ST5291 (county of Mynwy)
Tewdrig is mentioned in Llyfr Llan-daf (The Book of Llan-daf) (compiled 1120 –
1140). He was a prince and saint of the fifth and sixth centuries killed in a
battle to repel English invaders, and buried at the place which was called
after him Merthyr Tewdrig, near Cas-gwent (Chepstow).
:_______________________________.
■ Merthyrtudful
‹mer-thir-tid-vil›
1 SO0506 locality in Merthyrtudful county.
2
Name of a county. Administrative centre: Merthyrtudful
Proportion of Welsh-speakers: 8.33 (1981)
NOTE: In general settlement names where possible are written as one word, and
to conform to this recommendation the name should be Merthyrtudful, though the Rhestr o Enwau Lleoedd (Gazetteer of
Welsh Place names of the University of Wales) has “Merthyr Tudful”.
ETYMOLOGY: ‘the tomb / church of the female saint Tudful’ (merthyr = tomb) + (Tudful).
The name is popularly explained as ‘The Martyr Tudful’ through misunderstanding
the meaning of ‘merthyr’ in place names as ‘martyr’. Welsh merthyr (= martyr) < Latin martyr
(= martyr). But in place names merthyr
is from Latin martyrium =
church. Though originally in Latin a ‘shrine to a martyr’, it seems to have
lost any connection with ‘martyrdom’ when used in later Latin and in British.
:_______________________________.
Merthyr Tudwystl
‹mer-thir-tid-wistl›
1 (‘tomb / church of Tudwystl’) former name of Capel Tydyst, a church in Llangadog (county of Caerfyrddin)
:_______________________________.
merwino ‹mer WI no› (verb)
1 (sound, noise) grate on the ears
:_______________________________.
mêr ‹MEER› (masculine noun)
1 bone marrow
:_______________________________.
mesen
‹me -sen› feminine noun
PLURAL mes
‹mees ›
1 acorn
y fesen the acorn
2 There is a street in Prestatyn (Sir y Fflint) called Llwynmesen, which is an incorrect form
if the second element is in fact mesen
(= acorn). It appears to be a translation of English ‘Acorn Grove’, which would
have to be Llwyn-y-mes (“grove (of)
the acorns”)
3 mor ddi-les â mes i eifr (saying)
(of something inappropriate) (“as useless as acorns for goats” (i.e. acorns are
fine for feeding pigs, but less than useless for goats)
4 mor faned â mes as
small / insignificant as acorns (mân =
small; of small size an in abundant quantities)
ETYMOLOGY: Welsh < British < Celtic
From the same British root: Breton mezenn
(= acorn)
From the same Celtic root: Manks mess
(= acorn)
NOTE: London, 1825. Observations on some of the dialects in the West of England particularly with a glossary of words now in use there ; and poems and other pieces, exemplifying the dialect. by James Jennings, Honorary Secretary of the Metropolitan Library Institution, London. Glossary of words commonly used in the County of Somerset; but which are not accepted as legitimate words of the English language ; or words which, although once used generally, are now become provincial.Mace. s[ubstantive]. pl[ural]. Acorns.
:_______________________________.
mesur,
mesurau ‹ME
sir, me SI re› (masculine noun)
1 measure
2 tryfesur diameter (try- = intensive prefix) + soft
mutation + ( mesur = measure)
3 mesur seneddol ‹me sir se NEE dhol› (masculine noun) parliamentary measure
:_______________________________.
mesuriad
‹me- sir -yad› masculine noun
PLURAL mesuriadau
‹me-sir- yaa -de›
1 measurement
mesuriadau’r stafell the dimensions
of the room
ETYMOLOGY: (mesur- stem of the verb mesuro = to measure) + (-i-ad abstract noun-forming suffix)
:_______________________________.
