Language / Accusative Case [44]

Some words are masculine, some are neuter, some are feminine. You just have to learn the gender when you learn the new word. There is no real logic as to why a word is one gender or not. Having said that, most of the time you will get a feel for the gender of a word from its ending.

For example lots of words ending in a hard sound (e.g. materiał, saxofon) are masculine. Most words ending in -a are feminine (e.g. praca, kobieta). Lots of latin looking words like muzeum are neuter, as are ones with -ie (like ubranie or zdjęcie).

Yes Krzysztof's answer was much better than mine - the case is determined by the verb or the preposition used in the sentence.

You need to change the case of the noun and the adjective to fit the sentence, and that is determined by the verb in your exercise.

For example E1:
Verb is oglądać which takes accusative. The object of this verb is your "stara fotografia", hence this object changes to accusative as you have done correctly.

E2: The verb is to have, mieć. Like in English (I have my key) the object changes to accusative. Mój klucz does not remain in the nominative. So your object is masc/inaminate accusative (which looks like the nominative though):

Czy masz mój klucz?

E3: Same as E2, but this time you have masc/anim acc.

Language / Accusative Case [44]

it's because Kowalski is an adjective as has been said, where as Nowak is treated as a noun, hence Nowaka in example 2.

Examples 3 and 4 you have Anna -> Annę (noun fem acc) and Lewińska is an adjective hence Lewińską (adj fem acc).

powieść is feminine.
But to answer your question anyway, any adjectives used have to agree with the noun.

Language / Kasia and Zosia pronounce [17]

Sure - one is a "sh" with a pout, the other is a "sh" with a smile. I just have trouble remembering which is which so tend not to do either (which is probably why I sound like Kevin Aiston when I speak Polish).

Life / A married impediment certificate - where to get it from? [10]

welcome to the world of Polish bureacracy....

UK, Ireland / Taking a UK-registered car to Poland [35]

jeez, I see you need some convincing. If you like reading then how about the House of Lords's website:

publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld199798/ldjudgmt/jd981022/clarke02.htm

Or even better, the European Commission website:

eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:31972L0166:EN:NOT

Just looking in my old car policy the small print says:

"Continental Use/Compulsory Insurance Requirements

In compliance with EU Directives this policy provides as a minimum the necessary cover to comply with the laws on compulsory insurance of motor vehicles in:

* any country which is a member of the European Union
* any country which the Comission of the European Communities is satisfied has made arrangeemtns to meet the requirements of Article 7 [2] of EC Directive 72/166/CE relating to civil liabilities arising from the use of a motor vehicle"

I don't see what more proof you want than that....

UK, Ireland / Taking a UK-registered car to Poland [35]

Now I have had some more time have just found the law I was talking about - it's the EU Motor Insurance Law first directive:

"all motor insurance policies bought in Europe would include minimum requirements in all EU countries"

insureyourmotor.com/car-insurance-20/laws-21/21.htm

"...in the EU your car insurance policy will automatically provide, at no extra cost, the minimum cover (third party liability) required by law.."

europe.org/motorinsurance.html

UK, Ireland / WHY DO POLISH PEOPLE THAT COME TO ENGLAND CAN'T SPEAK ENGLISH? [118]

I didn't say that. Don't know why you're quoting my name.

Life / Receiving UK TV in Krakow [20]

Astra 2 is a group of satellites that are so close together in space that they appear to us on earth as one satellite. They are imaginatively named A, B, C and D. Eurobird 1 is also up there at the same place (28 deg East). The only one with a really tight footprint is Astra 2D, the other ones we can get in Krakow with a 90cm dish.

What we need to know (and I haven't been able to find it yet) is exactly which satellite is going to host which channels. I suspect that BBC and ITV will be on Astra 2D (as they are on Sky) so they can try and stop people outside the UK getting them due to licence restrictions...

