Polish Grammar Basics For Beginners [Guide]

Learning Polish grammar may seem intimidating initially, but understanding its basic rules will make building sentences and using Polish words much easier. In this guide, you’ll learn the essential foundations: Polish sentence structure, grammatical cases, noun gender, verbs, verb conjugation, and pronouns. Let's begin!

Basic Polish Sentence Structures

Polish word order is flexible, but the default is Subject-Verb-Object (SVO). Because nouns and verbs carry endings that mark their grammatical role, you can rearrange sentence elements to shift emphasis without losing meaning.

In English, swapping “I eat an apple” to “An apple I eat” feels poetic or odd. In Polish, however, each word’s ending signals its function, so Jem jabłko (“I eat an apple”) and Jabłko jem (“It’s an apple that I eat”) are both perfectly natural—and the second puts extra focus on the object.

Why Polish Allows Word Order Flexibility

Polish word endings carry grammatical information that English expresses through position. This embedded information system allows speakers to rearrange elements for communicative purposes without losing clarity.

Word Order Variations and Their Effects:

Order Type	Example	Communicative Purpose	English Equivalent
Neutral SVO	Maria czyta książkę	Balanced information flow	Maria reads a book
Object fronting	Książkę czyta Maria	Emphasize WHAT is being read	It's a BOOK that Maria reads
Verb fronting	Czyta Maria książkę	Emphasize the ACTION	Maria IS READING a book
Subject emphasis	Maria książkę czyta	Contrast who does what	MARIA reads the book (not someone else)

This flexibility serves discourse management—guiding listeners' attention to the most important information while maintaining grammatical precision through case endings.

Pronoun Dropping

Polish verbs encode subject information in their endings, making pronouns redundant in most contexts. This reflects a fundamental difference in how Polish handles information density.

Verb Endings as Subject Markers:

Person/Number	Verb Form	Embedded Information	Pronoun Usage
1st singular	czytam	"I" is doing the action	ja usually dropped
2nd singular	czytasz	"you" is doing the action	ty for emphasis only
3rd singular	czyta	"he/she/it" is doing the action	on/ona/ono for clarity/emphasis
1st plural	czytamy	"we" is doing the action	my usually dropped
2nd plural	czytacie	"you all" is doing the action	wy for formality/emphasis
3rd plural	czytają	"they" is doing the action	oni/one for clarity/emphasis

Strategic Pronoun Usage:

Neutral: Czytam książkę. (I read a book)
Emphasis: JA czytam książkę. (I'M the one reading)
Contrast: Ja czytam, a ty piszesz. (I read, but you write)
Clarification: Czy ona czyta? (Is SHE reading? - when context unclear)

Polish Sentence Negation

Polish negation involves systematic grammatical changes beyond simply adding "nie." The language distinguishes between acting upon something (accusative case) and the absence of action (genitive case).

The Accusative → Genitive Transformation:

Positive Statement	Negative Statement	Case Change Logic
Czytam książkę (I read a book)	Nie czytam książki (I don't read a book)	Direct action → Absence of action
Mam czas (I have time)	Nie mam czasu (I don't have time)	Possession → Lack of possession
Pije kawę (I drink coffee)	Nie piję kawy (I don't drink coffee)	Consumption → Non-consumption
Znam tego człowieka (I know this person)	Nie znam tego człowieka (I don't know this person)	Familiarity → Unfamiliarity

Why Genitive After Negation? The genitive case fundamentally expresses "of/from/absence of" relationships. When you negate an action, Polish conceptually shifts from "acting upon X" to "having an absence of interaction with X." This isn't arbitrary—it reflects how Polish speakers conceptualize the difference between presence and absence of action.

Negation Structure Pattern:

Subject + nie + Verb + Object(genitive) + Additional elements

Polish Question Formation

Polish offers multiple question formation strategies, each suited to different contexts and formality levels.