METATHESIS
1 (Welsh: trawsosod)
transposition of sounds or syllables in a word
Examples in Welsh
(DD-LL) >
(LL-DD)
(1) mabddall (= child blind at
birth) >*mablladd > mablath / maplath (= lizard);
(mab = son) + soft mutation + (dall = blind)
(L-DD) > (DD-
L)
(1) cywilydd (= shame) > cywiddyl > c'widdyl
(2) Llanhiledd (= village in Blaenau
Gwent) > Llanhiddel / Llanhiddal
(L-S) > (SL)
(1) elusendy (= alsmhouse) > slendy
(N-S) > (SN)
(1) Ynysawdre (= village in
Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr) > y Snawdra
(N-L) > (L-N)
telyn (= harp) Welsh < British telen-, apparently a metathesised form
of tenel- (N-L became L-N)
From the same British root: Breton telenn
(= harp)
(THR) > (RTH)
(1) dieithr (= strange, unfamiliar)
> dierth
(2) ewythr (= uncle) > ewyrth
(RF) ‹rv› > (FR) ‹vr›
(1) Cnarfon
> Cnafron (= colloquial forms of Caernarfon)
(TH-LL) >
(LL-TH)
(1) pothell (= blister) > polleth
:_______________________________.
metel
‹me -tel› masculine noun
PLURAL metelau,
meteloedd ‹me- tel –e, me- tel –odh ›
1
metal
llestri metel metalware
lludded metel metal fatigue
metel anfferrus non-ferrous metal
metel anhaearnaidd non-ferrous metal
metel cyffredin base metal
metel dalennog sheet metal
metel gyr wrought metal
metel sgrap scrap metal
metel tawdd molten metal
metel trwm (Music) heavy metal
metelwaith metalwork
synhwyrydd metal metal detecter
2
mettle, bravery, valience, boldness, pluck
Trech metel na maint “(it is)
stronger bravery than size”; in a conflict, boldness counts for more than size
does
3
(adj) metal = made of metal
llwy fetel a metal spoon
ETYMOLOGY: Middle English metel (=
metal) < Latin metallum (=
something mined; a mine) < Greek metallon
:_______________________________.
metelaidd
‹me- tel -edh› adjective
1
metallic
ETYMOLOGY: (metel = metal) + (-aidd suffix for forming nouns
indicating the content or capacity of a container )
:_______________________________.
meteleg
‹me- te -leg› femenine
noun
1
metallurgy
ETYMOLOGY: (metel = metal) + (-eg suffix for forming a noun
indicating a science )
:_______________________________.
Metgawdd ‹MET-gaudh› (f)
1 Ynys Metgawdd NU1241
Lindisfarne, or Holy Island, Northumberland, England
(delw 7372)
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/761409
:_______________________________.
methdalu ‹meth DA li› (verb)
1 (business) to go bankrupt
:_______________________________.
methdalwr
‹meth-daa-lur› masculine noun
PLURAL methdalwyr
‹meth-dal-wir›
1 bankrupt, person who is insolvent
gwneud rhywun yn fethdalwr make
somebody bankrupt, bankrupt somebody
2
(law) bankrupt, person unable to pay debts and whose assets are confiscated to
compensate creditors
ETYMOLOGY: (methdal- stem of methdalu = be unable to pay) + (-wr agent suffix, 'man')
:_______________________________.
methedig
‹me-thee-dig› adjective
PLURAL methedigion
‹me-the-dig-yon›
1 disabled, incapacitated, invalid
yr henoed methedig disabled old
people
2
plural adjectives in Welsh can serve as plural nouns; hence methedigion, disabled people
ETYMOLOGY: (meth- stem of methu = to fail) + (-edig passive past participle suffix)
:_______________________________.
methedigaeth
‹me-the-dii-geth› feminine noun
1 disability
ETYMOLOGY: (methedig = disabled) + (-aeth, suffix for forming abstract
nouns)
:_______________________________.
Méthodist,
Methodistiaid ‹ME
tho dist, me tho DIST yed› (masculine noun)
1 Methodist
:_______________________________.
methu ‹ME thi› (verb)
1 to fail
2 methu gweld y coed gan
brennau not see the wood for the trees
:_______________________________.
