I didn't

[julie-25]

Hello.

I’m confused about when to use do’n i ddim or wnes I ddim. Is there a difference or is it just personal choice?

Diolch

[DiMatthews]

I am confused about thst too

[CatrinLliarJones]

Hi!

‘do’n i ddim’ is I wasn’t and ‘wnes i ddim’ is I didn’t

[julie-25]

Diolch @CatrinLliarJones but I’m still confused. The vocabulary list for level 1 challenge 10 clearly uses do’n i ddim for I didn’t - do’n i ddim yn moyn, I didn’t want, and do’n i ddim yn gwybod bo ti’n siarad cymraeg, I didn’t know that you speak Welsh. Yet level 1 challenge 9 uses wnes i ddim deall be’ ddwedest ti, I didn’t understand what you said.

Julie

[siaronjames]

It’s a confusion that’s caused by the fact that English uses ‘didn’t’ for both things that are ‘ongoing’ and things that are ‘completed’ whereas Welsh uses ‘wasn’t’ for things that are ‘ongoing’ and ‘didn’t’ for things that are ‘completed’.

wanting and knowing are things that are ‘ongoing’, so they use do’n i ddim, but “didn’t understand what you said” is an action that is ‘complete’, so it uses nes I ddim.

You might find browsing these threads helpful too -

Level 1 Challenge 24

Don’t worry about this - just jump for the first one that comes to mind, and then notice if it was different, and your brain will gradually tune in without you needing to think about it…

Didn’t/doesn’t

Here’s a video which may help: But in short without going to the video… Do’n i ddim, doeddwch chi ddim, doedde ti ddim - Continous past tense. (I wasn’t eating, I wasn’t drinking, He wasn’t listening, He wasn’t very good at school, they weren’t playing properly). Wnes i ddim, wnaeth o ddim, wnaeth hi ddim - Singular instance past tense (He met her, She kicked the ball at the window, He ate a pack of crisps). It takes practice, but if you’ve mastered it in English - and you understand why yo…

[CatrinLliarJones]

This -

Diolch Siaron!

[RichardBuck]

This comes up from time to time (i.e. it bothers a fair few people):

Tiny questions with quick answers - continuing thread

There’s been some discussion of this point before - there’s a fairly short list of verbs in Welsh that don’t normally use the wnes i form, preferring o’n i’n: fortunately, for an English speaker, it’s fairly easy to get the feel for them, as they’re mostly the same ones that you can’t use the Present with -ing with in English. So what you said would be understood, but a bit like saying “I am knowing.”

Tiny questions with quick answers - continuing thread

Some verbs naturally describe states rather than actions - in English we can have “I think that’s a great idea” where “I am thinking that’s a great idea” just sounds a bit off - maybe stereotypical Indian English. We can say “I am thinking”, but probably in different contexts, with a slightly different meaning. Other verbs, for actions, have to be in the -ing form if you want them to be in the present: “I run to the shop” only works as habit, or as a certain style of anecdote-telling - if you wa…

[julie-25]

Diolch @siaronjames, that has helped it become clearer for me.

Julie

[julie-25]

Diolch @RichardBuck and @CatrinLliarJones also. @DiMatthews I hope this thread has helped you too.

Julie

[DiMatthews]

Well i cant see any answers posted @julie-25
Am i missing someting?

[julie-25]

I didn't

It’s a confusion that’s caused by the fact that English uses ‘didn’t’ for both things that are ‘ongoing’ and things that are ‘completed’ whereas Welsh uses ‘wasn’t’ for things that are ‘ongoing’ and ‘didn’t’ for things that are ‘completed’. wanting and knowing are things that are ‘ongoing’, so they use do’n i ddim, but “didn’t understand what you said” is an action that is ‘complete’, so it uses nes I ddim. You might find browsing these threads helpful too -

[julie-25]

Can you see the above @DiMatthews?

[DiMatthews]

Thanks @julie-25 see ot now. But still don’t really understand it!!! Do you?

[JohnYoung]

It’s slightly tricky. English and Welsh don’t match exactly.
As mentioned, above -
Generally, Wnes I is used for one-off happenings. Do’n I is used for more longterm events.
Fortunately, these often coincide with the English Did and Was, respectively, but not always.
After a while, you will be able to use the one that sounds best, as in English. However in the mean-time, just guess one. It won’t do any harm if you pick the wrong one. You’ll still be understood, and just sound like a new speaker, which isn’t the end of the world.

[AnthonyCusack]

Hi Di,

In Welsh you say:

I wasn’t knowing
I wasn’t thinking
I wasn’t wanting
I wasn’t needing

Rather than “didn’t know/think/want/need”.

As explained above, this is because they are seen as “ongoing” rather than “completed” events.

I hope that helps

[DiMatthews]

It does!! Gives me a rule @AnthonyCusack, thanks so much!

[julie-25]

Hi @DiMatthews

This is how I understand it - if the end of the sentence is in the present tense (i.e. I didn’t know that you speak Welsh) it should be do’n i ddim at the start, and if the end of the sentence is in the past tense (i.e. I didn’t understand what you said) it should be wnes i ddim at the start. I’m not sure this is completely correct but it’s helping me to think like that for now.

Julie

[RichardBuck]

Hi Julie - that works for the two examples you gave, but not generally: Welsh for “I didn’t know what he wanted” would be “I wasn’t knowing what he was wanting” (Do’n i ddim yn gwybod beth oedd o eisiau, using Northern forms).

The key is that they’re verbs where in the present, in English, we wouldn’t say “I am knowing what he is wanting.”

[julie-25]

Thanks @RichardBuck

[JohnYoung]

For a rule you cant beat the One-off (Did/wnes) v Over a period (Was/Don) rule.
I chose - Wnes i dewis.
I was enjoying - on i’n mwynhau.