POLISH VOCABULARY

SPEAK (AND PARTY) LIKE AN POLE

Building a strong vocabulary is the cornerstone of mastering any language, and our Polish Vocabulary Section is designed to help you express yourself on a variety of topics. There’s no point in memorizing grammar if you don’t know what things are called, so we recommend that you begin your Polish language journey right here. You can also explore specific Polish words and expressions in our Culture section.

On this page, you’ll find the essential vocabulary to get started. Our vocabulary lists are carefully curated to cover a wide range of themes. Learning the most common 2000 words will allow you to understand about 80–90% of everyday spoken or written material, assuming you already have a basic understanding of grammar. Languages follow the so-called "Pareto Principle" (80/20 rule), where a small portion of vocabulary covers the majority of real-life communication.

Begin with Useful Expressions, mastering key Verbs, Adverbs, and Adjectives that form the foundation of daily conversation. Move on to practical categories like Numbers and telling the Time, which are vital for scheduling and understanding context. Talking about your Family, describing Colors, Shapes, and Sizes, or ordering Food and Drinks helps you interact naturally. Topics like Clothing, Weather, and Travel bring vocabulary into real-world experiences, while Law, Jobs, Shopping, and Health reflect daily needs. To go further, explore interests through Hobbies, Education, and Nature, or navigate modern life with terms related to Home, Travel, Technology and Feelings. For more specialized or advanced vocabulary, delve into Sports, Animals, War, and Politics—and understand even the informal side of the language with a dose of Swearing.

For now, we suggest you read the words several times a day so that you can recognize them when you come across them in a conversation or a text. Learning Polish vocabulary will be a bit easier if you already know another Slavic language like Bulgarian, Russian or Ukrainian. Be sure to check out the Loanwords section at the end if you want to speed up the memorisation process even further. After this, you can move on to the Grammar section, where you’ll see these words in action.

Bring your Polish language skills to life!

EXPAND YOUR KNOWLEDGE

If you are serious about learning Polish, we recommend that you download the Complete Polish Master Course.

You will receive all the information available on the website in a convenient portable digital format as well as additional contents: over 15.000 Vocabulary Words and Useful Phrases, in-depth explanations and exercises for all Grammar Rules, exclusive articles with Cultural Insights that you won't in any other textbook so you can amaze your Polish friends or business partners thanks to your knowledge of their country.

With a one-time purchase you will also get hours of Podcasts to Practice your Polish listening skills as well as Dialogues with Exercises to achieve your own Master Certificate.

Start speaking Polish today!

Useful Polish Expressions

dzień dobry good morning
dobry wieczór good evening
do widzenia goodbye
cześć hi / bye
jak się masz? how are you?
mam się dobrze I’m doing well
a ty? and you?
co słychać? what’s up?
wszystko w porządku everything’s fine
proszę please / you're welcome

dziękuję thank you
bardzo dziękuję thank you very much
nie ma za co you’re welcome
przepraszam excuse me / sorry
proszę bardzo here you go
czy możesz mi pomóc? can you help me?
nie rozumiem I don’t understand
rozumiem I understand
mówię tylko trochę po polsku I speak only a little Polish
czy mówisz po angielsku? do you speak English?

jak masz na imię? what’s your name?
mam na imię... my name is...
miło mi cię poznać nice to meet you
ile masz lat? how old are you?
mam ... lat I am ... years old
skąd jesteś? where are you from?
jestem z... I’m from...
gdzie mieszkasz? where do you live?
mieszkam w... I live in...
czym się zajmujesz? what do you do?

pracuję jako... I work as...
jestem studentem I’m a student (male)
jestem studentką I’m a student (female)
na zdrowie! cheers / bless you
smacznego! enjoy your meal
dobranoc good night
do zobaczenia see you
zaraz wracam I’ll be right back
wszystkiego najlepszego best wishes
powodzenia good luck

co to znaczy? what does it mean?
jak to się pisze? how do you spell it?
możesz powtórzyć? can you repeat?
jeszcze raz, proszę once again, please
nie wiem I don’t know
nie pamiętam I don’t remember
to zależy it depends
to nie ma sensu that doesn’t make sense
wszystko jedno whatever / it doesn’t matter
masz rację you’re right

zgadzam się I agree
nie zgadzam się I disagree
to prawda that’s true
to nieprawda that’s not true
to możliwe it’s possible
czy to jest daleko? is it far?
gdzie to jest? where is it?
jak tam dojechać? how to get there?
prosto, w lewo, w prawo straight, left, right
na rogu on the corner

co się stało? what happened?
wszystko w porządku? is everything okay?
nie martw się don’t worry
nic się nie stało nothing happened
to nie twoja wina it’s not your fault
czy mogę...? may I...?
czy wolno tutaj...? is it allowed here...?
to zabronione that’s forbidden
potrzebuję pomocy I need help
zadzwoń na policję call the police

czy mogę zapłacić kartą? can I pay by card?
czy to jest drogie? is it expensive?
ile to kosztuje? how much does it cost?
poproszę rachunek the bill, please
mam rezerwację I have a reservation
jestem uczulony na... I’m allergic to...
gdzie jest toaleta? where is the bathroom?
czy to jest wolne? is this seat free?
jestem głodny I’m hungry (male)
jestem głodna I’m hungry (female)

jestem zmęczony I’m tired (male)
jestem zmęczona I’m tired (female)
zimno mi I’m cold
gorąco mi I’m hot
nie mogę teraz rozmawiać I can’t talk right now
oddzwonię później I’ll call back later
wszystko będzie dobrze everything will be fine
nie mam pojęcia I have no idea
do usłyszenia talk to you soon
trzymaj się take care

EXPAND YOUR KNOWLEDGE

If you are serious about learning Polish, we recommend that you download the Complete Polish Master Course.

You will receive all the information available on the website in a convenient portable digital format as well as additional contents: over 15.000 Vocabulary Words and Useful Phrases, in-depth explanations and exercises for all Grammar Rules, exclusive articles with Cultural Insights that you won't in any other textbook so you can amaze your Polish friends or business partners thanks to your knowledge of their country.

With a one-time purchase you will also get hours of Podcasts to Practice your Polish listening skills as well as Dialogues with Exercises to achieve your own Master Certificate.

Start speaking Polish today!