Language/Polish/Grammar/Questions-and-Negations

Polish → Grammar → 0 to A1 Course → Basic Sentence Structure → Questions and Negations

As a Polish language teacher with over 20 years of experience, I have found that many beginners struggle with forming questions and negations in Polish. In this lesson, I will provide an overview of the basic sentence structure in Polish, with a focus on forming questions and negations.

Take some time to dive into these other pages after completing this lesson: Comparative and Superlative & Give your Opinion.

Basic Sentence Structure

Polish follows a subject-verb-object (SVO) word order, just like English. However, there are some subtle differences that are worth noting. For example, in Polish, the subject can often be omitted if it is clear from context.

Here is an example of a basic sentence structure in Polish:

Polish	Pronunciation	English
Ja	yah	I
lubię	loo-byeh	like
Pana	pah-nah	you (formal)
kawę.	kah-veh	coffee.

English translation: I like your coffee.

In this example, "Ja" is the subject, "lubię" is the verb, "Pana" is the object, and "kawę" is the direct object.

Forming Questions

To form a question in Polish, there are a few different things to consider. First, you will need to use a question word, such as "kto" (who), "co" (what), "gdzie" (where), "kiedy" (when), "jak" (how), or "dlaczego" (why). Second, you will need to invert the word order, so that the verb comes before the subject.

Here is an example of a question in Polish:

Polish	Pronunciation	English
Czy	che	Do
Pan	pahn	you (formal)
lubi	loo-bee	like
kawę?	kah-veh	coffee?

English translation: Do you like coffee?

In this example, "czy" is a particle that introduces the question, and "Pan" is the subject, followed by the verb "lubi" and the object "kawę".

Notice that the word "czy" is optional in Polish. Some speakers prefer to use it to make the sentence sound more formal or polite, while others prefer to omit it as unnecessary.

Negations

To form a negative sentence in Polish, you will need to use the negative particle "nie" before the verb.

Here is an example of a negative sentence in Polish:

Polish	Pronunciation	English
Nie	nyeh	Not
lubię	loo-byeh	like
herbatę.	heh-rah-beh-teh	tea.

English translation: I do not like tea.

In this example, "nie" is the negative particle that precedes the verb "lubię".

To form a negative question, simply combine the two forms. Here is an example:

Polish	Pronunciation	English
Czy	che	Do
nie	nyeh	not
lubisz	loo-beesh	like (you)
herbatę?	heh-rah-beh-teh	tea?

English translation: Don't you like tea?

In this example, "Czy" is the question word, followed by the negative particle "nie", then the verb "lubisz", and the object "herbatę".

Keep in mind that in Polish, the negative particle "nie" is always placed immediately before the verb it negates.

Conclusion

Forming questions and negations in Polish may seem daunting at first, but with practice, it will become more natural. Remember to use question words and invert the word order to form questions, and to use the negative particle "nie" before the verb to form negations.

In the next lesson, we will explore numbers and time in Polish. Stay tuned!

Congratulations on finishing this lesson! Explore these related pages to keep learning: Past Participle in Polish & Nominative Case.

Table of Contents - Polish Course - 0 to A1

• Course Presentation

  ---

Alphabet and Pronunciation

• Polish Alphabet
• Pronunciation Rules

  ---

Greetings and Introductions

• Basic Greetings
• Introducing Yourself

  ---

Basic Sentence Structure

• Subject-Verb-Object
• Questions and Negations

  ---

Numbers and Time

• Numbers 1-100
• Telling Time

  ---

Nouns and Articles

• Noun Gender
• Definite and Indefinite Articles

  ---

Family and Relationships

• Family Members
• Relationship Status

  ---

Adjectives and Adverbs

• Adjective Agreement
• Comparative and Superlative

  ---

Food and Dining

• Common Foods
• Eating Out

  ---

Verbs and Tenses

• Present Tense
• Past Tense

  ---

Travel and Transportation

• Modes of Transportation
• Travel Phrases

  ---

Polish Customs and Traditions

• Holidays and Celebrations
• Polish Cuisine

Other Lessons

• Perfective and imperfective verbs
• mieć to have
• być to be
• Future and Conditional Tenses
• How to Use Have
• Personal pronouns
• Be Polite
• Basic Sentence Structure
• How to Use Be
• Definite Articles in Polish

Sources

• Polish Negation: Learn How to Form Negative Sentences
• Polish Cases: The Genitive (dopełniacz) | Mówić po polsku
• grammar - why in Polish we change ją to jej when negating the ...