Some time ago I met one of my students. I remember him well – always prepared for classes and ambitious. After a short exchange of words (in Polish, of course 😉) it turned out that Juan – although he was a top student in class, he felt... lost in everyday conversation. “In class, everything is perfectly organized,” Juan began, “but when I talk to Poles, I feel like I'm learning another language.”
I think Juan is not an isolated case. Living language is full of simplifications, colloquialisms and sometimes even mistakes, which, however don't bother anyone
What are the biggest problems Juan has encountered on his language path?
1. Differences between formal and informal language.
Juan quickly realized that the formal “good morning” is often replaced by a quick “hi”, and “could you” sounds stiff in everyday situations, where it is more common to say simply “can you?”. The problem for him was knowing when to be formal and when not, because the textbook did not explain these subtle social differences. Poles, especially in casual conversations, do not indulge in excessive politeness – instead, they focus on simplicity and directness.
2. Understanding colloquial words and idioms.
Juan says that the favorite words of Poles are: "luz", "spoko", "masakra", and above all "no" used at the beginning, middle and end of a sentence. Good luck to anyone who tries to find the meaning of these words in a dictionary and a rule about when to use them.
Another problem is idioms and sayings. When Juan heard "nie rób z igły widły" after he overreacted to a minor matter, he had no idea what he was talking about. Polish colloquial speech is full of such phrases that you won't find in standard textbooks.
3. Regionalisms.
During his travels around Poland, Juan noticed that people used different words and phrases in different regions, which made his language problems worse. When he went to Gdansk, he heard the word “bulić” which means “to pay,” and in Krakow, he came across the expression “zaklepać” which means “to reserve” or “to occupy.” In Silesia, he learned about a separate language —Silesian—that was nothing like Polish. These local differences frustrated him because he felt like he could spend the next 100 years learning Polish and still hear words that would be completely foreign to him.
4. Adverbs like “zaraz,” “za chwilę” “za moment”
Juan learned precise time expressions like “teraz” “za chwilę” and “later” in Polish lessons. But when he asked his roommate, “When are you going to fix the light in the bathroom?” and heard in response: “Zaraz” it turned out that “zaraz” in everyday speech can mean “in an hour, maybe two, maybe later”...
5. Problems with Polish grammar.
In theory, Juan mastered the rules of Polish grammar, but in practice it turned out that checking cases and endings while speaking is mission impossible.
“I remember one visit to a restaurant,” Juan recalls. “I was with a girl, a Polish girl, and I really wanted to make a good impression, so I was stressed when ordering a meal. I kept wondering whether to say: „Poproszę kurczak czy kurczaka” and with „frytkiem czy frytkami”. My stomach hurt from the stress and in the end I didn’t eat anything.”
6. Reaction to mistakes.
Finally, Juan admitted that one of the biggest challenges was how Poles reacted to his mistakes. In class, teachers patiently corrected him, but in everyday life it was different. Poles often didn’t correct him at all – instead they said that “he speaks Polish great”. At first, he was happy about it, but then he began to wonder why no one was telling him what he was doing wrong. Eventually, he realized that as long as he was understood, no one minded him confusing the genitive with the accusative, and what is more pointing out someone's language mistakes could be perceived as rude and unwelcome.
7. Listening to the radio and television - a real test for the persistent.
Juan decided that immersing himself in Polish-language media would help him become more familiar with the spoken language and develop his linguistic skills. However, this turned out to be more difficult than he expected. The speed of speech of TV presenters surprised him. "They speak so fast, I can't distinguish the words!" he said with frustration. News programs were particularly difficult - they featured complicated political and social topics, the vocabulary of which was different from what he knew so far.
The Polish language you learn in class is just the beginning. Juan is proof that textbook Polish is only one side of the coin. The real adventure begins when you leave the classroom and start speaking – imperfectly, with mistakes, but authentically.