System 1: Intonation Questions The simplest method uses rising intonation on declarative sentences:

Statement	Intonation Question	Context
Czytasz książkę.	Czytasz książkę? ↗	Casual conversation
Idziesz ze mną.	Idziesz ze mną? ↗	Informal checking
Rozumiesz po polsku.	Rozumiesz po polsku? ↗	Quick confirmation

System 2: "Czy" Questions Adding czy creates formal or written questions:

Direct Question	Czy Question	Formality Level
Lubisz kawę?	Czy lubisz kawę?	More formal/written
Będziesz jutro?	Czy będziesz jutro?	Polite inquiry
Rozumiesz?	Czy rozumiesz?	Clear interrogative signal

The particle czy functions as a grammatical question marker, similar to German "ob" or Russian "ли"—it signals interrogative mood without semantic content.

System 3: Information Questions (Wh-Questions) Question words appear initially, followed by verb-subject order:

Question Word	Function	Example	Answer Focus
kto?	who (animate)	Kto czyta książkę?	Person performing action
co?	what (inanimate)	Co czytasz?	Object or action
gdzie?	where (location)	Gdzie mieszkasz?	Place/location
kiedy?	when (time)	Kiedy przyjdziesz?	Time reference
dlaczego?	why (reason)	Dlaczego płaczesz?	Cause/motivation
jak?	how (manner)	Jak się uczysz?	Method/manner
ile?	how much/many	Ile kosztuje?	Quantity/amount

Information Question Structure:

Question Word + Verb + (Subject if needed) + Object + Additional elements

Gender in Polish Nouns

Understanding Grammatical Gender Logic

Polish assigns every noun to one of three grammatical genders—masculine, feminine, or neuter—plus two special plural categories. Unlike natural gender, grammatical gender operates as a classification system that affects every aspect of sentence construction.

Primary Gender Categories:

Gender	Typical Endings	Examples	Key Characteristics
Masculine	Consonants	dom (house), kot (cat), chłopak (boy)	Most animate beings, many objects
Feminine	-a, some consonants	kobieta (woman), książka (book), noc (night)	Many abstract concepts, most -a endings
Neuter	-o, -e, -ę	okno (window), dziecko (child), imię (name)	Often diminutives, young beings

Special Plural Distinctions: Polish makes a crucial distinction in plural forms:

• Masculine Personal (Virile): Groups containing at least one adult male human
• Non-Masculine Personal (Non-virile): Groups of women, children, animals, or objects

Group Type	Example	Plural Form	English
Men only	studenci	Masculine personal endings	(male) students
Mixed group	studenci	Masculine personal endings	students (mixed)
Women only	studentki	Non-masculine personal endings	(female) students
Objects	stoły	Non-masculine personal endings	tables

Gender Prediction System

Polish gender follows predictable patterns with approximately 95% accuracy:

Masculine Gender Indicators:

Consonant endings: dom, kot, stół, samochód
-acz endings: tłumacz (translator), gracz (player)
-arz endings: lekarz (doctor), malarz (painter)
-ek endings: piesek (doggy), domek (little house)

Feminine Gender Indicators:

-a endings: mama, kawa, szkoła, praca
-ość endings: miłość (love), radość (joy), mądrość (wisdom)
-ć endings: noc (night), pomoc (help), rzecz (thing)
-ż/-sz endings: młodzież (youth), twarz (face)

Neuter Gender Indicators:

-o endings: dziecko, mleko, miasto, radio
-e endings: pole (field), serce (heart), morze (sea)
-ę endings: imię (name), zwierzę (animal), cielę (calf)
-um endings: muzeum, centrum, forum

Important Exceptions to Learn:

Word	Ending Suggests	Actual Gender	Reason
mężczyzna	Feminine (-a)	Masculine	Refers to man
tata	Feminine (-a)	Masculine	Refers to dad
mysz	Masculine (consonant)	Feminine	Historical development
gość	Feminine (-ść)	Masculine	Refers to guest (person)

