Hello, I have been struggling with this every time it comes up in Level 2 (quite a lot). I can’t remember it because I just can’t see what pattern(s) it comes from (is it an abbreviation?) Could somebody possibly explain it (the ife and yw rheina bits, the rest is fine)? Thanks a lot.
Oo I managed to get two copies of the reply here - not sure how - I’ve deleted this one to avoid confusion!
Hi @mandy-shaw
So, rheina refers to something which is plural, without naming it - which means it must be obvious from context what it refers to e.g. because you are pointing at them, or you have just been speaking about them previously.
Faint yw’r rheina - how much are those?
It’s a contraction of (y) rhai hynna - those ones.
Ife is a special word - Ai is an alternative - which is simply there to make it plain that what follows is a question (it has no other meaning).
This is only necessary in situations where what follows is not a conventional question - such as your example.
This is an emphatic question where something is being clarified - and the specific thing that is being clarified is put first - and the answer is yes or no ( Ie or nage).
Ife Mandi yw eich enw chi? (Is it) Mandi, your name? ( ie Not something else)
Yw (more of a southern word) is equivalent to ydy (more northern) which is one of the ways to express - is/ are - ie the present tense.
Beth yw/ ydy eich enw chi? What is your name?
Paris yw prifddinas Ffrainc. Paris is the capital of France
So, for example, you could put Ife in front of the sentence above to create the corresponding clarifying question. Answer: Ie, wrth gwrs!
Rich🙂
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Diolch yn fawr, that’s very clear!
Much appreciated.
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