Methwsela ‹me-thu-se-la› masculine noun
1 Methuselah (Genesis 5:27) one of the patriarchs, said to have
lived 969 years
mor hen â Methwsela or cyn hyned â Methwsela (usually used in a
derogatory sense) as old as Methuselah, as old as the hills
Genesis 5:25 Methwsela hefyd a fu fyw saith mlynedd a phedwar ugain a chant,
ac a genhedlodd Lamech. (5:26) A Methwsela a fu fyw wedi iddo genhedlu
Lamech, ddwy flyneddd a phedwar ugain a saith gan mlynedd, ac a genhedlodd
feibion a merched. (5:27) A holl ddyddiau Methwsela oedd, naw mlynedd a
thrigain a naw can mlynedd, ac efe a fu farw.
Genesis 5:25 And Methuselah lived an hundred eighty and seven years, and begat
Lamech:(5:26) And Methuselah lived after he begat Lamech seven hundred eighty
and two years, and begat sons and daughters: (5:27) And all the days of
Methuselah were nine hundred sixty and nine years: and he died.
ETYMOLOGY: ??
:_______________________________.
metro
‹me-tro›
PLURALmetros
‹me-tros›
1 metro (= underground railway system)
yn y metro in the metro
2 metro (= train)
ar y metro on the metro
cerbyd metro subway car,
metro carriage
ETYMOLOGY:
..a/ English metro < French metro < chemin de fer métropolitain (= metropolitan railway)
..b/ métropolitain < metropolis < latin < Greek mêtropolis (= mother state)
..c/ mêtropolis < (mêtêr, mêtros = mother) + (polis = city)
:_______________________________.
meudwy
‹mei -dui› masculine
noun
PLURAL meudwyaid
‹mei -dui -ed›
1 hermit = person who retreats to a secluded place for religious
reasons - to live a life of contemplation
2 hermit = person who leads a solitary existence
byw fel meudwy, live like a hermit
Tipyn o feudwy yw e He's a bit of a
hermit
3 place names
(1) Ynysmeudwy SN7305 (county of
Castell-nedd ac Aberafan) (apparently “ynys y meudwy” - ‘meadow of the hermit’)
(2) Rhydymeudwy SJ1251 (county of
Dinbych) (apparently ‘ford of the hermit’)
ETYMOLOGY: “lad (of) God” (meu-
penult form of *mau = boy) + (dwy, variant of duw = god); *mau < *meu < British mogu-;
..a/ Cornish maw (= boy), mowes (= girl),
..b/ Breton mav (adjective) (=
happy); Breton maoues (= girl);
..c/ Gaulish Magurix (personal name,
apparently “lad” + “king”; rix =
king),
..d/ Irish mogh (= slave)
..e/ Indoeuropean *maghu (= young
person)
:_______________________________.
meudwyfa
‹mei-dui -va› feminine noun
PLURAL meudwyfaoedd,
meudwyféydd ‹mei-dui-vaa-odh, mei-dui -veidh›
1 hermit's cell, hermitage = dwelling of a hermit
y feudwyfa the hermit's cell
2
hermitage = any retreat
ETYMOLOGY: (meudwy = hermit) + (-fa suffix = place)
:_______________________________.
meudwyo
‹mei-dui -o› verb
1 become a hermit, shut oneself away, isolate oneself
2 live like a hermit
ETYMOLOGY: (meudwy = hermit) + (-o suffix for forming verbs)
:_______________________________.
Meurig ‹MEI rig› (masculine noun)
1 man's name - Maurice, Morris
:_______________________________.
mewian ‹MEU yan› (verb)
1 (cat) to mew
:_______________________________.
mewn ‹meun›
preposition
@: in (indefinite)
in a (+ singular noun), in (+ indefinite plural noun)
mewn bocs = in a box, yn y bocs = in the box
mewn ceir = in cars, yn y ceir = in the cars
@: inside, within
mewn papur Saesneg - in an
English-language newspaper
mewn rhannau o'r De - in parts of
South Wales
mewn bag plastig - in a plastic bag
maent mewn perygl o gael eu dal mewn un
o ddau drap - they're in danger of being caught in one of two traps
mewn mannau in places
@: in a group of people, among a
group of people
mewn cyfarfod rhwng swyddogion y cyngor a'r trigolion lleol in
a meeting between council officials and the local residents
mae hi'n canu mewn grŵp she
sings in a in a group
cofiaf fod mewn pwyllgor yn América...
