Lubić is how you talk about what you like — coffee, jazz, your job, reading on Sunday mornings. It is one of the first verbs a learner needs, because liking and disliking come up in nearly every conversation. This page covers lubić (imperfective) and its perfective partner polubić ("come to like, take a liking to"). Two things deserve real attention. First, the conjugation: lubię, lubisz, lubi… belongs to the -ę / -isz class, which means the 1sg ends in -ę and the 3pl in -ą — a pattern English speakers regularly flatten into a wrong lubę / lubi*ą*. Second, and more important, lubić is not the only Polish "like." Polish splits English like into lubić (stable preference, + accusative: lubię kawę) and podobać się (it appeals to me, a reaction, + dative: podoba mi się ta sukienka). Choosing the wrong one is one of the most common errors at A1–A2.
Present tense (imperfective lubić)
| Person | Form | English |
|---|---|---|
| ja | lubię | I like |
| ty | lubisz | you like |
| on / ona / ono | lubi | he / she / it likes |
| my | lubimy | we like |
| wy | lubicie | you (pl.) like |
| oni / one | lubią | they like |
This is a textbook member of the -ę / -isz class (like robić → robię, robisz and mówić → mówię, mówisz). The stem is lubi- throughout, with no consonant mutation — a gift, because many verbs in this class do change their stem in the 1sg (prosić → proszę). The two endings to nail are the 1sg -ę (lubię, nasal, not lubę) and the 3pl -ą (lubią, not lubiją or lubieją).
Lubię kawę bez cukru, ale z mlekiem.
I like coffee without sugar, but with milk.
Moi rodzice bardzo lubią twoją dziewczynę.
My parents really like your girlfriend. (3pl → lubią)
Past tense (lubić)
| Subject | Past form | English |
|---|---|---|
| ja (m. / f.) | lubiłem / lubiłam | I liked |
| ty (m. / f.) | lubiłeś / lubiłaś | you liked |
| on / ona / ono | lubił / lubiła / lubiło | he / she / it liked |
| my (vir. / non-vir.) | lubiliśmy / lubiłyśmy | we liked |
| wy (vir. / non-vir.) | lubiliście / lubiłyście | you (pl.) liked |
| oni / one | lubili / lubiły | they liked |
The past stem is lubi-, regular. Note the virile/non-virile split: lubili for men/mixed groups, lubiły for women/things. Because liking is usually an ongoing state, the imperfective past is what you normally want: Zawsze lubiłem jazz "I always liked jazz."
Jako dziecko nie lubiłam szpinaku, a teraz uwielbiam.
As a child I didn't like spinach, and now I love it. (woman speaking)
Wszyscy go lubili, bo był uczciwy.
Everyone liked him, because he was honest. (men/mixed → lubili)
Future and imperative (lubić)
Lubić is imperfective, so the future is the compound będę lubił / lubiła. In practice, though, the future of lubić is rare — you usually express coming to like something with the perfective polubić instead (see below). The compound future appears mainly in hypotheticals:
Nie wiem, czy będę lubiła nową pracę.
I don't know whether I'll like the new job. (woman speaking)
The imperative lub! is essentially unused — you can't command a feeling. (Polish does say Polub to "Like it" for tapping a social-media "like," using the perfective.)
The perfective partner: polubić
Polubić is the prefixed perfective (po- + lubić). It is inceptive — it names the moment or onset of starting to like something: "come to like, grow to like, take a liking to." Because it is perfective, its present-shaped forms are the simple future:
| Person | polubić — future | English |
|---|---|---|
| ja | polubię | I'll come to like |
| ty | polubisz | you'll come to like |
| on / ona / ono | polubi | he / she / it will come to like |
| my | polubimy | we'll come to like |
| wy | polubicie | you (pl.) will come to like |
| oni / one | polubią | they'll come to like |
| Form | polubić | English |
|---|---|---|
| past (m./f. 1sg) | polubiłem / polubiłam | I came to like |
| past (vir./non-vir. 3pl) | polubili / polubiły | they came to like |
| imperative (sg) | polub! | (grow to) like it! / "like" (online) |
Na początku narzekała, ale szybko polubiła to miasto.
At first she complained, but she quickly came to like the city.
Myślę, że polubisz moich znajomych.
I think you'll come to like my friends.
The contemporary adverbial of the imperfective is lubiąc ("liking"), though it is uncommon in everyday speech.
Government: lubić + accusative, or + infinitive
Lubić combines in two ways:
1. With a noun in the accusative — the thing liked:
Lubię polską muzykę, zwłaszcza disco polo… żartuję.
I like Polish music, especially disco polo… I'm joking.
