It must be a good thing that I find myself in a position to query something from Challenges Level 1 and I’m sure I must be wrong, but in Challenge 19, a translation of, ‘I’ve still got more to learn’ is given as ‘Mae dal gen i fwy i ddysgu’. As there is no implication of possession, should it not be ‘Mae dal rhaid i mi ddysgu mwy’?
This came up in another recent thread, and since @Deborah-SSi explained it so well there, I’ve copied her answer -
If what comes straight after is an action, then it will be “rhaid i mi” - I’ve got to DO this action
If it’s not an action, but something that you have/possess, then it’s “mae gen i” - I have this thing
If you think about the example sentence you’ve given, what you have is a thing - “fwy” - “more”. It just happens that what you have more of is something that you have to do, but it could equally be more of something - e.g. “mae gen i fwy o afalau” - I have more apples. It’s a bit subtle and can take some thinking to get your head around it
Thank you for your reply. I see the point of ‘possession’ and ‘doing’ so maybe, ‘I’ve still got more to learn’ is just not the best choice of phrase for what we know implies ‘I must learn more’. I suppose I could possess ‘more’ but I can’t possess ‘more to learn’.
I suspect that SSiW used “have got” in a way to force us learners to become aware of the possible confusion (actually drove me crazy in the beginning!)
When in doubt, I substitute it with “must” and “there is/are” (o’r plain “have”) and see which one works.
In this case “I still must more to learn” doesn’t sound quite right.
While “there is still more/I still have more to learn” are alright.
But there IS implication of possession - ‘have got’ means precisely that.
I’ve got a packet of biscuits in the cupboard.
I haven’t got enough GK Welsh books yet
Mae dal gen i fwy i ddysgu - I’ve still got more to learn
Mae dal rhaid i mi ddysgu mwy - I’ve still got to learn more
‘I’ve still got more to learn’ is not possessive!
Even though the use of the word ‘got’ is somewhat awkward and redundant, the statement is about an action and not about ownership. Here are three statements: ‘I’ve still got more’, ‘I’ve still got the car’, ‘I’ve got a lawn’. All of these are about possession. If I add verbs, in each case, the point of the sentence is a following action: ‘I’ve got more to learn’. ‘I have got to clean the car’, ‘I have got to cut the lawn’. These statements are nothing to do with possession. If I say I have got to cut the lawn, I am saying that there is a lawn to be cut. Something that MUST be done. I may own the lawn but that is not the point of the sentence. Mae dal rhaid I mi!
Oh yes it is.
That is true, but you’ve missed the point, which is that there are two constructions in English:
I’ve got TO + verb, as in I’ve got to cut the lawn - obligation.
I’ve got + noun or similar, as in I’ve got a new car - possession.
I’ve got more to learn is exactly like I’ve got things to do or I’ve got an essay to finish - the to is not attached to the got, and all of these are possession.
I’ve got an essay to finish - possession
I’ve got to finish an essay - obligation
So just to confirm and summarise:
Mae dal gen i fwy i ddysgu
is correct (N) for I still have more to learn, while
I’ve still got to learn more is:
Mae dal rhaid i mi ddysgu mwy
Would it help to think of it as “I’ve got more [words/tenses/stuff to learn]” ? Maybe that shows the nominal nature more clearly, because what’s in the bracket is a noun phrase, where “to learn” is describing the words/tenses/stuff (it specifies it as stuff to learn, rather than stuff to forget) .