I remember being in a meeting in America
mewn tyrfa - in a crowd
@: age
mewn oedran teg - having reached a
ripe old age
Er mewn oedran teg dalia Mr Edwards i
gymryd diddordeb mawr yn y cysegr a bu'n hynod ffyddlon ar hyd y daith
Although he had reached a ripe old age Mr Edwards continued to take great
interest in the chapel affairs and he was extremely faithful to it all his life
@: language (language + following
adjective)
note: yn Gymraeg (= yn y Gymraeg) =
in Welsh
mewn Cymraeg coeth - in elegant
Welsh
mewn Cymraeg clir a chroyw - in
clear forthright Welsh
mewn Cymraeg Canol - in Middle Welsh
mewn iaith fwy llenyddol na'r dafodiaith
leol - in more literary language than the local dialect
mewn iaith flodeuog - in flowery
language
and other forms of communication
mewn côd - in code
mewn hierogluffau - in hieroglyphics
@: clothes
ymwisgo mewn sachliain a lludw - to
wear / to put on sackcloth and ashes
gwisgo ei merch fach mewn dillad lliwgar
- to dress her Web Daughter in colourful clothes
mewn crys - in a shirt, wearing a
shirt
mewn dillad gwynion - dressed in
white
mewn cuddwisg – in disguise
mewn gwisg cowboi - dressed as a
cowboy, in cowboy clothes
merch mewn gwisg hir - a girl in along
dress
@: in a specified colour
sgert ysgol mewn llwyd neu nefi a
school skirt in grey or navy(-blue)
@: with numbers
Mae wedi gwneud tri gwall sillafu mewn wyth
gair he's made three spelling mistakes in eight words
Y mae'r potiau yn cael eu gwneud gan
gwmni Marley mewn dau faint the pots are made by the Marley company in two
sizes
@: of elements of which something is
comprised
sawl modfedd sy mewn llathen? - how
many inches are there in a yard?
@: during
mewn cyfnod o saith wythnos in a
seven-week period
mewn ychydig dros flwyddyn maent wedi
codi dros £2,000 (dwy fil o bunnau) tuag
at y gronfa in just over a year they've raised over £2,000 for the fund
mewn ychydig eiliadau in a few
seconds
mewn rhyw bythefnos in a fortnight
or so
@: at any time during a stated
period
nid oedd wedi colli oedfa yn y capel
mewn deugain mlynedd - he hadn't missed a service at the chapel in forty
years
mewn union bryd in the nick of time
@: time = before the end of
mewn hanner awr in half an hour
mewn cachiad in a jiffy (in a
shitting, probably: in the time it takes for a hen to shit)
mewn amser da in good time
mewn dim = in a moment
mewn dim o amser in no time at all
mewn llai na hanner awr in less than
half an hour
@: distance - within, not further
than
mewn rhyw filltir i'r dre' less than
about a mile from the town
mewn dim = within a hair's breadth
(usually o fewn: o fewn dim i farw within a hair's breadth of death)
Pan oedd y ddau mewn rhyw deirllath i'w
gilydd when the two of them were within three yards of each other
@: in the form of
hanner can punt mewn papurau - fifty
pounds in bills / in notes
mewn arian - in cash
casglu dros dair mil o bunnoeddd mewn
dirwyon - collect over three
thousand pounds in fines
rhoi cyfanswm o £3,000 (o dair mil o
bunnau) mewn grantiau - give a total
of £3,000 in grants
@: ratios, odds
un siawns mewn miliwn a chance in a
million
@: material
naddu pethau mewn coed a maen carve
things in wood and stone
@: within = before the beginning of
mewn wythnos i a week away from
siarad fel petae o mewn wsnos i'w
bensiwn - to talk as if he was within a week of retiring ('a week to his
pension')
@: mistake, error
mewn camgymeriad - by mistake, in
error
@: transport
mewn tacsi - in a taxi
@: after verbs
ymddiddori mewn casglu hen fapiau take
an interst in collecting old maps
y mae'r briodas wedi gorffen mewn
ysgariad the marriage has ended in divorce
@: after nouns
newid mewn - a change in
bu newid amlwg hefyd mewn bywyd
cymdeithasol there was also a marked change in social life
diddordeb mewn - an interest in
i bawb sydd â diddordeb mewn aros ar yr
ynys
for everyone interested in staying on the island
Mae sawl mantais mewn byw felly