2. With an infinitive — the activity liked ("like doing"):
Lubię czytać przed snem.
I like reading before bed.
Nie lubię wstawać wcześnie rano.
I don't like getting up early in the morning.
Note that Polish, unlike English, puts no "to" before the infinitive (lubię czytać = "I like to read / reading"), and there is no -ing gerund — the bare infinitive does both jobs. See the accusative direct object.
lubić vs podobać się: the split English speakers miss
Here is the heart of the matter. English like covers two distinct ideas that Polish keeps apart:
| Verb | Means | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| lubić | like in general (a stable preference) | I (nom.) + lubić + thing (accusative) | Lubię tę piosenkę. (I like this song — in general) |
| podobać się | find appealing (a reaction, esp. first impression / looks) | thing (nom.) + podobać się + to-me (dative) | Podoba mi się ta piosenka. (I like this song — it appeals to me) |
The grammar is mirror-image. With lubić, you are the subject and the thing is the object: lubię ją "I like her." With podobać się, the thing is the subject and you are a dative experiencer: podoba mi się "it appeals to me" (literally "it pleases to-me"). Use lubić for settled tastes and people you get along with; use podobać się for first impressions and physical/aesthetic appeal.
Lubię tę sukienkę — często ją noszę.
I like this dress — I wear it often. (a stable preference → lubić)
Podoba mi się ta sukienka, kupię ją.
I like this dress (it appeals to me, on sight), I'll buy it. (a reaction → podobać się)
Intensity: lubić → uwielbiać → kochać
Polish grades affection. Lubić "like" sits below uwielbiać "adore, love (things/activities)" and kochać "love (deeply, esp. people)." For food, films, and hobbies, uwielbiam is the natural "I love it"; kocham is reserved mostly for people and a few heartfelt cases.
Lubię herbatę, ale kawę wprost uwielbiam.
I like tea, but coffee I absolutely adore.
Common Mistakes
❌ Ja lubę kawę.
Incorrect — the 1sg is lubię, with the nasal -ę, not *lubę.
✅ Lubię kawę.
I like coffee.
❌ Lubię się ta sukienka.
Incorrect — 'lubić' has no się and takes you as subject + thing as accusative; for a 'it appeals to me' reaction use podobać się.
✅ Podoba mi się ta sukienka.
I like this dress (it appeals to me).
❌ Lubię do czytać.
Incorrect — Polish takes a bare infinitive, with no 'do' or 'to' before it.
✅ Lubię czytać.
I like reading.
❌ Oni lubią się grać w piłkę.
Incorrect — 'like doing' is lubić + bare infinitive; no się, no 'do'.
✅ Oni lubią grać w piłkę.
They like playing football.
❌ Dziewczyny lubili tę piosenkę. — about a group of women
Incorrect — a group of only women takes non-virile lubiły, not lubili.
✅ Dziewczyny lubiły tę piosenkę.
The girls liked this song.
Key Takeaways
- Present: lubię, lubisz, lubi, lubimy, lubicie, lubią — the -ę/-isz class, no stem change; lock the 1sg lubię (nasal) and 3pl lubią.
- Past: lubił / lubiła, virile lubili vs non-virile lubiły; future usually via perfective polubić (polubię…).
- Lubić takes the accusative (lubię kawę) or a bare infinitive (lubię czytać — no "to").
- English like splits: lubić (stable preference, you = subject, + accusative) vs podobać się (it appeals to me, thing = subject, + dative).
- Grade up with uwielbiać ("adore," for things/activities) and kochać ("love," for people).
Related Topics
- lubić vs podobać się vs kochać: Liking and LovingB1 — Three Polish verbs for liking and loving — stable taste (lubić), immediate appeal with an inverted dative subject (podobać się), and love (kochać).
- podobać się — to like, appeal toA2 — Full conjugation of podobać się / spodobać się, the verb that inverts English: the thing you like is the nominative subject, you are the dative experiencer, and the verb agrees with the liked thing.
- Present Tense: -ę/-isz Verbs (Class II)A1 — The -ę/-isz/-ysz present class (robię, mówię, lubię) — its nasal-vowel 1sg and 3pl, and the consonant softening that makes the 'I' form look different (prosić → proszę).
- Accusative: The Direct ObjectA1 — The accusative's core job — marking the direct object of a transitive verb — and how that case-marking frees Polish word order in ways English can't.
- Talking About Likes and HobbiesA2 — How to talk about likes and hobbies in Polish — lubić + accusative / + infinitive, interesować się + instrumental, the grać w (game, + accusative) vs grać na (instrument, + locative) split, wolę ('I prefer'), and w wolnym czasie ('in my free time').