A2 Polish GrammarAdjective Endings
Master Polish adjective declension across all seven cases. Adjectives agree with nouns in gender, number, and case, changing their endings accordingly. Learn the patterns for hard and soft stem adjectives, and how they combine with different noun types.
1Adjective Agreement Basics
Polish adjectives must agree with the noun they modify in gender (masculine/feminine/neuter), number (singular/plural), and case (nominative, accusative, etc.). Hard stem adjectives like duży (big) and soft stem adjectives like tani (cheap) follow slightly different patterns.
Nominative Adjective Endings
| Gender | Hard Stem | Soft Stem | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Masculine | -y/-i | -i | duży/tani dom |
| Feminine | -a | -a | duża/tania książka |
| Neuter | -e | -e | duże/tanie okno |
| Plural (m.pers.) | -i/-y | -i | duzi/tani ludzie |
Examples
Mam dużego psa.
I have a big dog.
dużego - accusative masculine animate
WidzÄ™ Å‚adnÄ… kobietÄ™.
I see a beautiful woman.
Å‚adnÄ… - accusative feminine
Mieszkam w małym domu.
I live in a small house.
małym - locative masculine
To sÄ… mili ludzie.
These are nice people.
mili - nominative masculine personal
2Masculine Adjective Declension
Masculine adjectives have the most complex declension because they distinguish between animate and inanimate nouns in the accusative. Animate nouns take genitive-like forms in accusative: Widzę młodego mężczyznę (I see the young man). Inanimate use nominative-like: Widzę nowy samochód.
Masculine Singular Declension (duży)
| Case | Ending | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | -y | duży dom |
| Genitive | -ego | dużego domu |
| Dative | -emu | dużemu domu |
| Accusative | -y/-ego | duży dom / dużego psa |
| Instrumental | -ym | dużym domem |
| Locative | -ym | dużym domu |
Examples
To jest nowy samochód.
This is a new car.
nowy - nominative masculine
JadÄ™ nowym samochodem.
I'm driving the new car.
nowym - instrumental
Szukam starego klucza.
I'm looking for the old key.
starego - genitive
Dałem to młodemu chłopcu.
I gave it to the young boy.
młodemu - dative
3Feminine and Neuter Declension
Feminine adjectives end in -a in nominative and follow regular patterns through cases. Neuter adjectives use -e in nominative. Both are simpler than masculine. The accusative feminine is -Ä…, genitive/dative/locative are -ej, instrumental is -Ä….
Feminine Declension (duża)
| Case | Fem. Ending | Neut. Ending |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | -a | -e |
| Genitive | -ej | -ego |
| Dative | -ej | -emu |
| Accusative | -Ä… | -e |
| Instrumental | -Ä… | -ym |
| Locative | -ej | -ym |
Examples
Czytam ciekawą książkę.
I'm reading an interesting book.
ciekawÄ… - accusative feminine
Mówię o nowej pracy.
I'm talking about the new job.
nowej - locative feminine
Lubię ciepłe mleko.
I like warm milk.
ciepłe - accusative neuter
Idę z miłą dziewczyną.
I'm going with a nice girl.
miłą - instrumental feminine
4Plural Adjective Endings
Plural adjectives distinguish between masculine personal (men or mixed groups) and non-masculine personal (women, animals, things). Masculine personal uses -i/-y endings, non-masculine personal uses -e. This distinction is unique to Polish and important for correct usage.
Plural Adjective Endings
| Case | Masc. Personal | Non-Masc. Personal |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | -i/-y | -e |
| Genitive | -ych/-ich | -ych/-ich |
| Dative | -ym/-im | -ym/-im |
| Accusative | -ych/-ich | -e |
| Instrumental | -ymi/-imi | -ymi/-imi |
| Locative | -ych/-ich | -ych/-ich |
Examples
Widzę wysokich mężczyzn.
I see tall men.
wysokich - acc. masc. personal
Mam piękne kwiaty.
I have beautiful flowers.
piękne - accusative non-masc.
Rozmawiałem z młodymi ludźmi.
I talked with young people.
młodymi - instrumental plural
Te stare książki są ciekawe.
These old books are interesting.
stare - nom. non-masc. personal