Yes, no and the essentials in Polish
The small words that carry half of every conversation, and the ones that rescue it. Play the ten Polish words against the clock, with a note on how locals really use each one after every answer. All ten are written out below.
All 10 Polish phrases in this lesson
- Taktahk
- Yes
- Nienyeh
- No
- OkejOH-key
- Okay
- Nie rozumiemnyeh roh-ZOO-myem
- I don't understand
- Czy mówi Pan/Pani po angielsku?chih MOO-vee pahn/PAH-nee poh ahn-GYEL-skoo
- Do you speak English?
- Proszę powtórzyćPROH-sheh pof-TOO-zhich
- Can you repeat that?
- Wolniej, proszęVOL-nyey, PROH-sheh
- Slowly, please
- Co to jest?tsoh toh yest
- What is this?
- Potrzebuję...poh-tsheh-BOO-yeh
- I need...
- Proszę mi pomócPROH-sheh mee POH-moots
- Can you help me?
Simple and clear. Poles sometimes use a soft "mhm" or "no" in casual speech, but confusingly "no" in Polish actually means "well" or "yeah," not the negative.
A soft "ny" sound at the start. Also used as a prefix for negation in Polish, so "nie rozumiem" means "I don't understand." Tone matters: a firm "nie" can sound blunt.
Borrowed directly from English and universally understood, especially among younger Poles. "Dobrze" (DOH-bzheh) is the more traditional equivalent meaning "good" or "alright."
An essential survival phrase. Follow it with "Czy może Pan/Pani powtórzyć?" (could you repeat that?) when speaking with someone formally. Pan is used for men, Pani for women.
Polish uses Pan (Sir) and Pani (Madam) as formal second-person address instead of a direct "you." Many Poles, especially younger people and in cities, speak good English.
Literally "please repeat".
Literally "slower, please".
Literally "please help me".