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Polish in the family

In-laws, grandparents, bilingual children and the holidays: Polish for a family with one side in Poland.

33 sentences · 2 dialogues · 15 words

Why this field

In many families one side speaks Polish and the other English. Say a few sentences in Polish to your in-laws, a grandmother or the cousins, and at the next visit you are no longer just a guest at the table.

Children growing up with two languages often hear Polish from one parent only. The more everyday the Polish in the family is — at meals, on the phone, on holidays — the more naturally it stays theirs.

What you will be able to do

Goals by level. Tick what you can already do — the tick stays in this browser only.

Core vocabulary

15 words from the word lists, ordered by level. A coloured edge shows what you have already practised.

  • rodzinafamilyA1
  • mamamumA1
  • tatadadA1
  • babciagrandmother, granA1
  • dziadekgrandfather, grandadA1
  • rodzeństwobrothers and sisters, siblingsA1
  • wnukgrandson, grandchildA1
  • urodzinybirthdayA1
  • imieninyname dayA2
  • teściowamother-in-lawB1
  • teśćfather-in-lawB1
  • ślubwedding (ceremony)B1
  • WigiliaChristmas EveB1
  • życzeniagood wishes, greetingsB1
  • weselewedding receptionB1

Typical situations

Short dialogues to read along and repeat. Say one part first, then the other.

Calling Grandma

A2

Zosia rings her grandmother the day before her birthday.

  1. Zosia

    Cześć, babciu! Tu Zosia.Hi, Grandma! It’s Zosia.

  2. Grandma

    Zosiu! Jak się masz?Zosia! How are you?

  3. Zosia

    Dobrze! Jutro mam urodziny.Fine! It’s my birthday tomorrow.

  4. Grandma

    Wiem, wiem. Co chcesz dostać?I know, I know. What would you like to get?

  5. Zosia

    Nową książkę. I chcę zjeść twój sernik!A new book. And I want to eat your cheesecake!

  6. Grandma

    Dobrze, w sobotę przyjadę z sernikiem.All right, I’ll come on Saturday with the cheesecake.

  7. Zosia

    Świetnie! Czekam na ciebie.Great! I’ll be waiting for you.

The mother-in-law is coming

B1

Paul and Ola talk about how the visit from Ola’s mother over the holidays should go.

  1. Paul

    Kiedy przyjeżdża twoja mama?When is your mum coming?

  2. Ola

    W piątek wieczorem. Zostanie u nas na całe święta.On Friday evening. She’s staying with us for the whole holiday.

  3. Paul

    To świetnie. Gdzie będzie spała?That’s great. Where will she sleep?

  4. Ola

    W pokoju dzieci, a dzieci będą spały z nami.In the children’s room, and the children will sleep with us.

  5. Paul

    Myślisz, że spodobają jej się moje pierogi?Do you think she’ll like my pierogi?

  6. Ola

    Na pewno. Mama się ucieszy, że gotujesz po polsku.Of course. Mum will be pleased that you cook Polish food.

  7. Paul

    Mam nadzieję, że twojej mamie będzie u nas dobrze.I hope your mum will feel at home with us.

  8. Ola

    Na pewno będzie.I’m sure she will.

Sentences to say aloud

The label says where a sentence belongs. The speaker next to it reads it aloud.

  1. To jest moja rodzina.This is my family.

    A1neutral

  2. To jest mój mąż, a to są nasze dzieci.This is my husband, and these are our children.

    A1neutral

  3. Mam brata i siostrę.I have a brother and a sister.

    A1neutral After mieć comes the accusative, which for a male person looks like the genitive: brata; siostra becomes siostrę.

  4. Moja babcia mieszka w Gdańsku.My grandmother lives in Gdańsk.

    A1neutral

  5. Ile lat ma twój syn?How old is your son?

    A1casual In Polish you “have” your age, as in French: Mam trzydzieści lat. “I am thirty.”

  6. Nasza córka ma sześć lat.Our daughter is six.

    A1neutral

  7. Dzisiaj są urodziny taty.It’s Dad’s birthday today.

    A1neutral urodziny is a plural noun: są urodziny, “the birthday are”.

  8. Babcia robi pierogi.Grandma is making pierogi.

    A1neutral

  9. Dziadek czyta dzieciom książkę.Grandad is reading the children a book.

    A1neutral

  10. W niedzielę jemy obiad u mamy.On Sunday we have lunch at Mum’s.

    A1neutral

  11. Dobranoc, śpij dobrze!Good night, sleep well!

    A1close friends only

  12. Wszystkiego najlepszego, babciu!All the best, Grandma!

    A2close friends only Talking to someone takes the vocative: babcia → babciu.

