Noun + Noun Compounds

Level 3

To make words like bookshop, put the main noun first and the describing noun second: siop lyfrau (a shop of books).

How It Works

Main noun first.

  • siop lyfrau — bookshop (shop + books)
  • tocyn trên — train ticket (ticket + train)
  • gwers Gymraeg — Welsh lesson
  • ystafell wely — bedroom (room + bed)
  • gorsaf drenau — train station
  • cân werin — folk song (song + folk)
  • bws ysgol — school bus

When the second noun softens. Only after a feminine singular noun, just like an adjective after a feminine noun:

  • siop (feminine) + llyfrau → siop lyfrau
  • ystafell (feminine) + gwely → ystafell wely
  • tocyn (masculine) + trên → tocyn trên (no change)

Plurals don't cause it. siopau llyfrau (bookshops), ystafelloedd gwely (bedrooms), gwersi Cymraeg (Welsh lessons).

With the article. The article goes on the first noun only: y siop lyfrau (the bookshop), yr orsaf drenau (the train station).

Compare possession. When the second noun is a particular owner, the phrase is a genitive instead, and the owner does not soften: siop Siân (Siân's shop), drws y tŷ (the door of the house).

Examples (6)

  1. Mae siop lyfrau newydd yn y dref.

    There's a new bookshop in town.

    Siop is feminine, so llyfrau softens to lyfrau.

  2. Mae gen i wers Gymraeg heno.

    I've got a Welsh lesson tonight.

    North. Gwers softens after gen i, and Cymraeg softens after the feminine noun gwers. In the South: Mae gwers Gymraeg gyda fi heno.

  3. Prynais i docyn trên.

    I bought a train ticket.

    Tocyn is masculine, so trên does not change. Tocyn itself softens because it is the object.

  4. Ble mae'r orsaf drenau?

    Where's the train station?

    Gorsaf is feminine: it softens after 'r, and trenau softens to drenau after it.

  5. Mae'r ystafell wely'n fach.

    The bedroom is small.

  6. Dyn ni'n dysgu cân werin.

    We're learning a folk song.

    Cân is feminine, so gwerin softens to werin. South: dyn ni. In the North: Dan ni'n dysgu cân werin.

Common Mistakes

  • Forgetting the soft mutation after a feminine noun.

    ystafell gwely
    ystafell wely

    Ystafell is feminine, so the noun after it softens.

  • Using English word order for "bookshop".

    llyfrau siop
    siop lyfrau

    The main noun comes first in Welsh; the describing noun follows.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Noun + Noun CompoundsLevel 3

Learn This First

A describing noun softens after a feminine noun and differs from the genitive.