A1 · Prepositions · about 7 minutes
w, na and do: where and where to
place and direction
Where? takes w or na with the locative; where to? takes do with the genitive, or na with the accusative.
Do you know this already?
“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 need12
They appear in this topic’s examples and exercises and are new at this point on the learning path.
- bankbank
- podwórkoyard, courtyard
- dworzecstation (railway, bus)
- wakacjeholiday(s), summer holiday
- kuchniakitchen; cuisine
- staćto stand
- parkingcar park
- wracaćto come back, to return
- wieśvillage; the countryside
- pocztapost office
- kluczkey
- koncertconcert
Understand
RememberWhere? — w or na with the locative; where to? — do with the genitive or na with the accusative.
- Signal words
- gdzie
- dokąd
- skąd
- w
- na
- do
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.
question marker
| where? w + locative: inside | w domu, w sklepie, w Krakowie, w Polsce |
| where? na + locative: on, in open places, at events | na stole, na ulicy, na poczcie, na koncercie |
| where to? instead of w: do + genitive | do domu, do sklepu, do Krakowa, do Polski |
| where to? na + accusative | na stół, na ulicę, na pocztę, na koncert |
| where from? z + genitive | z domu, z Krakowa, z poczty, z koncertu |
| the questions | Gdzie? Dokąd? Skąd? |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is aboutThe word that calls for it
“Where?” in a room, a building, a town: w with the locative.
Pracuję w banku.I work at a bank.
“Where?” on something, in open places and at events: na with the locative.
Dzieci bawią się na podwórku.The children are playing in the yard.
“Where to?” for a place that takes w: do with the genitive.
Jedziemy do Polski.We are going to Poland.
“Where to?” for a place that takes na: na with the accusative.
Idę na dworzec.I am going to the station.
Ask about the place with gdzie? and about the destination with dokąd?.
Dokąd jedziesz w wakacje?Where are you going for the holidays?
Example sentences
Mama jest w kuchni.Mum is in the kitchen.
Samochód stoi na parkingu.The car is in the car park.
Wracam do domu o szóstej.I get home at six.
7 more example sentences
Idziemy na spacer.We are going for a walk.
Moi rodzice mieszkają w Niemczech.My parents live in Germany.
Jutro jedziemy na wieś.Tomorrow we are going to the countryside.
Spotykamy się na rynku.We are meeting in the market square.
Mój syn studiuje na uniwersytecie.My son is studying at university.
Kasia idzie do pracy.Kasia is going to work.
Mój brat mieszka na Węgrzech.My brother lives in Hungary.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
English says “to school”, “to the cinema”, “to Poland” with one word, “to”, and it is tempting to keep w for the direction because it is the word you learnt for the place: w szkołę. For the direction to a w-place Polish takes do with the genitive: do szkoły, do kina, do Polski.
Quick check
A warm-up: 2 questions, answered straight away. They do not count towards your progress.
Practise
10 exercises on this topic. Your answers are checked in the browser; none of them leaves your device.
Now write it yourself9 sentences on this topic, typed and checked instantly.
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Next on the path: 15 · The a-conjugation: czytam, czytaszBack to the learning path
The full explanation
Read it all · about 1 min
For “where?” (gdzie?) you use w or na with the locative (miejscownik): w domu, w Krakowie, na poczcie, na stole. w means “in” and goes with rooms, buildings, towns and most countries. na means “on”, but it also covers open places, events and a fixed set of institutions — much like English “at”: na ulicy“in the street”na koncercie“at a concert”na dworcu“at the station”na uniwersytecie“at university”
For “where to?” (dokąd?) things change. Where the place takes w, the direction takes do with the genitive (dopełniacz): w domu → do domu, w Krakowie → do Krakowa, w Polsce → do Polski. Where the place takes na, na stays and the noun goes into the accusative (biernik): na poczcie → na pocztę, na koncercie → na koncert.
Whether a place takes w or na is learnt with the word, just as in English it is “at the station” but “in the shop”. Some match English: na ulicy, na koncercie. Some do not: na Węgrzech“in Hungary”na poczcie“at the post office” and also “in the post office”
Worth knowing2
Worth knowing
Three questions, three prepositions
English has “in — into — out of” and “at — to — from”. Polish has the same three-way split: w mieście — do miasta — z miasta (where, where to, where from). Only na keeps its word for where and where to and changes the case instead: na stole — na stół, like “on” and “onto”.
Wracam z miasta i idę do domu.I am coming back from town and going home.
Worth knowing
With people: u, do, od
With a person you use neither w nor na: u lekarza“at the doctor’s”do lekarza“to the doctor’s”od lekarza“from the doctor’s” All three take the genitive. English “at the doctor’s” hides a person behind the shop; Polish names the person.
Jutro idę do lekarza.Tomorrow I am going to the doctor’s.
The verbs on this page, in every form: jechać · iść · być · mieszkać · pracować · stać · wracać