Ta plama jest nowa.

to be

Breakdown of Ta plama jest nowa.

• nowy: new
• ta: this
• plama: a stain

Questions & Answers about Ta plama jest nowa.

Why is it ta and not ten or to?

Because ta is the feminine singular form of this.

In Polish, demonstratives must agree with the noun in gender, number, and case:

• ten = masculine
• ta = feminine
• to = neuter

Since plama is a feminine noun, you say ta plama.

Examples:

• ten dom = this house
• ta książka = this book
• to okno = this window

How do we know that plama is feminine?

A very common clue is the ending -a in the dictionary form of a noun. Many Polish nouns ending in -a are feminine, and plama is one of them.

So:

• plama = a feminine noun
• therefore it takes feminine forms like ta and nowa

Be careful, though: not every noun ending in -a is feminine, but it is a very useful rule of thumb for beginners.

Why is it nowa and not nowy?