There are many advantages in living like this
Mae'r Gweinidog Addysg yn galw am adfer
yr hen ddisgyblaeth mewn dysgu maethemateg the Education Minister is
calling for the restoration of the old discipline in learning maths
@: adverbials
eisteddodd ar y palment mewn protest
she sat down on the sidewalk (Englandic: pavement) in protest
ei gwadnu hi i'r goedwig mewn brys gwyllt
to sprint off to the wood in a mad rush
ateb mewn cywilydd mawr to reply
deeply ashamed ('in big shame')
mewn anobaith - in despair
beth mewn difri calon allwn ni ei wneud
i'w helpu nhw? what in all seriousness ('in serious + heart') can we do to
help them?
ni wyr neb mewn gwirionedd pryd cafodd
ei eni nobody really knows ('nobody knows in truth') when he was born
mae'r erthygl yn esbonio, mewn ffordd hwyliog,
y gwahanol weithgareddau the article explains, in a light-hearted way, the
different activities
siarad Cymraeg mewn acen a fyddai wedi
rhoi braw i'w dad-cu to speak Welsh with an accent which would have given a
real fright to his grandfather
fe redodd y ceffyl i'r heol mewn dychryn
mawr the horse ran into the road badly frightened ('in great terror')
indicating the kind of voice used in speaking
siarad mewn sibrydion - to talk in
whispers
dweud rhywbeth mewn llais
garw say something
in a rough voice, say something roughly
mewn llais mwyn in a gentle voice
mewn llais dirdynedig in a tense
voice
mewn llais cryg in a hoarse voice
@: state, situation
mewn adfeilion in ruins
tŷ mewn adfeilion a house in
ruins
mewn anobaith dwfn in deep
despair, plunged in despair
mewn artaith in torment
mewn awdurdod in authority
mewn breci in a state of drunkenness
.....addewid mewn breci = a drunken promise
mewn byd (North Wales) in an agitated state, in distress
mewn byr eiriau in short
mewn cae arall (“in another
field”)
bod mewn cae arall (“be in another field”) be missing the point, be parking
up the wrong tree
mewn cariad in love
.....bod mewn cariad â be in love with
mewn cerfwedd in relief
mewn dwfn anobaith in the depths
of despair (“in deep despair”)
mewn dychryn = in
fright
Cododd ei dwylo mewn dychryn She lifted her hands in fright
mewn gwaeth cyflwr in a worse
state
.....Yr oedd y
tŷ newydd ar y pryd mewn llawer gwaeth cyflwr na’r hen dŷ
.....At the
time the new house was in a far worse state then the old house
mewn dychryn in fright
.....cododd ei dwylo mewn dychryn
she lifted her hands in fright
mewn gair a gweithred in word and deed
.....Cristion mewn gair a gweithred practising Christian
mewn gwaeth cyflwr in a worse state
.....Mae'r heol mewn gwaeth cyflwr ar ôl ei thrwsio The road is in worse
condition after being repaired
mewn gwaith in work, working
mewn gwewyr in torment
mewn helbul in a spot of bother
mewn iechyd da in good health
mewn llais dirdynedig in a
tense voice
mewn poen in pain
mewn safle i in a position to
...Nid yw Lloegr mewn safle i swnian yn hunangyfiawn uwchben gwledydd sy'n
ei dynwared
...England is not in a position to whine self-righteously about countries which
are imitating it
mewn sawl modd in many respects
mewn steil in stile
mewn syndod in surprise
.....Agorodd ei lygaid mewn syndod. He opened his eyes in surprise
mewn taro budr (South-east
Wales) in great haste
mewn tlodi in poverty
.....cael eu magu mewn tlodi be brought up in poverty
mewn trafferth in trouble
mewn trwbwl in trouble
mewn twll in a fix
mewn tywyllwch dudew in pitch darkness (“in (a) fat-black darkness”)
mewn ystum tanio (rifle, etc)
in firing position
.....gosod (reiffl) mewn ystum tanio
position a rifle ready for firing, bring a rifle to the firing position
@: as a result of
torrodd ei migwrn mewn damwain - she
broke her ankle in an accident
@: employment
y cyfnod y bûm mewn swyddi cyflogedig
- the period I was in paid employment
@: in the matter of
Pwy a sieryd Gymraeg mor bur ag y gall
daflu carreg at ryw bechadur mewn treiglo?
