Essential English phrases

A hug — but a specific one, closer to a safe enclosing than a greeting. Also the cupboard under the stairs. The single most Welsh word in daily use, and there is no English equivalent, which is why nobody translates it.

Good, decent, satisfactory. 'A tidy job', 'a tidy few', 'tidy, mun'. Nothing to do with cleanliness. Probably the most-used word in Welsh English and the one newcomers misread most often.

Lovely. Applied to food, weather, houses and people, by all ages, constantly. In Cardiff it is not slang so much as the standard positive adjective.

Mate, and a sentence-final tag roughly like 'man'. More Valleys than Cardiff proper, but the Valleys commute into Cardiff every day, so you will hear both by the end of week one.

Expression of disgust — roughly 'ugh'. Used by Welsh speakers and non-speakers alike, and one of a handful of Welsh phrases that are simply part of Cardiff English.

Thank you. 'Diolch yn fawr' is thank you very much. You will hear it in shops and on buses from people who otherwise speak English, and using it is read as courtesy rather than pretension.

Good morning / good afternoon. Bore da in particular has crossed fully into Cardiff English and is used by people with no other Welsh at all.

Slow — painted on the road surface all over Wales. Every road sign, station name and public notice in Wales is bilingual by law, so a handful of road words are worth learning on day one.

Shortly — but not now. A calque of a Welsh construction that survived into English, and genuinely confusing: it means the thing will happen, without any commitment about when.

Where is it? Welsh English keeps the preposition on the end, and this construction is completely standard in Cardiff. Answering 'to the Bay' rather than 'in the Bay' is not a mistake.

What Wales calls a tenancy. Since 1 December 2022 the Renting Homes (Wales) Act replaced tenancies with occupation contracts and tenants with contract-holders. England's 2026 Renters' Rights Act does not apply in Wales — different law, different rights, different notice periods.

The local property tax, paid by the occupier and billed separately from rent. Wales has nine bands, A to I, based on 2003 property values — England has eight, based on 1991 values. A 'Band D' in Cardiff is not the same thing as a Band D in Bristol.

Police / hospital / school. This is what is written on the police car, the hospital sign and the school gate, usually above the English. Knowing three words saves a bad moment.

999 for a genuine emergency. NHS 111 Wales for urgent medical help that is not life-threatening — the Welsh service, run separately from England's. Both free from any phone, including a locked one.