Why Gender Matters

Gender governs agreement patterns throughout Polish grammar:

Adjective Agreement: All adjectives must match their noun's gender, number, and case:

Gender	Nominative	Accusative	Genitive	English
Masculine	duży dom	duży dom	dużego domu	big house
Feminine	duża książka	dużą książkę	dużej książki	big book
Neuter	duże okno	duże okno	dużego okna	big window

Past Tense Verb Agreement: Polish past tense verbs change endings based on the subject's gender:

Subject	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	English
Singular	Tomek czytał	Anna czytała	Dziecko czytało	read (past)
Plural Personal	Studenci czytali	Studentki czytały	—	read (past)

Pronoun and Demonstrative Agreement:

Gender	Possessive	Demonstrative	Example
Masculine	mój	ten	mój duży dom / ten dom
Feminine	moja	ta	moja duża książka / ta książka
Neuter	moje	to	moje duże okno / to okno

Seven Polish Cases

Understanding the Case Logic

Polish cases replace the grammatical work that English does through word order and prepositions. Each case answers specific questions and serves distinct communicative functions. Learning the questions each case answers provides the fastest path to correct usage.

Complete Case Overview:

Case	Questions	Primary Functions	Frequency
Nominative	kto? co? (who? what?)	Subject, dictionary form	25%
Genitive	kogo? czego? (of whom? of what?)	Possession, negation, quantity	30%
Dative	komu? czemu? (to whom? to what?)	Indirect object, recipient	8%
Accusative	kogo? co? (whom? what?)	Direct object	20%
Instrumental	kim? czym? (with whom? with what?)	Means, accompaniment	10%
Locative	o kim? o czym? (about whom? about what?)	Location, topic	6%
Vocative	—	Direct address	1%

Nominative Case

The nominative case serves as the basic form—what you find in dictionaries and use for sentence subjects.

Core Functions:

1. Subject of sentences: Kot śpi (The cat sleeps)
2. Predicate nominative: On jest lekarzem (He is a doctor)
3. Dictionary/citation form: Base for all other cases

Nominative Forms by Gender:

Gender	Singular Examples	Plural Examples
Masculine	dom, kot, student	domy, koty, studenci
Feminine	mama, książka, noc	mamy, książki, noce
Neuter	okno, dziecko, imię	okna, dzieci, imiona

Usage Patterns:

Subject identification: Kto to robi? (Who does this?)
→ Student to robi. (A student does this.)

Predicate nominative: Kim jest twój brat? (Who is your brother?)
→ Mój brat jest lekarzem. (My brother is a doctor.)

Genitive Case

Genitive is Polish's most versatile case, handling possession, negation, quantities, and numerous other functions.

Primary Functions:

1. Possession and Belonging:

Possessor	Example	English
Person	dom Marii	Maria's house
Abstract	koniec filmu	end of the movie
Part-whole	dach domu	roof of the house

2. Negation (Accusative → Genitive):

Positive (Accusative)	Negative (Genitive)	Logic
Mam czas	Nie mam czasu	Possession → Absence
Piję kawę	Nie piję kawy	Consumption → Non-consumption
Znam język	Nie znam języka	Knowledge → Ignorance

3. Quantities and Numbers:

Quantity Type	Example	Pattern
Numbers 5+	pięć kotów	Number + Genitive plural
Much/many	dużo ludzi	Quantity word + Genitive
Little/few	mało czasu	Quantity word + Genitive

4. After Specific Verbs:

Verb	Example	English
słuchać	słuchać muzyki	listen to music
używać	używać komputera	use a computer
szukać	szukać pracy	look for work
uczyć się	uczyć się polskiego	learn Polish

Genitive Endings:

Gender	Singular	Plural	Examples
Masculine Animate	-a	-ów	kota, kotów
Masculine Inanimate	-u	-ów/-y/-i	domu, domów
Feminine	-y/-i	-∅/-y/-i	mamy, mam
Neuter	-a	-∅	okna, okien

Dative Case

Dative marks the recipient or beneficiary of an action—the "to whom" or "for whom" case.

