B1 · Commands, requests and conditions · about 7 minutes
Gdyby: conditions that are not real
unreal conditions
Gdyby with the ending, the verb in its -ł form — and the conditional in the main clause.
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“New to me”: the explanation first, then practice. “Test myself”: 3 short questions – get at least two right and you go straight to the harder exercises.
Words you will need5
They appear in this topic’s examples and exercises and are new at this point on the learning path.
- więcejmore
- bliskiclose, near
- milionmillion
- wyjśćto go out, to leave
- pieniądzemoney
Understand
RememberThe ending sits on gdyby, the verb is in its -ł form, the main clause is conditional.
- Signal words
- gdyby
- gdybym
- gdybyś
- jeśli
- jeżeli
- na twoim miejscu
The form
The patterns at a glance
Each row first says when or what the pattern is used for, then gives an example in Polish.
negation
| if I had … | gdybym miał, gdybym miała |
| if you had … | gdybyś miał, gdybyś miała |
| if he, she had … | gdyby miał, gdyby miała |
| if we had … | gdybyśmy mieli, gdybyśmy miały |
| if you had … (several people) | gdybyście mieli, gdybyście miały |
| if they had … | gdyby mieli, gdyby miały |
| a whole sentence | Gdybym miał czas, pojechałbym do Gdańska. |
| negative | Gdyby nie padało, poszlibyśmy na spacer. |
| really possible: jeśli | Jeśli będę miał czas, pojadę do Gdańska. |
| the same pattern | mieć, być, wiedzieć, mieszkać, przyjść, widzieć, wygrać |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is aboutThe word that calls for it
The personal ending goes on gdyby.
Gdybyś chciał, mógłbyś u nas spać.If you wanted to, you could sleep at our place. (to a man)
The verb in the if-clause is in its -ł form.
Gdybym miała więcej czasu, czytałabym więcej.If I had more time, I would read more. (a woman speaking)
The main clause is in the conditional.
Gdyby była ładna pogoda, pojechalibyśmy nad jezioro.If the weather were nice, we would go to the lake.
A really possible condition takes jeśli, without by.
Jeśli będzie ładna pogoda, pojedziemy nad jezioro.If the weather is nice, we’ll go to the lake.
The same form serves the present and the past.
Gdybym wiedział, przyszedłbym wcześniej.If I had known, I would have come earlier. (a man speaking)
Example sentences
Gdybym mieszkał bliżej, odwiedzałbym cię częściej.If I lived closer, I would visit you more often. (a man speaking)
Co byś zrobiła, gdybyś wygrała milion?What would you do if you won a million? (to a woman)
Gdyby Piotr miał samochód, nie jeździłby autobusem.If Piotr had a car, he wouldn’t go by bus.
6 more example sentences
Gdybyśmy wyszli wcześniej, nie spóźnilibyśmy się.If we had left earlier, we wouldn’t have been late.
Gdyby nie ty, nie dałabym rady.If it hadn’t been for you, I wouldn’t have managed. (a woman speaking)
Gdybyście potrzebowali pomocy, zadzwońcie.If you need any help, give us a ring. (to several people)
Gdybym była tobą, nie kupowałabym tego.If I were you, I wouldn’t buy it. (a woman speaking)
Jeśli przyjdziesz o szóstej, zdążymy na film.If you come at six, we’ll make it to the film.
Gdyby dzieci były zdrowe, pojechałyby na wycieczkę.If the children were well, they would go on the trip.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
English “if I had” has its tense on the verb, so the Polish ending tends to go onto the verb too, leaving gdyby bare. But the ending belongs on gdyby, and it appears only once: gdybym miał, not gdyby miałbym.
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Next on the path: 73 · Prefixes on iść and jechać: arrive, leaveBack to the learning path
The full explanation
Read it all · about 1 min
For a condition that is not met or is unlikely you use gdyby: Gdybym miał czas, pojechałbym do Gdańska “If I had time, I would go to Gdańsk”. The main clause has the conditional you already know — English “would”.
The personal ending sits on gdyby, not on the verb: gdybym, gdybyś, gdyby, gdybyśmy, gdybyście, gdyby. The verb itself is in its -ł form and follows the gender: gdybym miał(a man)gdybym miała(a woman)
If the condition is really possible, you use jeśli or jeżeli with the present or the future: Jeśli będę miał czas, pojadę “If I have time, I’ll go”. The difference is the same as in English between “if I have time” and “if I had time”.
Polish usually needs no separate form for the past — English “if I had had time, I would have gone”. Gdybym wiedział, przyszedłbym means, depending on the context, “If I knew, I would come” or “If I had known, I would have come”. The second and third conditionals collapse into one.
Worth knowing2
Worth knowing
No “had had”
English separates “if I had time” and “if I had had time”. Polish says both with gdybym miał czas; whether it is about now or then shows from the context, often from a word like wczoraj.
Gdybym wczoraj miał czas, przyszedłbym.If I had had time yesterday, I would have come. (a man speaking)
Worth knowing
Gdyby nie …
With gdyby nie and a noun you say “if it weren’t for …” or “but for …”: Gdyby nie deszcz, poszlibyśmy na spacer.
Gdyby nie deszcz, poszlibyśmy na spacer.If it hadn’t been for the rain, we would have gone for a walk.
The verbs on this page, in every form: być · mieć · pojechać · mieszkać · móc · chcieć · przyjść · spać