welsh

¹

[ welsh, welch ]

verb (used without object)

, Informal: Sometimes Offensive.

1. to cheat by failing to pay a gambling debt:

   You aren't going to welsh on me, are you?

2. to go back on one's word:

   He welshed on his promise to help in the campaign.

Welsh

²

[ welsh, welch ]

adjective

1. of or relating to Wales, its people, or their language.

noun

1. the inhabitants of Wales and their descendants elsewhere.
2. Also called Cymric,. the Celtic language of Wales.
3. one of a white, lop-eared breed of swine of Welsh origin that produces a large amount of lean meat.

Welsh

¹

/ wɛlʃ /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of Wales, its people, their Celtic language, or their dialect of English

noun

1. a language of Wales, belonging to the S Celtic branch of the Indo-European family. Welsh shows considerable diversity between dialects
2. the Welsh
   functioning as plural the natives or inhabitants of Wales collectively

welsh

²

/ wɛlʃ /

verb

1. to fail to pay a gambling debt
2. to fail to fulfil an obligation

Welsh

³

/ wɛlʃ /

noun

1. a white long-bodied lop-eared breed of pig, kept chiefly for bacon

Sensitive Note

The verb welsh and the noun welsher are sometimes perceived as insulting to or by the Welsh, the people of Wales. While the actual origin of these words may have nothing to do with Wales or its people, it is better to avoid any expressions linked to a negative stereotype that may have historically disparaged an ethnic or national group.

Derived Forms

• ˈwelsher, noun

Other Words From

• welsh·er noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of welsh¹

First recorded in 1855–60; perhaps special use of Welsh

Origin of welsh²

Before 900; Middle English Welische, Old English Welisc, derivative of Walh “Briton, foreigner” (compare Latin Volcae a Gallic tribe); cognate with German welsch “foreign, Italian”

Word History and Origins

Origin of welsh¹

Old English Wēlisc, Wǣlisc; related to wealh foreigner, Old High German walahisc (German welsch ), Old Norse valskr, Latin Volcae

Origin of welsh²

C19: of unknown origin

Example Sentences

We were also connected to the Edwards family, descendants of a Welsh pirate and, arguably, the owners of a few dozen acres of land in lower Manhattan they would certainly never get back.

From Time

Tishani Doshi is a Welsh-Gujarati poet, novelist, and dancer.

From MIT Technology Review

This farm, set in the majestic green Welsh hills, turned out to the inspiration they needed.

From The Daily Beast

Later, Welsh would help build Ruffle, a Flash emulator that can be downloaded as a desktop application or a browser extension.

From Washington Post

As a study by the Welsh government points out, trading two weeks of viral increase for two weeks of viral “decay” could put the pandemic back by 28 days or more.

From Time

We have Matthew Rhys from The Americans as a Welsh separatist.

From The Daily Beast

The royal couple then traveled on to the Welsh capital of Cardiff to watch a rugby match between Wales and Australia.

From The Daily Beast

In 1984, a group of lesbian and gay activists joined forces with striking UK miners to help local Welsh communities.

From The Daily Beast

“Ab Welsh, who was a forward with the Saskatoon Quakers was the first one,” Howe said.

From The Daily Beast

He'll be played by Grahame Fox, a journeyman Welsh actor who's appeared on the U.K. soap EastEnders and the TV series Casualty.

From The Daily Beast

The cross-head, side rods, and boiler were very similar to the Welsh stationary engines of that date.

From Project Gutenberg

He perceived that they had lived long enough in retirement in the little Welsh village to have acquired a pride in its legend.

From Project Gutenberg

He pointed out however that the average height of the Yugo-Slavs exceeded that of the Welsh.

From Project Gutenberg

There is every indication that the city was burned and plundered by the wild Welsh tribes sixteen hundred or more years ago.

From Project Gutenberg

The weather was glorious and no section of Britain surpassed the Welsh landscapes in beauty.

From Project Gutenberg