Who speaks such pure Welsh that they can cast a stone at some sinner in the
matter of mutations?
Nid oedd bachgen arall a allai ddal
cannwyll iddo mewn dim a wnâi dyn yn ddyn
There was no other boy who could compare (“could hold a candle to him”) in the
matter of what makes a man
beth, mewn pobl, sy'n eich gwylltio fwyaf?
What annoys you most about people (“What, in people, maddens you most?”) ?
@: extent of knowledge of a subject
Dw i ddim yn dda iawn mewn Hanes
I’m not very good at History
@: in = defines a qualification,
introduces the subject which has been studied
Tystysgrif Prifysgol Cymru Mewn
Cyfieithu - a University of Wales Certificate in Translating
meddu ar radd neu ddiploma mewn
Llyfrgellyddiaeth to have a degree or diploma in Librarianship
mae ei fab wrthi'n astudio ar gyfer
Ph.D. mewn bioleg his son is studying for a Ph.D in Biology
@: bod mewn = have significance
beth sy mewn enw, meddech chi What's
in a name, you say
@: mewn + rhyw
mewn rhyw faes neu'i gilydd in some
field or other
@: mewn bod = be in existence
Bu'r busnes mewn bod am bron canrif
The business existed for almost a century
Cristion mewn gair a gweithred
practising Christian
Used before an abstract noun
undeb mewn amrywiaeth unity in
diversity
Mewn undeb y mae nerth / Mewn undeb mae nerth There is unity in
strength
Miscellaneous additions:
- o fewn ‹o
VEUN› (preposition) within
- y tu mewn ‹ə tii MEUN› (masculine noun) the interior, the inside
- y tu mewn i ‹ə tii MEUN i› (preposition) inside
ETYMOLOGY: mewn < my'wn < *myddwn < myddwyn
< British *med-okn-o;
unless it is a borrowing from Old Irish:
mewn < me'wn < meddwn < Old Irish medón (modern Irish meán < meadhon)
(= middle)
VARIANTS: South miwn, mwn ‹miun, mun›
:_______________________________.
mewn cyflwr
gwael ‹meun kə-vlur gwail ›
1 in a serious condition, very poorly, in a pretty bad way, in quite
a bad state, in bad shape
ETYMOLOGY: (mewn = in) + (cyflwr = condition, state) + (gwael = bad)
:_______________________________.
mewn dau
‹meun dai › adverb
1 at the second attempt (“in two (attempts)”)
ETYMOLOGY: (mewn = in) + (dau = two)
:_______________________________.
mewn dillad
cyffredin ‹meun dii-lhad kə-free-din›
1 in plain clothes; (of policeman, policewoman) not wearing uniform
in order to disguise the fact that he / she is a member of a police force
(Literally: “in ordinary clothes / in common clothes”)
:_______________________________.
