Common Welsh Phrases for Everyday Conversation

Why Learning a Little Welsh Makes a Big Difference

Welsh is one of Europe's oldest living languages, and roughly a quarter of people in Wales speak it. Even if you only manage a bore da and a diolch, you'll notice the difference it makes. In shops, cafés, pubs and village halls across the country, a few words offered in good faith are almost always met with warmth — and often with a gentle correction, which is a gift in itself. This guide covers the phrases you'll reach for most often, with a rough pronunciation guide in brackets. Treat those brackets as English approximations rather than gospel: Welsh spelling is far more consistent than English once you know the rules.

Greetings and Farewells for Every Time of Day

Welsh greetings follow the clock, and locals use them constantly.

• Bore da (BOR-eh dah) — good morning
• Prynhawn da (prin-HOWN dah) — good afternoon
• Noswaith dda (NOS-waith thah) — good evening
• Nos da (nohs dah) — good night
• Shwmae (SHOO-my) — hello, how are you? Common in the south
• Sut mae? (sit my) — how are you? Common in the north
• Hwyl (hoo-il) — bye, or cheers; hwyl fawr for a warmer goodbye
• Wela i chi (WEL-a ee khee) — see you, to someone you don't know well; wela i ti with friends
• Croeso (CROY-so) — welcome

The answers are simple: iawn, diolch (fine, thanks), da iawn (very well) or dim yn ddrwg (not bad). Return the question with a chi? to stay polite, or a ti? with someone you know.

Polite Expressions That Smooth Every Conversation

Courtesy carries real weight in Welsh culture, and these phrases will see you through most days.

• Diolch (DEE-olch) — thanks; diolch yn fawr — thank you very much; diolch yn fawr iawn — thank you very much indeed
• Os gwelwch yn dda (os GWEL-ooch un thah) — please
• Esgusodwch fi (es-gi-SOD-ooch vee) — excuse me
• Mae'n ddrwg gen i (mine throog gen ee) — I'm sorry
• Dim problem — no problem
• Wrth gwrs (oorth goors) — of course
• Iechyd da (YEH-khid dah) — cheers, literally "good health"
• Mwynhewch (MOOIN-heh-ooch) — enjoy

If someone thanks you, croeso or dim problem both work neatly as "you're welcome".

Simple Questions for Getting Around and Getting to Know People

These come up again and again, whether you're ordering lunch or chatting to a neighbour over the garden wall.

• Beth yw eich enw chi? (beth yoo aykh EN-oo khee) — what's your name? Reply with fy enw i yw… — my name is…
• Ble mae'r toiled? (bleh mire TOY-led) — where's the toilet?
• Ble mae'r orsaf? — where's the station?
• Faint yw hwn? (vint yoo hoon) — how much is this?
• Faint o'r gloch yw hi? — what time is it?
• Ydych chi'n siarad Saesneg? (UD-ikh kheen SHAR-ad SIGH-sneg) — do you speak English?
• Dwi ddim yn deall (dooee thim un DEE-al) — I don't understand
• Fedrwch chi ailadrodd, os gwelwch yn dda? — could you repeat that, please?
• Yn arafach, os gwelwch yn dda — more slowly, please
• Dwi'n dysgu Cymraeg — I'm learning Welsh. Say this early and often; it earns enormous goodwill.

Pronunciation Pointers to Build Your Confidence

Welsh looks intimidating on the page but behaves itself once you know a handful of rules.

• ll — place your tongue as if saying "l", then blow air past it. Practise with Llanelli and llyn.
• dd — the voiced "th" in "the" and "breathe", so dydd sounds like "deeth".
• f — a "v" sound, as in afon (river). ff is the "f" in "off".
• ch — as in the Scottish "loch", never as in "church".
• w — a vowel, pronounced "oo", as in cwm and dwr.
• y — "uh" in most positions and "ee" in the final syllable of longer words, as in ysbyty.

Stress nearly always falls on the second-to-last syllable: di-OLCH, CRO-eso, a-RAF-ach. Get that right and you'll sound far more fluent than you really are.

North, South and the Welsh You'll Actually Hear

Welsh varies noticeably across the country, and local speakers will happily tell you which version is "proper". Northerners say llefrith for milk where southerners say llaeth, and nawr and rŵan compete for "now". Sut mae? dominates in the north and shwmae in the south, though both are understood just about everywhere. You'll also hear plenty of English words woven into everyday Welsh — tacsi, bws, fideo — and nobody bats an eyelid. Don't wait until your Welsh is polished before you use it. Start with bore da at the bakery counter, follow it with diolch yn fawr, and let the conversation carry you from there. The effort matters far more than the grammar.