The Welsh word moron, which means carrots, is an example of a false friend (cyfaill anwir?). The word for carrot is moronen, one of a small group of Welsh words that become shorter in the plural. Confusingly, the English word moron, which comes from the Greek for ‘foolish, dull’, has been borrowed into Welsh and has the same meaning.

Here are a few more Welsh/English false friends that I’ve noticed recently. Some look the same as English words, but are pronounced differently, so are only false friends in writing.

pan = when (pan is padell)

pant = hollow (to pant is dyhefod)

dim = nothing (dim is pŵl or aneglur)

mud = mute (mud is mwd)

hurt = silly (hurt is dolur (n) or dolurio (vb))

hen = old (hen is iâr)

brain = crows (brain is ymennydd)

nod = aim (nod is amnaid (n) or amneidio (vb))