Jakim cudem?

English Phonemes: “YAH-keem TSOO-dehm”

Literal Translation: By what miracle?

English Equivalent: How in the world? What sorcery is this?

This phrase isn’t stand-alone. It is something you say in reaction to seeing something amazing or being told something amazing. You follow it up with “by what miracle” more to ask how something so wonderful or unbelievable happened. It is not a fully standalone exclamation of wonder. It’s not a rhetorical question either. Unlike other sayings or exclamations, you kind of expect an answer to this one. 

Jakim = by what [object form, implies the preposition ‘by’ or ‘with’]
Cudem = miracle, wonder, magic, sorcery [object form, because of the implied preposition]

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Odczep Się!

English Phonemes: “OHD-[cz]ehp shyeh”

Literal Translation: Detach self!

Elegant Translation: Detach yourself!

English Equivalent: Back off!

Sometimes a cuddly phrase won’t do! Today’s phrase is a bit rough around the edges. 

This phrase is used in the same way as ‘back off’ or ‘buzz off’ or ‘get out of my face’ is used in English. Note also that this is in the informal singular form. There IS a more polite way to say this, just so you know. (However, it rarely comes up.)

Handle with care!

Odczep = detach, unhook [verb, instructive form, informal, used when instructing a singular person]
Się = self [reflective helper word]

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Dobra Robota!

English Phonemes: “DOH-brah roh-BOH-tah”

Literal Translation: Good Job!

This is one of those times the English and Polish directly line up with each other! And I wanted to say to you, good job! Learning any language isn’t easy. I hope this show has helped you on your journey :-)

Dobra = good [adjective, feminine singular form]
Robota = a job, work [noun, singular subject form]

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Wszystkiego Najlepszego!

English Phonemes: “f[sz]ihs-TKYEH-goh nah*ee-lehp-[SZ]EH-goh”

Literal Translation: All Best!

Elegant Translation: All the best! The best of everything!

English Equivalent: Best Wishes!

This is a common way to wish someone fond wishes for a special event. Most commonly, around the holidays, or someone’s birthday. It can also be used at a life event, like a wedding, a birth, a job change, a move, and so on - but that’s less common. 

Wszystkiego = all, everything [noun, object form]
Najlepszego = best [compound adjective, object form]

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Czekacie to nic nie macie!

English Phonemes: “[cz]eh-KAH-chyeh toh neets nyeh MAH-chyeh”

Literal Translation: You are waiting then nothing not you are having.

Elegant Translation: You wait, you don’t have anything.

English Equivalent: Waiting gets you nowhere.

We Poles love our glib rhyming pearls of wisdom. This is another one. It’s a funny way of saying waiting won’t get you very far. 

Czekacie = You are waiting [2nd person plural, present tense]
To = Then, This [depending on context]
Nic = Nothing
Nie = No, Not
Macie = You are having, You have [2nd person plural, present tense]

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Jestem goły(a) i wesoły(a)!

English Phonemes: “YEHS-tehm GOH-wih(wah) ee veh-SOH-wih(wah)”

Literal Translation: I am bare and merry!

Elegant Translation: I’m broke and I don’t care!

This phrase is a fun way to say you’re broke and you don’t have a care in the world. We don’t have a similar phrase in English. We like to be cheerfully glib in Polish. What better way than by finding words that rhyme? :-)

Jestem = I am [1st person singular of verb ‘to be’] 
Goły(goła) = bare, naked, nude [adjective, singular male (female) form]
I = and
Wesoły(wesoła) = merry, happy [adjective, singular male (female) form]

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Piła Drewniana

English Phonemes: “PEE-wah drehv-NYAH-nah”

Literal Translation: Saw Wooden

Elegant Translation: A wood saw.

English Equivalent: A nag.

This is a term for someone who is repeatedly saying or doing something to the point of being annoying. It uses the idea of a device slowly grinding away at a piece of wood because that annoying persistent unyielding buzzing is a perfect description for what a nag does!

Piła = a saw [subject form]
Drewniana = wooden, or for wood [adjective, feminine subject form to pair with 'piła']

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Trzymam Kciuki!

English Phonemes: “T[SZ]IH-mahm KCHYOO-kee”

Literal Translation: I am holding thumbs!

Elegant Translation: I’m holding my thumbs!

English Equivalent: Fingers crossed!

This is used the same way that “I’ve got my fingers crossed” is used in English. It’s just that in Poland, the actual physical motion is different. We literally hold our thumbs tucked into our fists as a sign of inviting and holding onto good luck.

So if your friend is writing a new play, or starting a new business, or going into ninja training, or whatever the case may be, tell them “trzymam kciuki” and they’ll be very impressed!

Trzymam = I am holding
Kciuki = thumbs [plural, object form (which in this case looks like the subject form - Fun Fact)]

Watch the "duck face" video!

