"do I" usage in a question?

how do i say things like ' do I ' in a question. and what does czynić mean.
i can say i do, but im stuck on how to say 'do i'

thanks

chaza

We need context to help you.


To do.

well, when i want to say things like.
do i need to hold that.
do i know you.
do i go this way.

its the concept of ' do i' im confused with. my book talk a lot of cynić and so on. but im still not clear.

thanks

Try not to think of it in that context.
'Do' is an auxiliary verb, that is it helps other verbs form tenses.
basically you are making the mistake of trying to directly translate from English.

That is probably why you are having problems.

Try to translate without using 'do'.

In English we have something called Inversion, where you swap words around to make a question with a yes/no answer (which I guess is what you're talking about with "do I...?"

In Polish, there's no inversion. All the words stay in the same sequence as they would in a normal statement, but if you want to make them into a yes/no question, you just stick the marvellous word "czy" at the front. "Czy" doesn't really mean anything*, but it makes questions.

So "I love you" (Kocham cię) becomes "Do I love you?" (Czy kocham cię?) and "I know you" (Znam cię) becomes "Do I know you?" (Czy znam cię?) which are two very odd questions, to be honest. Plus, even at this level, I'm sure I've made a mistake in the Polish somewhere.

Does that make sense?

* it does mean something, but not at this basic stage.

czy muszę to trzymać


Czy cię znam? Czy my się znamy? (more proper)


???

czy mam iść tędy? (not sure what you mean)

im not sure,
so
czy robi ten = do i do that
czy potszebuje ten = do i need that
czy mam samochódm = do i have a car

am i grasping the idea, yet

incorrect.
should be: czy robię to?


incorrect.
czy potrzebuję tego?


correct! :)


yes.

Muszę to trzymać
(with the meaning of 'Is it necessary for me to hold that?')


znam cię?
(note there are two different forms of "to know")


Powinien iść tędy
(with the meaning of 'should I go that way?')


Useful thing to note.

i think i see, it will take a bit more sinking i think. where does czynić fit. that was another word i was confused with.

Yes, you're getting the idea, and although zetigrek corrected you, I'm sure most people would understand what you wanted from what you said.

Just remember that the end of the verb changes depending on who is saying the verb (you, me, him, her), so "robić" (to do) becomes "robię" (I do). "Robi" means "he, she, it, Mr or Mrs does."

As for the "to, te, ten, tam, tego" - that's just Polish being stupid, sorry, specific.

i never use it, it's an old fashioned word.
Use 'Robić' it means 'to do' and 'to make'.

Do you speak any other languages chaza?

speak, no. but i domread and write hebrew, ancient greek, i am playing with hyroglyphics, and latin. but polish is what i speak most of, cause my cousins are polish and i am going there in three weeks.

by the way does the same apply to asking 'does'. like ' does that sandwhich taste nice'
does your car work
does he come here often

Oh, I don't speak or read or write any of those languages.
But I do speak other languages (none-Slavic) and it helps to think in those terms.


Cool, let us know if there is anything else we can help you with.

There is quite a useful thread on here Collection of learning resources for learning the Polish language.

if i wanted to say
did you get my message
czy zrób mój wiadomość

is that correct

no.
Czy otrzymałeś moją wiadomość?

you have written something like:
Do you do mine message

you can drob word "czy", then intonationa (or question mark) will sign it's a question.

Otrzymałeś moją wiadomość? is also correct ;)

This is a good example of how 'do' is an auxiliary verb and only makes the tense.

(The verb 'to do' is different that is where 'Robić' comes in.)

I usually try to translate direct from Polish (this is where it helps to know other languages)
so:
Czy gotyou my message?

Czy dostałeś moją wiadomość?

A good thin to learn are the verbs conjugation.

I received,
You received,
he/she/it received
We received
You (plural) received
They received

They are crucial to understanding Polish.

do the same rules apply for asking a 'does' question not a 'do' question
like
does that sandwhich taste nice'
does your car work
does he come here often

czy = whether

Compare:

Otrzymałeś moją wiadomość?

Czy otrzymałeś moją wiadomość?

Zastanawiałam się, czy otrzymałeś moją wiadomość?


yes, of course. Mind that english grammar is completely different than polish. It's your fist time when you learn foreign language, isn't it?

Yes, ''do'', ''did'', ''does'', ''doesn't'' in this context are all the same, they are being used as auxiliary verbs and should not be directly translated.

Only if you use 'do' as a verb, like ''to do something'' or ''to make something'', it is 'Robić'.

That is why I recommend not using 'do' to form questions.

Otrzymałeś moją wiadomość? = you got my message

Czy otrzymałeś moją wiadomość? = did you got my message

Zastanawiałam się, czy otrzymałeś moją wiadomość? = i think i got my message

yes or no

The first 2 are the same. Czy is like whether and expresses a doubt.

The last one is, 'I was wondering, did you get my message?' (to a male from a female)

This is why it is important to learn the verb conjugations.

Otrzymałeś the 'eś' at the end of the word tells you who the person is.
It isn't 'I' but 'you'.

I got = Otrzymałam

you got = Otrzymałaś

he got = Otrzymał

she got = Otrzymała

It got = Otrzymało

we got = Otrzymałyśmy

you (plural) got = Otrzymałyście

They got = Otrzymały

i do have the 301 polish verbs, i have had my nose in that book for months. i have to say it taks a while to sink in. but i am getting there. its remembering them all

Polish is more flexible when it comes to tag/tail questions. We match the auxiliaries together (do/don't, does/doesn't, can/can't etc etc) whereas they have words like czy, prawda, tak i nie. It requires less precision in Polish. Polish students often confuse do and does (then again, so do native speakers, lol)

I was wondering whether you got my message.

there is also gender information in thsese forms:

Otrzymałem would say a man
Otrzyamełeś is about a man

but

Otrzymałam would say a female
Otrzymałaś is about a female

Pete, otrzymałeś wiadomość?
Mary, otrzymałaś wiadomość?


That is exactly what I've meant by saying that czy is equivalent of whether (but some can argue with that)

Exactly! See post 22 of mine above too, chaza.

Sex, sex, sex, that's all Polish people ever think about, your language proves it.

How can 'a glass' = 'szklanka' be female????
Answers on a postcard.

:)

I've forgot about pular:

Otrzymałyśmy = we (female)
Otrzymaliśmy = we (male)

Otrzymałyście = you (female)
Otrzymaliście = you (male)

Otrzymały = they (female)
Otrzymali = they (male)

If there is a mixed gender group (men and women together) we use male form.


actually we don't say that szklanka is a female but that its gender is rodzaju żeńskiego.

As a trivia I say that in polish Death is a woman (Śmierć... ta Śmierć)