  13. W sobotę są moje imieniny.Saturday is my name day.

    A2neutral Many families celebrate the name day, often much like a birthday — another plural noun: są imieniny.

  14. Moi rodzice przyjechali z Polski na tydzień.My parents have come from Poland for a week.

    A2neutral Parents are a mixed group, which counts as masculine personal: moi, przyjechali.

  15. Dzieci mówią po polsku z mamą, a po niemiecku z tatą.The children speak Polish with Mum and German with Dad.

    A2neutral

  16. Nasze dzieci były wczoraj u dziadków.Our children were at their grandparents’ yesterday.

    A2neutral dzieci is not a group of men: były, not byli.

  17. Tęsknię za tobą, mamo.I miss you, Mum.

    A2close friends only tęsknić za takes the instrumental: za tobą — literally “I long after you”.

  18. Czy twoja mama lubi niemiecką kuchnię?Does your mum like German cooking?

    A2casual

  19. Ciociu, możesz przyjść w niedzielę?Auntie, can you come on Sunday?

    A2close friends only

  20. Moja siostra ma nowego chłopaka.My sister has a new boyfriend.

    A2casual

  21. Babcia zawsze daje dzieciom za dużo czekolady.Grandma always gives the children too much chocolate.

    A2neutral

  22. Jak się podobało dzieciom u dziadków?How did the children like it at their grandparents’?

    A2neutral podobać się: the person who likes something is in the dative — dzieciom; the thing liked is the subject.

  23. Moja teściowa przyjeżdża do nas na całe święta.My mother-in-law is coming to stay with us for the whole holiday.

    B1neutral

  24. Na Wigilię jedziemy do rodziców męża.On Christmas Eve we go to my husband’s parents.

    B1neutral

  25. Składamy sobie życzenia i dzielimy się opłatkiem.We wish each other well and share the Christmas wafer.

    B1neutral Sharing the thin wafer before the meal is part of Christmas Eve in many families; each person wishes the other something as they break off a piece.

  26. Mamy dwoje dzieci: syna i córkę.We have two children, a son and a daughter.

    B1neutral Children are counted with the collective number: dwoje dzieci, not dwa dzieci.

  27. Oboje pracujemy, więc dziadkowie często nam pomagają.We both work, so the grandparents often help us.

    B1neutral

  28. Moi teściowie byli zaskoczeni, że tak dobrze mówię po polsku.My in-laws were surprised that I speak Polish so well.

    B1neutral

  29. Wesele mojej kuzynki było w Krakowie i trwało do rana.My cousin’s wedding reception was in Kraków and went on until morning.

    B1neutral

  30. Ślub był w sobotę, a w niedzielę jeszcze wszyscy świętowali.The wedding was on Saturday, and on Sunday everyone was still celebrating.

    B1neutral

  31. Chcemy, żeby nasze dzieci dobrze mówiły po polsku i po niemiecku.We want our children to speak good Polish and good German.

    B1neutral

  32. Gdyby babcia mieszkała bliżej, widzielibyśmy się częściej.If Grandma lived closer, we would see each other more often.

    B1neutral

  33. Mój teść uważa, że obiad w niedzielę z całą rodziną to tradycja.My father-in-law thinks Sunday lunch with the whole family is a tradition.

    B1neutral

What matters here

  • Family members use ty, often the in-laws too — but not always: some say mamo and tato to them for years, others stay with first names or with pan and pani. Best to ask.

    tymamotatopanpani

  • Whoever you speak to is in the vocative: mamo, babciu, ciociu, Zosiu.

    English simply says the name; Polish changes its ending.

    mamobabciuciociuZosiu

  • Many families celebrate the name day (imieniny) as well as the birthday.

    Christmas Eve (Wigilia) is for many the most important evening of the year — more so than Christmas Day.

    imieninyWigilia

  • Two children, or a mixed couple, are counted with a number of their own:

    dwoje dzieci, oboje “both of us (he and she)”.

    dwoje dziecioboje

Quick quiz

6 questions on the words and sentences of this field. The word questions count in your progress like any other exercise.

Try it yourself

Read the meaning, say the sentence aloud in Polish, then open it to compare.

  1. This is my family.

    To jest moja rodzina.

  2. Grandad is reading the children a book.

    Dziadek czyta dzieciom książkę.

  3. I miss you, Mum.

    Tęsknię za tobą, mamo.

  4. We wish each other well and share the Christmas wafer.

    Składamy sobie życzenia i dzielimy się opłatkiem.

Keep learning

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Every sentence on this page was written for EveryLingua. There are no quotations from films, series, books or songs here, and no titles or names of artists — the page shows how people talk in this field, not what somebody once said.