Work / English people working in Poland [15]

There are quite a few Brits like me floating around on this forum. If you're interested I have a blog where I write about life here in Poland: british-in-poland.blogspot.com.

You've already found this forum which is probably the biggest Polish forum on the net, so another great place for research and asking questions.

UK, Ireland / Taking a UK-registered car to Poland [35]


Yep agree with you.


Before I moved to Poland the only thing I could say in Polish was "my soup is very good". Turned out to be quite a handy phrase - they like their soup here.

UK, Ireland / Taking a UK-registered car to Poland [35]

yes I agree with what you are saying, but I don't see how any such policy could be enforced. Even if 5 Poles in an old car turn up without a return ticket they could always say they are visiting friends and will be a last minute return ticket when they go back in a week or two.

Personally I got fed up with life in England, council tax and hoodies. Getting burgled was the last straw for us. Moved to Poland 18mths ago and haven't regretted it yet...

Life / Applying for EU passport... [51]

Here are a couple of links that might interest you:

londynkg.polemb.net/index.php?document=78

polishconsulateny.org

I live near Wadowice, about an hour south of Krakow by car.

UK, Ireland / Taking a UK-registered car to Poland [35]


The point I am making is it's almost impossible for the authorities to know when you roll off the ferry whether you are here for a holiday or to work for 2 years. Your idea was to check everyone when they came in to the country which would hit everyone, tourists alike - and that just wouldn't work.

Yes there a lots of things that weren't ironed out before we joined the EU. Lots of things are still a mess. Regarding joining the EU and its expansion, that's a whole other thread....

UK, Ireland / Taking a UK-registered car to Poland [35]


I understand your frustration, but that just isn't practical. Imagine if every country in Europe required you to fill out a form and have checks done each time you went across their border? I used to regularly drive between London and Germany in 8 hours non-stop. How long would that take to go through France, a bit of Holland and into Germany with what you are suggesting? It would be a nightmare. Imagine the negative impact that would have on trade and the cost it would add to trucking. Also imagine the sheer cost of paying for such a system and to have people manage it. That would come out of our taxes too remember.

Also imagine the impact on tourism if foreigners had to fill out forms and await permission just for a week's holiday driving around Devon... They'd be more likely to do a week in the south of spain.

The idea of being in the EU is about free trade and movement of people. I don't think it's that the government don't want to deal with this, but how can you realistically deal with this? This is one of the side-effects when one part of the EU has very high charges for something (e.g. UK car tax) and other parts don't (e.g. Poland)

Life / Applying for EU passport... [51]

to be honest I don't know. I wrote to the Polish embassy in London a couple of months ago (as I am British) and so far haven't even got a reply from them. Meanwhile when I was doing my karta pobytu in Krakow they said I would have to do report somewhere in Krakow about this, but I haven't heard from them yet either....

Life / Receiving UK TV in Krakow [20]

I had sky whilst living near Opole. I brought my UK equipment and viewing card over from the UK and got a local installer to set it up. I had a 90cm dish. I couldn't receive any channels broadcast from the Astra 2D satellite (namely BBC1, BBC2, ITV etc..) which was a real bummer as I mainly wanted to get the normal channels.

As has been said you need a huge and very expensive 2.4m or bigger dish to get channels on Astra 2D, and the further east you go the worse it gets.

However I think this new freesat.co.uk - freesat that has just been launched could be another way to get normal UK TV abroad - no sky box needed, no subscriptions and broadcast free-to-air. I have been trying to find out if they also broadcast from Astra 2D or if they are using a different satellite. Does anyone know?

Language / Cases, Genders, Nominative, Instrumental...WHY? [40]

Not sure I catch what you are getting at, so I will try and cover too much rather than not enough:

In English we rely on word order to determine meaning:

Ben hits Paul

is totally different to:

Paul hits Ben

or we rely on helper words (prepositions) such as "for" or "to":

e.g. Ben gave the book to Paul

In Polish, as you know, the cases tell us who is doing what:

Paweł bije Bena

is still the same as:

Bena bije Paweł

despite the different word order because Ben is in the accusative case in both sentences (because of the "-a" ending).