Core Functions:

1. Indirect Objects:

Action	Direct Object	Indirect Object	Full Sentence
Give	prezent (gift)	mamie (to mom)	Daję prezent mamie
Send	list (letter)	przyjacielowi (to friend)	Wysyłam list przyjacielowi
Tell	historię (story)	dziecku (to child)	Opowiadam historię dziecku

2. With Specific Verbs:

Verb	Meaning	Example	English
pomagać	to help	Pomagam bratu	I help my brother
dziękować	to thank	Dziękuję panu	I thank you (formal)
ufać	to trust	Ufam przyjaciołom	I trust my friends
szkodzić	to harm	Palenie szkodzi zdrowiu	Smoking harms health

Dative Endings:

Gender	Singular	Plural	Examples
Masculine/Neuter	-owi/-u	-om	bratu, braciom
Feminine	-e/-i	-om	mamie, mamom

Accusative Case

Accusative marks the direct object—what or whom the action directly affects.

Key Functions:

1. Direct Objects:

Subject	Verb	Direct Object	English
Ja	czytam	książkę	I read a book
Maria	kupuje	chleb	Maria buys bread
Dzieci	oglądają	film	Children watch a movie

2. Time Expressions:

Duration	Example	English
całą noc	Pracowałem całą noc	I worked all night
tydzień	Uczyłem się tydzień	I studied for a week

3. Motion Direction:

Preposition	Example	English
na	Idę na uniwersytet	I go to university
przez	Przechodzę przez park	I walk through the park

Accusative Endings:

Gender	Singular	Plural	Pattern
Masculine Animate	-a (= genitive)	-ów (= genitive)	kota, kotów
Masculine Inanimate	-∅ (= nominative)	-y/-e (= nominative)	dom, domy
Feminine	-ę	-y/-e	mamę, mamy
Neuter	-∅ (= nominative)	-a (= nominative)	okno, okna

Instrumental Case

Instrumental expresses "with what," "by means of," or "how" something is done.

Primary Functions:

1. Tools and Instruments:

Tool	Action	Example	English
długopisem	writing	Piszę długopisem	I write with a pen
nożem	cutting	Krajemy nożem	We cut with a knife
samochodem	traveling	Jadę samochodem	I go by car

2. Accompaniment:

Companion	Example	English
z przyjacielem	Idę z przyjacielem	I go with a friend
z rodziną	Mieszkam z rodziną	I live with family

3. Time Expressions:

Time Period	Example	English
nocą	Pracuję nocą	I work at night
latem	Podróżuję latem	I travel in summer

4. Predicate Instrumental (with "być"):

Identity/Role	Example	English
lekarzem	Jest lekarzem	He is a doctor
studentką	Była studentką	She was a student

Instrumental Endings:

Gender	Singular	Plural	Examples
Masculine/Neuter	-em	-ami	kotem, kotami
Feminine	-ą	-ami	mamą, mamami

Locative Case

Locative never appears without prepositions and expresses location or topics of discussion.

Required Prepositions:

Preposition	Usage	Example	English
w	location in	w domu	in the house
na	location on	na stole	on the table
o	about/concerning	o książce	about the book
po	after/around	po lekcji	after the lesson

Functions:

1. Physical Location:

Location Type	Example	English
Inside	Mieszkam w Warszawie	I live in Warsaw
On surface	Książka leży na stole	The book lies on the table
At place	Jestem w szkole	I am at school

2. Topics of Discussion:

Topic	Example	English
o filmie	Mówimy o filmie	We talk about the movie
o pracy	Myślę o pracy	I think about work

Locative Endings:

Gender	Singular	Plural	Examples
Masculine/Neuter	-e/-u	-ach	domu, domach
Feminine	-e/-i	-ach	mamie, mamach

Vocative Case

Vocative appears only when directly addressing someone or something.

