bwrw

Welsh

Etymology

From Middle Welsh bwrw, from Proto-Brythonic *burɣid, from Proto-Celtic *borgīti (compare Old Irish ·díbairg (“throws”)), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰorǵʰ-éye-ti, an "eye"-causative form of *bʰerǵʰ- (“to rise up, elevate”).

Pronunciation

• (North Wales) IPA^(key): /ˈbʊrʊ/
• (South Wales) IPA^(key): /ˈbuːru/, /ˈbʊru/
• Rhymes: -ʊrʊ

Verb

bwrw (first-person singular present bwriaf)

1. To hit
2. To strike
3. To cast
4. To overthrow
5. (weather) To precipitate

   Mae hi'n bwrw glaw

   It's raining

   (literally, “It's casting rain”)

Conjugation

Conjugation (literary)

	singular			plural			impersonal
	first	second	third	first	second	third
present indicative/future	bwriaf	bwri	bwria	bwriwn	bwriwch	bwriant	bwrir
imperfect (indicative/subjunctive)/conditional	bwriwn	bwrit	bwriai	bwriem	bwriech	bwrient	bwrid
preterite	bwriais	bwriaist	bwriodd	bwriasom	bwriasoch	bwriasant	bwriwyd
pluperfect	bwriaswn	bwriasit	bwriasai	bwriasem	bwriasech	bwriasent	bwriasid, bwriesid
present subjunctive	bwriwyf	bwriech	bwrio	bwriom	bwrioch	bwriont	bwrier
imperative	—	bwra, bwria	bwried	bwriwn	bwriwch	bwrient	bwrier
verbal noun	bwrw
verbal adjectives	bwriedig —

Conjugation (colloquial)

Inflected colloquial forms	singular			plural
	first	second	third	first	second	third
future	bwria i, bwriaf i	bwri di	bwrith o/e/hi, bwriff e/hi	bwriwn ni	bwriwch chi	bwrian nhw
conditional	bwriwn i, bwriswn i	bwriet ti, bwriset ti	bwriai fo/fe/hi, bwrisai fo/fe/hi	bwrien ni, bwrisen ni	bwriech chi, bwrisech chi	bwrien nhw, bwrisen nhw
preterite	bwriais i, bwries i	bwriaist ti, bwriest ti	bwriodd o/e/hi	bwrion ni	bwrioch chi	bwrion nhw
imperative	—	bwria	—	—	bwriwch	—
Note: All other forms are periphrastic, as usual in colloquial Welsh.

Derived terms

• bwrw glaw (“to rain”)
• bwrw eira (“to snow”)
• bwrw cesair (“to hail”)
• bwrw ymlaen (“to press on, to keep going”)

Mutation

Welsh mutation
radical	soft	nasal	aspirate
bwrw	fwrw	mwrw	unchanged
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

References

• R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “bwrw”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies