Confused by 'I will/would'

One thing that throws me during listening is the differences between ‘I/you/he will etc’ and ‘I/you/he would etc’. Can someone write down the various forms?

Would
byddwn i
byddet ti
byddai fe
bydden ni
byddech chi
bydden nhw
Or
(ba)swn i
(ba)set ti
(ba)sai fo
(ba)sen ni
(ba)sech chi
(ba)sen nhw

Will
Bydda i
Byddi di
Bydd e/o
Byddwn ni
Byddwch chi
Byddan nhw

For questions it becomes fyddwn i etc, for negatives fyddwn i ddim etc

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Hi Stuart,

@Pete2 has given a good summary, with the proviso that in the south east, we tend to stick with “bydden i” rather than “byddwn i” - it’s not grammatically correct, but it’s perfectly acceptable in speech.

More importantly, the difference between I will and I would are quite important, but you will probably not come across many situations where you will come unstuck because you have misunderstood or mis-spoken.

If you think someone has said (or you end up saying) “I will walk the dog…” but it’s followed by “if I had the time”, then you (or the listener) will automatically correct your understanding to take account of the conditions being put on the statement. Even if you don’t get the subtlety, it’s unlikely to cause a major headache, and anyone speaking to you will appreciate that your Welsh is not yet perfect, and giove you plenty of leeway!

Of course, if you are aiming for perfection (there’s no such thing, but bear with me for a second), then you need to understand / learn the differences, but for most new speakers, there are far more important things to do - like learning more patterns that you don’t always use in a perfectly correct way! - than worry about details.

It certainly sounds like you are well on your way to speaking some pretty good Welsh, so now you know the detail, be aware of it, but don;t worry about it! And remember the roadmap to perfecting any second language pattern:

Make a mistake without knowing it
(hours of use later)
Make the mistake and be vaguely aware that it may not be quite right
(hours of use later)
Make the mistake and know it was wrong as soon as you say it
(hours of use later)
Make a mistake and know it was wrong as soon as you’ve said it
(hours of use later)
Make a mistake and know it was wrong as you’re saying it
(hours of use later)
Be about to make the mistake, and correct it on its way out
(hours of use later)
Be aware of the mistake, and remember not to make it
(hours of use later)
Forget that you ever made the mistake

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Thank you @stuart_robertson_758 for asking. It’s on my list of things which torture me for quite a long time as well.

And thank you @Pete2 and @Iestyn for answering.

I’ve heard the difference at one point and didn’t hear it at another. I’m surprised with “(ba)swn i” etc structures though. I know them only from if you’ll do that I’ll do that thingys. … obviously I’ve lost those somewhere or is it more gog thingy …? :slight_smile:

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@tatjana

Baswn i’n ateb dy gwestiwn di (ta)swn i’n medru.

I would answer your question if i could. :wink:

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Thanks for the info

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Does anyone ever?

Temporary, then after all is said I’m starting to realize that I just blurted something totally wrong. So, the answer from my angle should probably be “no”. It’s just how much you’re prepared to carry on anyway …

Aha … I thought it is more to it. This one I know. :slight_smile:

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Not to muddy the waters, but then there’s the whole

“taswn i [something or other] mi faswn i [something else other]”

“If I [did/was something or other] (then) I would [do/be something else other]”

(and IIRC, the “taswn” endings are the same as the “baswn” endings, for the other persons).

This was covered pretty extensively on the old “Courses”.
I’m not sure if it comes into the “Levels”, or how it’s handled.

Gareth King’s major grammar reference book covers it all in detail for those who like to see it all written out. (Do beware though: grammar reference books can be addictive…I kid you not).

Edit: Oops, I see Pete has already referred to this usage.

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I can vouch for this…

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