Usage Patterns:

Addressee	Vocative Form	Example	English
Names	Aniu!	Aniu, chodź tutaj!	Anna, come here!
Titles	Panie doktorze!	Panie doktorze, proszę!	Doctor, please!
Family	Mamo!	Mamo, gdzie jesteś?	Mom, where are you?

Formation Rules:

• Masculine: Usually add -e or -u: Tomek → Tomku, pan → panie
• Feminine: Often same as nominative: Anna → Aniu, mama → mamo
• Formal address: Pan/Pani + title: Panie profesorze!

Polish Verb System: Tense and Aspect

Understanding Aspect

Polish verbs operate on an aspect system that English lacks. Every Polish verb belongs to one of two aspects:

• Imperfective (Niedokonany): Ongoing, repeated, or habitual actions
• Perfective (Dokonany): Completed, one-time, or result-focused actions

This distinction affects how Polish speakers conceptualize and express actions in time.

Aspect Pairs:

Imperfective	Perfective	Core Meaning
pisać	napisać	to write / to write (and finish)
czytać	przeczytać	to read / to read (completely)
robić	zrobić	to do / to get done
uczyć się	nauczyć się	to study / to learn (master)
kupować	kupić	to buy (repeatedly) / to buy (once)

Present Tense: Imperfective Only

Polish present tense uses only imperfective verbs, expressing current actions, habits, or general truths.

Conjugation Patterns:

Pattern 1: -ę, -esz, -e, -emy, -ecie, -ą

Person	pisać (to write)	czytać (to read)
ja	piszę	czytam
ty	piszesz	czytasz
on/ona/ono	pisze	czyta
my	piszemy	czytamy
wy	piszecie	czytacie
oni/one	piszą	czytają

Pattern 2: -m, -sz, -∅, -my, -cie, -ją

Person	umieć (to know how)	rozumieć (to understand)
ja	umiem	rozumiem
ty	umiesz	rozumiesz
on/ona/ono	umie	rozumie
my	umiemy	rozumiemy
wy	umiecie	rozumiecie
oni/one	umieją	rozumieją

Past Tense: Gender-Sensitive Forms

Polish past tense is formed with past participles that agree with the subject's gender and number.

Formation Pattern: Infinitive stem + -ł- + gender/number ending

Past Tense Endings:

Subject	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Examples
ja	-łem	-łam	—	czytałem/czytałam
ty	-łeś	-łaś	—	czytałeś/czytałaś
on	-ł	—	—	czytał
ona	—	-ła	—	czytała
ono	—	—	-ło	czytało
my	-liśmy	-łyśmy	—	czytaliśmy/czytałyśmy
wy	-liście	-łyście	—	czytaliście/czytałyście
oni	-li	—	—	czytali
one	—	-ły	—	czytały

Aspect in Past Tense:

Aspect	Example	Meaning	Context
Imperfective	Wczoraj czytałem książkę	Yesterday I was reading a book	Ongoing past action
Perfective	Wczoraj przeczytałem książkę	Yesterday I read (finished) a book	Completed past action

Future Tense: Simple vs. Compound

Polish forms future tense differently based on aspect:

Perfective Future (Simple): Perfective verbs conjugate like present tense but express future meaning:

Person	napisać (to write and finish)	przeczytać (to read completely)
ja	napiszę	przeczytam
ty	napiszesz	przeczytasz
on/ona/ono	napisze	przeczyta

Imperfective Future (Compound): Uses future forms of być (to be) + infinitive or past participle:

Person	Future of być	+ Infinitive	+ Past Participle
ja	będę	będę pisać	będę pisał/pisała
ty	będziesz	będziesz pisać	będziesz pisał/pisała
on/ona/ono	będzie	będzie pisać	będzie pisał/pisała/pisało

Future Aspect Contrast:

Sentence	Aspect	Meaning
Jutro napiszę list	Perfective	Tomorrow I will write (and finish) a letter
Jutro będę pisać list	Imperfective	Tomorrow I will be writing a letter

Polish Pronouns

Personal Pronouns: Full Declension

Polish pronouns decline through all cases like nouns, but with irregular patterns that must be memorized.

Complete Personal Pronoun Declension:

Case	1st Sing	2nd Sing	3rd Masc	3rd Fem	3rd Neut	1st Plur	2nd Plur	3rd Plur
Nom	ja	ty	on	ona	ono	my	wy	oni/one
Gen	mnie	ciebie	jego/go	jej	jego/go	nas	was	ich
Dat	mi/mnie	ci/tobie	jemu/mu	jej	jemu/mu	nam	wam	im
Acc	mnie	ciebie/cię	jego/go	ją	jego/go	nas	was	ich
Ins	mną	tobą	nim	nią	nim	nami	wami	nimi
Loc	(o) mnie	(o) tobie	(o) nim	(o) niej	(o) nim	(o) nas	(o) was	(o) nich

Short vs. Long Forms: Polish offers short (clitic) and long (stressed) pronoun forms in several cases:

Case	Short Form	Long Form	Usage
Dative	mi	mnie	Daj mi vs. Mnie daj (emphasis)
Dative	ci	tobie	Dam ci vs. Tobie dam (emphasis)
Accusative	cię	ciebie	Widzę cię vs. Ciebie widzę (emphasis)
Genitive/Accusative	go	jego	Znam go vs. Jego znam (emphasis)

Usage Rules:

• Short forms: Used after verbs in neutral contexts
• Long forms: Used for emphasis, after prepositions, or sentence-initially

Possessive Pronouns: Agreement System

Possessive pronouns agree with the possessed noun (not the possessor) in gender, number, and case.

Basic Possessive Forms:

Owner	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural	English
ja	mój	moja	moje	moi/moje	my
ty	twój	twoja	twoje	twoi/twoje	your
on	jego	jego	jego	jego	his
ona	jej	jej	jej	jej	her
ono	jego	jego	jego	jego	its
my	nasz	nasza	nasze	nasi/nasze	our
wy	wasz	wasza	wasze	wasi/wasze	your (plural)
oni/one	ich	ich	ich	ich	their

Possessive Declension Example (mój - "my"):

Case	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural Masc Personal	Plural Non-Masc Personal
Nom	mój	moja	moje	moi	moje
Gen	mojego	mojej	mojego	moich	moich
Dat	mojemu	mojej	mojemu	moim	moim
Acc	mojego/mój	moją	moje	moich	moje
Ins	moim	moją	moim	moimi	moimi
Loc	(o) moim	(o) mojej	(o) moim	(o) moich	(o) moich

Key Pattern: Third-person possessives (jego, jej, ich) never change form, while first and second person possessives (mój, twój, nasz, wasz) decline like adjectives.

Demonstrative Pronouns: Pointing and Reference

Demonstrative pronouns indicate proximity and decline like adjectives.

Primary Demonstratives:

Distance	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural	English
Near	ten	ta	to	ci/te	this/these
Far	tamten	tamta	tamto	tamci/tamte	that/those

Demonstrative Declension (ten - "this"):

Case	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	Plural Masc Personal	Plural Non-Masc Personal
Nom	ten	ta	to	ci	te
Gen	tego	tej	tego	tych	tych
Dat	temu	tej	temu	tym	tym
Acc	tego/ten	tę	to	tych	te
Ins	tym	tą	tym	tymi	tymi
Loc	(o) tym	(o) tej	(o) tym	(o) tych	(o) tych

Reflexive Pronouns: Self-Reference

Polish uses się as a universal reflexive pronoun for all persons and numbers.

Reflexive Declension:

Case	Form	Example	English
Accusative	się	Myję się	I wash myself
Genitive	siebie	Mówisz o sobie	You talk about yourself
Dative	sobie	Kupuję sobie książkę	I buy myself a book
Instrumental	sobą	Jestem zadowolony z siebie	I'm satisfied with myself
Locative	(o) sobie	Myślę o sobie	I think about myself

Reflexive Usage Patterns:

Personal hygiene: Myję się, golę się (I wash, I shave)
Reciprocal actions: Kochamy się (We love each other)
Emotional states: Cieszę się (I'm happy)
Movement: Idę się przejść (I'm going for a walk)

Advanced Grammar Integration

Numbers and Quantification: Complex Agreement

Polish numbers create complex agreement patterns that vary by quantity ranges.

Number Agreement System:

Number Range	Noun Form	Verb Agreement	Example
1	Nominative singular	Singular	Jeden kot śpi
2-4	Nominative plural	Plural	Dwa koty śpią
5-21, 25-31, etc.	Genitive plural	Singular (neuter)	Pięć kotów śpi
22-24, 32-34, etc.	Nominative plural	Plural	Dwadzieścia dwa koty śpią

Cardinal Numbers 1-20:

Number	Polish	With Masculine	With Feminine	With Neuter
1	jeden/jedna/jedno	jeden student	jedna studentka	jedno dziecko
2	dwa/dwie	dwaj studenci	dwie studentki	dwoje dzieci
3	trzej/trzy	trzej studenci	trzy studentki	troje dzieci
4	czterej/cztery	czterej studenci	cztery studentki	czworo dzieci
5	pięć	pięciu studentów	pięć studentek	pięcioro dzieci

Ordinal Numbers: Ordinal numbers behave like adjectives and agree in gender, number, and case:

Number	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter	English
1st	pierwszy	pierwsza	pierwsze	first
2nd	drugi	druga	drugie	second
3rd	trzeci	trzecia	trzecie	third

Comparative and Superlative: Degree Systems

Polish forms comparatives and superlatives through morphological changes and analytical constructions.

Comparative Formation:

Pattern	Example	Comparative	English
-szy/-sza/-sze	młody	młodszy	younger
-ejszy/-ejsza/-ejsze	duży	większy	bigger
Irregular	dobry	lepszy	better
Analytical	interesujący	bardziej interesujący	more interesting

Superlative Formation: Add naj- prefix to comparative forms:

Adjective	Comparative	Superlative	English
młody	młodszy	najmłodszy	youngest
duży	większy	największy	biggest
dobry	lepszy	najlepszy	best

Comparison Constructions:

Type	Polish Structure	Example	English
Equality	tak... jak	Jestem tak wysoki jak ty	I'm as tall as you
Superiority	-szy niż	Jestem wyższy niż ty	I'm taller than you
Inferiority	mniej... niż	Jestem mniej wysoki niż ty	I'm less tall than you

Advanced Verb Constructions

Modal Verbs: Polish modal verbs combine with infinitives to express ability, permission, or necessity:

Modal	Meaning	Example	English
móc	can/may	Mogę iść	I can go
musieć	must	Muszę pracować	I must work
chcieć	want	Chcę się uczyć	I want to learn
potrafić	know how	Potrafię pływać	I know how to swim

Conditional Mood: Formed with past tense + by particle:

Person	Conditional	Example	English
ja	czytałbym/czytałabym	Czytałbym tę książkę	I would read this book
ty	czytałbyś/czytałabyś	Czytałbyś więcej	You would read more
on/ona	czytałby/czytałaby	Ona czytałaby wieczorem	She would read in the evening

Imperative Mood: Commands and requests use specific imperative forms:

Type	Formation	Example	English
2nd singular	Stem + -j/-∅	Czytaj!	Read!
2nd plural	Singular + -cie	Czytajcie!	Read! (you all)
1st plural	-my ending	Czytajmy!	Let's read!

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