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Żebyś wiedział(a)!

English Phonemes: “[Ż]EH-bihsh VYEH-jahw/vyeh-JAH-wah”

Literal Translation: In order that you would have known!

Elegant Translation: So you know!

English Equivalent: Definitely! And how! If you only knew!

This is a higher concept idiom. This phrase is used to confirm with emphatic fervor something that was said. Example: Someone tells you that your kid has a lot of energy. You say “żebyś wiedział!” as a way to say “and how!” or “if you only knew!”

This is an informal phrase. Don’t use this in a formal setting! 

If the person you are speaking to is male, you say “wiedział”. 
If the person you are speaking to is female, you say “wiedziała”.

The word “żebyś” is also a more complex idea because it doesn’t have a one-to-one translation in the dictionary. We have words like it in English. For example, pretend you are explaining “would” to a non-native speaker. Also, “żebyś” combines “że” (so that, in order to) with “byś” (you[singular informal] would) to make the word that is most closely translated as “so that you would”. 

Żebyś = in order that you would [informal, singular]
Wiedział(a) = he(she) knew [past verb, 3rd person singular]

Watch the "duck face" video!

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Bułka Z Masłem

English Phonemes: “BOOW-kah z MAHS-wehm”

Literal Translation: Bread with butter

English Equivalent: piece of cake 🍰

This is a phrase to denote that something is easy peasy. Smooth sailing. A snap. A lark. A walk in the park. A cake walk. A breeze. (You get the idea ;-) )

Bułka = bread [subject form]
Z = with
Masłem = butter [object form]

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Ale Mi Się Odbiło

English Phonemes: “AH-leh mee shyeh od-BEE-woh”

Literal Translation: How To Me Itself It Bounced!

Elegant Translation: Oh how that came back to me!

Google Fail: “But it bounced me!”

This is a companion episode to episode 8 - “Ale mnie ktoś wspomina!” We love talking about burps. Hey, it’s universal. Like Buddy the Elf in the movie “Elf” with Will Ferrell! “Did you hear that?”

Do not, repeat, do NOT say this with your potential in-laws at their dinner table. It’s a rather crude way to express oneself. We have more polite ways of referring to burps, say, for medical reasons. This phrase is strictly for use with friends you’re comfortable being a bit gross with. 

Ale = how, what, but
Mi = to me
Się = oneself [reflective word, as discussed]
Odbiło = he/she/it reflected, bounced back, broke off

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Słoń nastąpił ci na ucho?

English Phonemes: “swoh[ń] nah-ST[Ą]-peew chee nah OO-hoh”

Literal Translation: Elephant stepped on to you on ear?

Elegant Translation: Did an elephant step on your ear?

English Equivalent: “You have no ear for music.” Or “Are you tone deaf?”

This is a playful way to tease someone when they've missed a note while singing, or can't keep time to a rhythm, or sounds tone deaf. Don't use this with people you don't know! Not only is the case informal (using "ty" you-form instead of 3rd person addressee form), it's also obviously rude to come at strangers with criticisms about their musical prowess when you don't even know them.

Notice the structure of the sentence. The word "ci" doesn't mean "your", it means "you", the idea being you got stepped on on the ear, which is different than "twoje ucho" which DOES mean "your ear". In Polish, it's worth noting, you will frequently see things constructed this way. Saying "you got stepped on on the ear" and "your ear got stepped on" is synonymous in English, too.

słoń = elephant [singular subject form]
nastąpił = he/she/it stood on or stepped on [3rd person singular of nastąpić (to take place/occur/come/tread/supervene - depending on context)]
ci = to you, on you [object form of ‘you’]
na = on
ucho = ear [singular, object form]

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Musztarda po obiedzie!

English Phonemes: “moo[sz]-TAHR-dah poh oh-BYEH-jeh”

Literal Translation: Mustard after lunch. 

English Equivalent: Too little, too late.

This phrase paints a pretty vivid picture of a person sitting at a table waiting for mustard to come with their food, and it doesn’t come, so they eat their lunch and THEN the waiter shows up with the mustard. Some days are just like that. That’s why this phrase exists!

Musztarda = mustard [singular, subject form]
Po = after
Obiedzie = lunch [singular, object form - (because it’s after a preposition)]

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Rany Boskie!

English Phonemes: “RAH-nih BOH-skyeh”

Literal Translation: Wounds Godly.

Elegant Translation: God’s Wounds.

English Equivalent: Holy crap. Holy moly. Good God.

When someone is fed up or frustrated or surprised by something, you might hear them say “O rany boskie!” Now you know what it means!

Rany = wounds [plural, subject form]
Boskie = Godly, of God [plural, possessive form of the word "Bóg" (God)]

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Jak pies je, to nie szczeka, bo mu miska ucieka!

