To nie jest rzeczywistość.

Here to is a pronoun meaning something like this, that, or it, depending on context.

In Polish, to is very often used in sentences that identify or label something:

• To jest dom. = This/That is a house.
• To nie jest problem. = This/That is not a problem.

So in To nie jest rzeczywistość, to is the thing being talked about.

Because in Polish, nie is usually written separately from finite verb forms.

So:

• jest = is
• nie jest = is not

This is normal Polish spelling:

• nie mam = I do not have
• nie wiem = I do not know
• nie jest = is not

This is a very common learner question.

In this sentence, rzeczywistość is in the nominative case, and that is normal because of the to jest / to nie jest pattern.

With to jest + noun, Polish typically uses the nominative:

• To jest nauczyciel.
• To jest problem.
• To nie jest rzeczywistość.

Learners often expect the instrumental because Polish also has sentences like:

• On jest nauczycielem. = He is a teacher.

So the contrast is:

• To jest nauczyciel. → nominative
• On jest nauczycielem. → instrumental

That is one of the standard patterns you need to learn.

Yes. Rzeczywistość is a feminine noun.

Many Polish abstract nouns ending in -ość are feminine, for example:

• miłość = love
• przyszłość = future
• wolność = freedom
• rzeczywistość = reality

In this sentence, you do not see any adjective agreeing with it, but if you did, it would take feminine forms.

In normal, neutral Polish, To nie jest rzeczywistość is the full standard sentence.

Sometimes Polish drops jest, especially in informal speech, headlines, or dramatic style:

• To nie rzeczywistość.

That can sound more abrupt or stylistically marked. For learners, the safest standard version is:

• To nie jest rzeczywistość.

The most neutral order is exactly the one you have:

• To nie jest rzeczywistość.

Polish word order is more flexible than English, but changing the order usually changes emphasis, tone, or style. For example, moving words around may sound poetic, emotional, or unnatural without context.

So for a learner, it is best to keep this standard order unless you have a reason to emphasize something specific.

A rough English-style approximation is:

zhe-chih-VEES-toshch

A more accurate pronunciation is:

/ʐɛt͡ʂɨˈvistɔɕt͡ɕ/

A few useful points:

• rz sounds like the s in measure
• cz sounds like ch in chop
• w sounds like English v
• ść at the end is a soft consonant cluster that is hard for beginners

You do not need to pronounce it perfectly right away; it is a difficult word even though it is common.

The stress falls on the penultimate syllable, which is the normal Polish pattern.

So you stress:

rzeczyWIstość

In the whole sentence, the main sentence stress will depend on context, but the word stress inside rzeczywistość stays the same.

Because Polish does not have articles like English a/an and the.

So Polish simply says:

• To jest dom.
• To jest problem.
• To nie jest rzeczywistość.

Context tells you whether English should use a, the, or sometimes no article at all.

This is very normal in Polish, and learners just have to get used to not looking for an article.

They are related, but they are not doing exactly the same job.

In:

• to auto = this car

to is a demonstrative adjective modifying a noun.

But in:

• To nie jest rzeczywistość.

to works as a pronoun, standing on its own and meaning this/that/it.

So the same word can function in more than one way:

• to auto = adjective + noun
• to jest... = pronoun + verb

That is very common in Polish.

No. It is an abstract noun, but it is used quite normally in everyday Polish too.

It can refer to:

• actual reality
• real life
• the situation as it truly is

For example:

• Musisz zaakceptować rzeczywistość. = You have to accept reality.
• To nie ma nic wspólnego z rzeczywistością. = That has nothing to do with reality.

So although it is an abstract word, it is not unusually formal.