mewn dim o dro ‹meun dim oo droo ›
1 in no time at all
Mae hi'n meddwi mewn dim o dro She
gets drunk in no time at all
ETYMOLOGY: (mewn = in) + (dim = nothing) + (o = of) + soft mutation + (tro
= turn)
:_______________________________.
mewndrwydded ‹meun drui -dhed› feminine noun
PLURAL mewndrwyddedau
‹meun-drui- dhee -de›
1 on-licence (licence allowing alcohol to be consumed on the
premises where it is purchased)
y fewndrwydded the on-licence
ETYMOLOGY: (mewn-, prefix = inside)
+ soft mutation + (trwydded =
licence)
:_______________________________.
mewn dwfn
anobaith ‹meun du-vun a-noo-beth›
1 in the depths of despair (“in deep despair”)
ETYMOLOGY: (mewn = in) + (dwfn = deep) + (anobaith = despair, hopelessness)
:_______________________________.
mewnfor
‹meun -vor› adj
1 imported
ETYMOLOGY: (mewnfor- stem of mewnforio = to import)
:_______________________________.
mewnforiad
‹meun vor -yad› masculine noun
PLURAL mewnforiadau
‹meun-vor- yaa -de›
1 import, imported product
ETYMOLOGY: (mewnfor- stem of mewnforio = to import) + (-i-ad noun-forming suffix)
:_______________________________.
mewnforio
‹meun-vor-yo› verb
1 import = bring goods in from another country
toll fewnforio export duty
treth fewnforio import tax
cwota mewnforio import quota
ETYMOLOGY: (mewn-, prefix = inside)
+ soft mutation + (morio = travel by
sea)
:_______________________________.
mewnforiwr
‹meun voo -yur› masculine noun
PLURAL mewnforywyr
‹meun- vor -wir›
1 importer
ETYMOLOGY: (mewnfud- stem of mewnforio = to import) + (-wr suffix = man)
:_______________________________.
mewnforydd
‹meun voo -ridh› masculine noun
PLURAL mewnforyddion
‹meun-vo- rədh -yon›
1 importer
ETYMOLOGY: (mewnfud- stem of mewnforio = to import) + (-ydd agent suffix)
:_______________________________.
mewnfudiaeth
‹meun vid -yeth› feminine noun
PLURAL mewnfudiaethau
‹meun-vid- yei -the›
1 immigration
ETYMOLOGY: (mewnfud- stem of mewnfudo = immigrate) (-i-aeth suffix for forming nouns)
:_______________________________.
mewnfudo
‹meun vii -do› verb
1 (verb sense objecte) immigrate
ETYMOLOGY: (mewn = in) + soft
mutation + (mudo = move)
:_______________________________.
mewnfudwr
‹meun vii -dur› masculine noun
PLURAL mewnfudwyr
‹meun- vid -wir›
1 immigrant
mewnfudwr o Sais English immigrant
ETYMOLOGY: (mewnfud- stem of mewnfudo = immigrate) + (-wr suffix = man)
:_______________________________.
mewn gair
‹meun gair› adverb
1 in a word = to sum up; in short, in a nutshell
:_______________________________.
mewnlenwad,
mewnlenwadau ‹meun
LEN wad, meun len WA de› (masculine noun)
1 (dental) filling
:_______________________________.
mewnlifiad,
mewnlifiadau ‹meun
LIV yad, meun liv YA de› (masculine noun)
1 influx
2 Y
Mewnlifiad, the Influx, the name given to the great in-migration of (in
general) well-off English people from around 1970 to the areas of Wales which
had so far resisted Anglicisation. The immigrants usually have little sympathy
for Welsh language and culture and refuse to adapt to the ways of the Welsh
inhabitants. Young Welsh people adapt to the incomers and the natural process
of transmission of Welsh cultural values is greatly impaired.
