How to Learn Key Phrases in Polish

You don't have to be fluent to speak a little Polish. It will take only a few minutes to learn some basic phrases to help you communicate. Native speakers will appreciate even a basic attempt to speak their language.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Polish Phrase Books
• Foreign Language Tape
• Airline Tickets

1. Use "dzien dobry" (jane dough-bray), which means "good day," as a form of saying hello. Polish speakers sometimes also use the English "hello" or "hi."

2. Say "do widzenia" (dough ve-zen-ya), which means "good-bye."

3. Introduce yourself by saying "moje imie" (mo-yeah em-yeow), for "my name is," and then add your first name.

4. Be courteous by saying "prosze" (pro-shoa) for "please," and "dziekuje" (jen-ku-yeow) for "thank you."

5. Use "nie" (ny-eh) for "no," and "tak" (tack) for "yes."

6. Say "gdzie" (guh-dej) for "where" when you are asking for something.

7. Make your life easier by asking "Czy mowisz po angielsku?" (che move-ish poe an-gell-sku), which means "Do you speak English?"

Tips & Warnings

• Carry a small phrase book or dictionary to look up words you don't know. You can point to them if you cannot pronounce them.
• Make use of shaking hands, a common and appreciated greeting among Polish people. When greeting, men often kiss a woman's hand.
• Communicate with body language: pointing, drawing and gesturing will all help you get your point across.
• The Polish language includes accent marks not noted here.

[Chaos1187]

on 5/31/2009 I think you can also say Dobri dehn as an alternative to dzien dobry

on 11/22/2005 We don't introduce ourselves in Polish by saying "moje imie" (mo-yeah em-yeow) for "My name is," but we say:
Jestem, and then your name.

For example: Jestem Adam (I`m Adam) or
Nazywam sie Adam (My name is Adam)

on 11/22/2005 When you need to ask someone for help in English, it is best to ask young people who are students. The older generation doesn't know English at all 99.9% of the time. You can also ask in international fast food restaurants.