w and y as Vowels

Level 1

W and y are usually vowels in Welsh. W is an oo sound, as in cwm (valley), and y changes its sound depending on where it sits in the word.

How It Works

W as a vowel. Most of the time w is the oo sound. It is short, like the oo in "book", in cwm (valley) and bws (bus). It is long, like the oo in "moon", in dŵr (water). The little roof on ŵ marks the long sound; see the to bach.

W can also be a consonant, like English w, as in wedi (after) and gwlad (country).

Y has two main sounds.

  • In a word's final syllable, and in most one-syllable words, y is a clear vowel: dyn (man), llyn (lake), tŷ (house). Its exact sound depends on the region; see U and Y in North and South Wales.
  • In any syllable before the last, y is a short "uh" sound, like the a in "about": the first y in mynydd (mountain), the y in Cymru (Wales).

The sound of y can change when a word grows. In llyfr (book) the y is clear, but in llyfrau (books) it is no longer in the last syllable, so it becomes "uh".

Little words like y (the), yr, yn and fy (my) always use the "uh" sound, even though they are one syllable.

Examples (6)

  1. Mae'r dŵr yn oer.

    The water is cold.

    Ŵ in dŵr is a long oo sound.

  2. Dw i'n byw mewn cwm.

    I live in a valley.

    W in cwm is a short oo sound, as in "book".

  3. Mae'r dyn yn dal.

    The man is tall.

    Dyn has one syllable, so its y is the clear sound; the little word yn uses "uh".

  4. Mae'r mynydd yn uchel.

    The mountain is high.

    The first y in mynydd is "uh"; the second y, in the last syllable, is clear.

  5. Mae'r bws yma.

    The bus is here.

    W in bws is the oo sound.

  6. Croeso i Gymru!

    Welcome to Wales!

    The y in Gymru is "uh" because it is not in the last syllable. Cymru becomes Gymru after i (to).

How It Connects

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

w and y as VowelsLevel 1

Learn This First

Recognising w and y as vowel letters starts from the alphabet.