English Phonemes: “yahk pyes yeh toh nyeh [SZ][CZ]EH-kah boh moo MEE-skah oo-CHYEH-kah”

Literal Translation: If dog eats then not barks because from him bowl escapes.

Elegant Translation: When a dog is eating, he doesn’t bark, because his bowl is running away.

English Equivalent: One thing at a time.

Caveat: This saying has also been known to start with the word “gdy” instead of “jak”. Gdy is an old, seldom-used word that also means ‘if’. Both jak and gdy are equally valid ways to start this phrase.

The first half is the most common. Jak pies je, to nie szczeka. People usually don’t finish the entire phrase, but they all know it. 

The meaning is that you should do one thing at a time and focus on what’s important, or you’ll let all the opportunities slip out from under your nose.

Jak = if/when
Pies = dog [singular, subject form]
Je = he/she/it eats or is eating
To = then [or this, depending on sentence context]
Nie = not/no
Szczeka = he/she/it barks or is barking
Bo = because
Mu = shortened from “jemu” meaning ‘from him’ or ‘for him’
Miska = bowl [singular, subject form]
Ucieka = he/she/it escapes or is getting away

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Śmiało, śmiało!

English Phonemes: “SHMYAH-woh SHMYAH-woh”

Literal Translation: Boldly, boldly!

English Equivalents: Go on, then! Off you pop! Let’s go! Have at it! Go on! 

This is a way to encourage someone to do something. It’s a positive supportive thing to say to someone. 

The idiom itself is super Polish. Thinking about the grammar, usually in English you don’t see an adverb standing alone like this. But in Polish it’s completely okay. The form that śmiało is in is also interesting because in a sentence the word will probably have different endings (śmiale [adv.], śmiałe [adj.], śmiała [adj.], śmiały [adj.]) and rarely will it look like it does here when it’s in a sentence surrounded by other words. 

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Żyć nie umierać!

English Phonemes: “[ż]ihch nyeh ooh-MYEH-rahch”

Literal Translation: To live not to die!

English Equivalent: That was worth living for!

This phrase is an exclamation of excitement when something is so great, you’re happy to be alive to enjoy it. It’s like saying, ‘oh man, living is the best right now so I can immerse myself in this thing!’ It’s funny because it almost implies a choice to not die before you get to savor whatever it is you’re excited about. 

You can say this about anything you’re happy about, from a decadent bar of chocolate, to a beautiful vacation you’re on - and anything in between. It carries with it the connotation of enjoying blissful perfection in something. Something worth living for.

Żyć = to live [infinitive]
Nie = no, not
Umierać = to die [infinitive]

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***New YouTube video!***
"The Duck Face" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DhDzV56mkYQ

Sto lat! Jeszcze stówę!

English Phonemes: “stoh laht YEH[SZ]-[cz]eh STOO-veh”

Literal Translation: 100 years! Another 100!

English Equivalent: Bless you!

This is the way we say “gezundheit” or “bless you” after anyone sneezes. The meaning behind it is that you’re wishing the person healthy life for 100 years, and with each subsequent sneeze, you’re adding another 100 to that tally. 

This is more informal than formal, but even with long-time formal acquaintances, you could get away with using this. (We might talk about the more formal way in another show.) 

sto = 100 [subject form] 
lat = years
jeszcze = another, more
stówę = 100 [object form]

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Co za dużo to nie zdrowo!

English Phonemes: “tsoh zah DOO-[ż]oh toh nyeh ZDROH-voh”

Literal Translation: What over much this not healthy. 
Elegant Translation: What is too much isn’t healthy. 
English Equivalent: There can be too much of a good thing. 

A phrase that I heard many times during my childhood! Sage wisdom indeed. Moderation is key. There really is such a thing as "too much" of anything. So if you see your Polish-speaking friend/family member maybe taking on too much of something, remind them to slow down with this phrase!

co = what
za = over, beyond [remember this is the ninja preposition, with tons of meanings depending on context]
dużo = a lot, much, many
to = this, then [rarely]
nie = not, no
zdrowo = healthy

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Guzik prawda! 

English Phonemes: “GOO-[ź]eek PRAH-vdah”

Literal Translation: Button truth.

English Equivalents: B.S.! Yeah, right! A likely story! 

We Poles are experts at euphemisms! Curse word replacement therapy! Finding ways of swearing without actually swearing is a Slavic specialty. 

This phrase is a softened and polite way of saying “G**** Prawda” (Google Translate the 4 letter English swear that starts with an ‘S’), much in the way we trim “Bull S***” to B.S. in English. And "Guzik Prawda" is used the same way. 

Much like we in English say "aw, sugar" instead of "aw, s***", the choice of the word "guzik" is very deliberate here simply because it starts with the same "goo" sound as the swear word in Polish.

Guzik = a button
Prawda = truth

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