Polish language/Być
Before learning this verb, we must first learn the Personal pronouns in the nominative case.
Personal Pronouns[edit | edit source]
- Ja - I
- Ty - You (singular)
- On - He
- Ona - She
- Ono - It
- My - We
- Wy - You (plural)
- Oni - They (male or mixed)
- One - They (female only)
When speaking to someone to whom we should show respect, e.g. those older or strangers, we should use the personal pronouns pan (m) and pani (f). When we do so, we use the Wy form of the verb (i.e. the you (plural) version).
Być - to be[edit | edit source]
Być is the Polish infinitive form of the English verb "to be". This is the most commonly used verb in the Polish language and should be the first verb learnt in any language. It is an irregular verb and, therefore, provides no pattern from which to learn other verbs. This verb has three tenses: past, present and future.
Past Tense[edit | edit source]
The past tense of Polish verbs depends entirely upon the gender of the subject.
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Feminine
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Neuter
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Present Tense[edit | edit source]
The present tense does not depend on the gender of the subject.
- Ja jestem - I am
- Ty jesteś - You are
- On jest - He is
- Ona jest - She is
- Ono jest - It is
- My jesteśmy - We are
- Wy jesteście - You are
- Oni są - They are
- One są - They are
Future Tense[edit | edit source]
Just like the present tense, the future tense does not depend on the gender of the subject.
- Ja będę - I will be
- Ty będziesz - You will be
- On będzie - He will be
- Ona będzie - She will be
- Ono będzie - It will be
- My będziemy - We will be
- Wy będziecie - You will be
- Oni będą - They will be
- One będą - They will be
Summary[edit | edit source]
The verb "być" has three tenses: past, present and future. The past depends upon the gender of the subject but the present and future tenses do not.