At Home With Cornish 37

Here's some shape-shifting (mutation) practice.

Let's see what we can do with two feminine words:

edhen bird

gwedhen tree

Ma edhen en gwedhen. There's a bird in a tree.

Ma'n edhen e'n wedhen. The bird is in the tree.



 









To ask "What is there …?" or "What's (there) …?" you can use

Pandr'eus …?

Peth eus …?

Pandr'eus e'n …? What is there in the …?

Peth eus e'n …? What's in the …?

Pandr'eus e'n wedhen? What is there in the tree?

Peth eus e'n wedhen?  What's in the tree?

 












Ma cath e'n wedhen. There's a cat in the tree.

Ma'n gath e'n wedhen. The cat is in the tree.

(Possessives cause different mutations.)

Ma agan cath e'n wedhen. Our cat is in the tree.

Ma ow hath e'n wedhen. My cat is in the tree.

Now, let's imagine this is a rather strange tree with plenty of room!

Can you choose the correct word to go in the gap?

Ma bûgh e'n wedhen. There's a cow in the tree.

Ma'n ____ e'n wedhen. The cow is in the tree. (bûgh/vûgh/mûgh)


 
















Ma gaver en gwedhen. 

There's a goat in a tree.

Ma'n ____ e'n wedhen. 

The goat is in the tree. (gaver/aver/caver)


Ma margh e'n wedhen. There's a horse in the tree.

Ma'n _____ e'n wedhen. The horse is in the tree. (margh/vargh/bargh)

but plural horses:

Ma'n vergh e'n wedhen. The horses are in the tree.

 

Ma cador e'n wedhen. There's a chair in the tree.

Ma'n …. e'n wedhen. The chair is in the tree. (cador/gador/hador)

 

Ma davas e'n wedhen. There's a sheep in the tree.

Ma'n …. e'n wedhen. The sheep is in the tree. (davas/dhavas/tavas)

 

Ma kei e'n wedhen. There's a dog in the tree.

Ma'n …. e'n wedhen. The dog is in the tree. (kei/gei/hei)

but:

Ma y gei e'n wedhen. His dog is in the tree.

 

Ma lever e'n wedhen. There's a book in the tree.

Ma'n lever e'n wedhen. The book is in the tree.

 

Ma descadores e'n wedhen. There's a teacher in the tree.

Ma'n dhescadores e'n wedhen. The teacher is in the tree.

 

Adjectives can shape shift too, after feminine singular nouns (but not after masculine singular nouns):

Ma maw bian e'n wedhen. There's a small boy in the tree.

Ma mos (mowes) vian e'n wedhen. There's a little girl in the tree.

 

A noun used as an adjective doesn't mutate after a masculine noun (even if it is feminine itself).

Ma chei-gwedhen e'n wedhen. There's a tree-house in the tree.

 

We could also ask:

Pandr'eus e'n gegin? What is there in the kitchen?

Peth eus e'n gegin?  What's in the kitchen?

 

Ma banana e'n gegin. There's a banana in the kitchen.

Ma'n banana e'n gegin. The banana is in the kitchen.

Ma'n banana Gabriel e'n gegin. Gabriel's banana is in the kitchen.

Ma bord e'n gegin. There's a table in the kitchen.

 

Peth eus e'n gibel? What's in the bath?

Ma hos rubber e'n gibel. There's a rubber duck in the bath.

Ma'n hos rubber e'n gibel. The rubber duck is in the bath.

Ma davas en kibel. There's a sheep in a bath.

Ma'n dhavas e'n gibel. The sheep is in the bath.

 


















Or we could ask:

Pe le ma'n …? Where is the …?

 

Pe le ma'n gath? Where is the cat?

Pe le ma'n kei? Where's the dog?

 

Ma'n gath en gwedhen. The cat is in a tree.

Ma'n kei e'n lowarth. The dog is in the garden.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

At Home With Cornish 1

Image
 At Home With Cornish 1 Kernowek en Chei    This is a new course which aims to introduce children (and their wider families) to the Cornish language, a little at a time, building up a vocabulary based around familiar things and familiar activities. I want everyone to feel at home with speaking Cornish.    Don't worry that people sometimes argue about spelling or pronunciation. There are variations in Cornish, just as there are in English! It is all the same language. Don't let anyone tell you that what you are doing is wrong. Just enjoy yourself!  (I have given approximate pronunciations on the assumption that most people will not be familiar with the international phonetic alphabet.)    The main thing to remember about Cornish spelling is that when you see consonants "dh" together, they represent one sound, like “th” in English "this" and "that".     And remember that, when it comes to working, little and often is better than occas...
Read more

At Home With Cornish 65

Image
In At Home With Cornish 62 we looked at going somewhere and buying something: My eth dhe'n shoppys ha perna … I went to the shops and bought … e.g. My eth dhe'n shoppys ha perna avalow. I went to the shops and bought apples. To say what you bought, you can use (in simple past tense) My a bernas … I bought … e.g. My a bernas avalow. I bought apples. My a bernas avalow en shoppa. I bought apples in a shop. Here are some other outlets for things you can eat or drink. marhas (an varhas) gorvarhas erber marhas chei kiger chei pobas gwicor losow kegin chei a'n spicer chowster gwicor gwin e.g. My a bernas avalow en gwicor losow kegin. ...
Read more

At Home With Cornish 66

Image
We are still on the subject of shopping ... We know how to say “there is” and “there are”. We know how to say “I have” and “Do you have?” We know how to say “I want” and “I would like”. We know how to say “I went” and “I bought”. Let's look at some questions that might need answers. For “Is there any …?” or “Are there any …?” use “ Eus …? ” e.g. Eus avalow? Are there any apples? Eus keus? Is there any cheese? There is a traditional rhyme: Eus keus? Eus po nag eus? Is there any cheese? Is there or isn't there? Mars eus keus, dro keus. If there is cheese, bring cheese. Po nag eus keus, dro peth eus. If there isn't any cheese, bring what there is. (Gwenno has turned this into an amusing techno-pop song https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_U9yh6ivjc ) To ask where something is: “Pe le ma …?” or “Pe le ma'n …?” e.g. Pe le ma keus? Where is there any cheese? (general) Pe ...
Read more