:_______________________________.
mewn steil
‹meun steil› adverb
1 in style
Awn â chi i'r eglwys mewn steil
We'll take you to the church in style (advert for a wedding car-hire firm
in Llan-rwst, North-west Wales, 2000)
:_______________________________.
mewn twll
‹meun tulh ›
1 in a hole
gadael (rhywun) mewn twll to leave
(somebody) in the lurch (“to leave somebody in a hole”)
:_______________________________.
mewnwadn
‹mewn -wadən› masculine
noun
PLURAL mewnwadnau
‹meun-wad-ne›
1 inner sole, insole = insert in shoe
ETYMOLOGY: (mewn = in) + soft
mutation + (gwadn = sole)
:_______________________________.
mewnwthiad
‹meun- uth -yad› masculine noun
PLURAL mewnwthiadau
‹meun-uth- yaa -de›
1 Geology intrusion =
injection of molten rock into spaces between existing rock; the mass of
injected rock
ETYMOLOGY: (stem of mewnwthio =
intrude) + (-iad)
:_______________________________.
mewnwthiennol
‹meu-nuth- ye -nol› adjective
1 intravenous; pigiad
mewnwthiennol = intravenous injection
ETYMOLOGY: (mewn = in) + soft
mutation + (gwthiennol relating to
the vein or veins)
:_______________________________.
mewnwthio
‹meu- nuth -yo› verb
1 verb with an object; Geology intrude = force molten rock into
spaces between other rock strata
ETYMOLOGY: (mewn = inside) + soft
mutation + (gwthio = push)
:_______________________________.
mewnwthiol
‹meun- uth -yol› adjective
1 Geology intrusive =
forced while molten into cracks between existing rocks
ETYMOLOGY: (stem of mewnwthio =
intrude) + (-iol)
:_______________________________.
mewn ychydig
amser ‹meun
ə-khə-dig am-ser› adverb
1 in a short time (“in a-little-bit (of) time”)
:_______________________________.
mewn ymwchil am ‹meun
əm-khwil am› phrase
preposition
1 in search of, looking for
Daeth heliwr heibio
mewn ymchwil am filgi ieuanc
A hunter came by in search of a young greyhound (= wishing to buy a young
greyhound)
ETYMOLOGY: (mewn = in) + (ymwchil
= search) + (am = for)
:_______________________________.
mewyn
‹meu -in› masculine
noun
1 county of Môn small
object
ETYMOLOGY: (mew) + (-yn);
mew is probably from mewerth < *meiwerth < dimeiwerth
(= ha'pennyworth, something with the value of half a penny)
:_______________________________.
mewn ystyr arall
‹meun ə -stir a-ralh› adverb
1 in another sense, in another way
:_______________________________.
meysydd
‹mei -sidh› -
1 fields; plural of maes
:_______________________________.
mh-
(1)
1
an aspiratef m, the nasal mutation
of p
pen (= head), fy mhen (= my head)
Pwllheli (name of a town), ym Mhwllheli (= in Pwllheli)
:_______________________________.
mh-
(2)
1
a notional representation using Roman letters of a sound intermediate between ‹m› and ‹v› which was the
original soft mutation of ‹m›
before it was replaced by ‹v›
In very early Anglicisations of Welsh words it is represented by “m” – possibly
to English ears it was not distinguishable from ‹m›. This would account for the seeming omission of soft
mutation in Englished forms such as
..a/ “Carmarthen” (Caerfyrddin)
town name: “(Roman) camp at Myrddin”
(caer = fort) + soft mutation + (Myrddin,
the name of an nearby old British fort, literally “sea fort”)
..b/ “Glamorgan” (Gwlad Forgan)
name of a region – “(the) land (of) Morgan”
(gwlad = land, country) + soft mutation + (Morgan)
..c/ Apparently in the English form
of Llanfihangel y Bont-faen, in Bro Morgannwg / Vale of Glamorgan, which
is “Llanmihangel”
(llan = church) + soft mutation +
(Mihangel = Michaelangelus,
Michael the Archangel)
..c/ Ogwr (= river
name) < Ogfwr. This
[v] comes from British m, and early
Welsh “mh”, which is preserved in the English form of the name, Ogmore
:_______________________________.
’mhel
‹ mhel › (verb)
1
colloquial form of ymhél (qv)
ymhél â (rhywbeth) become involved
with
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