ach-y-fi

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English

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Etymology

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Borrowed from Welsh ych a fi.

Interjection

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ach-y-fi

  1. Misspelling of ych a fi. Due to the conflating of unstressed a with the Welsh vowel y.
    • 1906, Anne Adalisa Beynon Puddicombe, “The 'Liliwen'”, in Queen of the Rushes, page 84:
      Ach-y-fi! there's something mean in that marrying again, to my mind. Whatever my faults are, I'd be faithful to the memory of my love.
    • 1950, Christianna Brand, Cat & Mouse, page 17:
      That's what my nurse used to say to me when I was a dirty little girl: 'Ach-y-fi'.

Welsh

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Pronunciation

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Interjection

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ach-y-fi

  1. Misspelling of ych a fi.
    • 1920, J. Lloyd Jones, Yr Hen Deiliwr, act 2, page 24:
      Odi hyna yn wir, Dafì? Falle’u bod nhw yn trin y tê yr un peth a’r moch. ’Drychwch ar Mistress, mae hi wedi dwlu’n deg ar y tê ’ma o China. Ach y fi! weda i tabeth.
      Is that true, Dafì? Maybe they treat the tea the same as the pigs. Look at Mistress, she really likes this tea from China. Yuck! I have to tell you.