In the sentence:

Ben gives the book to Paul

the subject is Ben (so Ben is nominative), the direct object is the book (so the book takes the accusative) and Paul is the indirect object or receiving object (so Paul takes the dative).

Thus in Polish:

Ben daje książkę Pawłowi

Here książka takes the fem. acc. ending -ę and Paweł takes the masc. dat. ending -owi

Hope that helps.

Language / Cases, Genders, Nominative, Instrumental...WHY? [40]


It isn't, it's nominative. The accusative is like the nominative for non-animates. For animates (such as a chicken) it looks like the genitive - i.e. jednego małego kurczaka.

Generally the accusative is used following prepositions that require the accusative or in sentences where there is a direct object.

For example:
The chicken is small - chicken is the subject -> Nominative
I like chicken - I am the subject, the chicken is the direct object -> Accusative

Strangely (for me at least), Polish uses the genetive when you negate a sentence that had an object in the accusative - e.g.

I don't like chicken - chicken changes to genitive.

Hope that helps and I haven't just created more confusion...

UK, Ireland / Taking a UK-registered car to Poland [35]

Yeah I agree with you. But again the problem is how do you decide when a vehicle is here permanently or when the vehicle is visiting? The DVLA say permanently is when the vehicle is here for 12 months or more.

Given that in the UK we have no compulsory registration system such as zameldowanie in Poland or anmeldung in Germany it is hard to say if the vehicle's owner is living here or not.

They could look at the records of cars coming in on ferries (if they have them?) but I am sure most foreigners return home at least once a year, and as mentioned the clock starts again each time you come in to the UK.

This issue, and the documented issue with LHD lorries causing accidents on UK motorways I don't think will get solved any time soon as the EU becomes more integrated...

Life / Applying for EU passport... [51]

then you automatically became Polish the moment you were born, so you already have Polish citizenship. To get a Polish ID card or passport you will have to get a "confirmation" of your Polish citizenship. What documents you need depends on a case by case basis, but typically you will need your birth certificate and proof that your father was Polish. Of course everything must be translated in to Polish. As it sounds like you aren't in Poland I recommend you contact your embassy who will have info on this. But the whole process can take a very long time....

UK, Ireland / Taking a UK-registered car to Poland [35]

Yes if you can get European cover without a problem then of course that's great. I am dubious about this 90 day thing. I will check it next week. My insurance company tried to fob me off with the same thing. When I pressed them about it they said that my fully comp cover is only valid for 90 days abroad but I would have 3rd party level regardless as per my understanding of EU law.


Yes but define permanently. The clock starts again each time you take the car out of the country. So if you are going back once a year you are effectively just taking 12 month holidays.

But if you want to have fully comp then I agree that doesn't work. This is why I sold my nice car back in the UK and bought a cheap van to move my stuff to Poland. But now I am in Poland permanently I bought a Polish car.

Can I ask though, is it really worth the hassle if you aren't planning to use the car in Poland anyway? Or do you need to drive a car across to move your stuff?


they originally introduced road tax to raise money for working on the roads. It soon turned in to just another tax, only a fraction of this money goes on the roads now. Plus already 90% of the cost of petrol is tax, so it doesn't really matter how you cut it, petrol is expensive enough though anyway. Dropping road tax is never going to happen now that they have started to use it as a way of encouraging less polluting cars. Now that I've taken my 2 vehicles permanently out of the UK though that's one less hassle for me... :-)

Life / Applying for EU passport... [51]


yes, that's correct. My grandfather was Polish and they are now investigating my status regarding Polish citizenship. In fact I don't even think there is a limit on how many generations back it goes as long as you have proof/documentation and none of your ancestors lost/renounced their Polish citizenship.

It's because the Polish system is based on blood law.

UK, Ireland / Taking a UK-registered car to Poland [35]


If you want more cover than just 3rd party only, then yes that's a problem.
But why not just get a 3rd party only policy from any insurer in the UK? Did you know that any policy bought in the EU must cover you to the minimum legally required level in any other EU country?

i.e. if you buy any policy in the UK then you are covered to 3rd party level in Poland, whether they know you are leaving the UK or not.

Clarabelle has pretty much covered everything in her post. I registered a UK motorbike in Poland and it cost 550 zloty, I would expect a car to cost a similar amount but as has been stated you can't register a RHD car here.

Regarding the tax, I had a UK van in Poland for over a year. The problem is that in the UK you either have to declare a SORN (statutory off road notice) to say your car is off the road or you have to buy your tax disc. If you do neither then you automatically get issued a fine.

The DVLA say the vehicle must be taxed even if abroad - being abroad doesn't count as off road. However no-one outside the UK cares if you are displaying your tax disc or not so I can't see how they could catch you if you did declare a SORN.

My tax disc expired whilst in Poland. I bought a new one online. I drove around for many months in Poland without any tax disc and never had any problems. Of course as soon as I came off the ferry I got pulled over by the Police in the UK. I explained that I had been abroad whilst it expired, my tax is paid and the disc is at home (in the UK). They were happy with that (they checked on their computer), although reminded me that the offence is "failing to display a valid tax disc", rather than not having tax.

Regarding Polish MOTs, as has been mentioned this won't apply to you because you will need a British one - but yes they are indeed somewhat less arduous than in the UK. Last year my wife asked her cousin to get an MOT for her. An hour later he simply turned up with the certificate (car had been in our garage the whole time). This year when my wife asked him, the cousin rang an hour later and said "this time they want to see the car". So I guess standards are rising....

Having said that the MOT for my bike this March lasted the whole of 10 seconds whilst they checked that it had 2 wheels and headlights....

UK, Ireland / UK Car Insurance [13]

car insurance in the UK is indeed very expensive, plus car tax too each year.

Much cheaper (if possible) just to bring a car from Poland and keep your Polish licence, MOT and insurance

Language / Use of prefixes in f.s tense/rules for forming them? [23]


On a similar note, I find it strange that Polish doesn't seem to have a word for "sleet". I only ever hear on TV deszcz z śniegiem or śnieg z deszczem....

Language / My reading and writing is awful - POLISH IS HARD TO LEARN [13]

I am confused how people can claim to speak perfectly but not be able to read/write well.

Maybe I am missing something but surely if you can speak Polish perfectly then you must have an excellent understanding of grammar and vocabulary. So how can you not read well? Maybe it's just me, but I think that reading is easier than speaking or listening because you can read at your own pace.

Again, I understand that spelling can be difficult but if you can say something in Polish without a problem why can't you write it?

UK, Ireland / WHY DO POLISH PEOPLE THAT COME TO ENGLAND CAN'T SPEAK ENGLISH? [118]


obviously that's even worse... :-)

UK, Ireland / WHY DO POLISH PEOPLE THAT COME TO ENGLAND CAN'T SPEAK ENGLISH? [118]


The correct sentence should be:

"why can't the Poles that came to England speak English?"

Here it is with the definite article because it is referring to a specific group of Poles, namely those that came to England.

As a native Brit "why can't Poles that came to England speak English?" sounds wrong and is incorrect.

Travel / Buying a sims card to match my mobile phone whilst in Poland [2]

You can get a Pay As You Go sim card on any network for only a few zloty depending on what tarrif you want. I don't know what mobile you've got though - if it's a normal mobile that is not locked then you won't have any problems.

I brought my unlocked mobile (nokia 6630) from the UK and just switch to a Polish sim card when in Poland, and switch back to my UK card when in the UK.

Language / Use of prefixes in f.s tense/rules for forming them? [23]


yes, which is pretty much what I said earlier - there is no real rule and sometimes the future looks like the present with a prefix, but not always....