Opróżnij i zgnieć opakowanie przed recyklingiem.

They are both imperative forms, used for commands or instructions.

• opróżnij = empty
• zgnieć = crush / squash

On packaging and signs, Polish often uses the imperative just like English does:

• Wash before use
• Recycle responsibly
• Empty and crush the container

So this sentence is giving the reader a direct instruction.

The implied subject is you — specifically you (singular).

Polish usually does not need to say the subject pronoun if the verb form already makes it clear. So:

• Opróżnij = (You) empty
• Zgnieć = (You) crush

If you added ty (you), it would usually sound unnecessary here:

• Ty opróżnij i zgnieć opakowanie...

That would sound more emphatic than a normal instruction label.

Because opakowanie is a neuter singular noun, and for this type of noun, the accusative often looks exactly the same as the nominative.

Here it is the direct object of opróżnij and zgnieć, so it is in the accusative:

• nominative: opakowanie
• accusative: opakowanie

So the case does change grammatically, but the word form stays the same.

Opakowanie means packaging, package, container, or pack depending on context.

In a recycling instruction, it usually refers to the item you are throwing away — for example:

• a bottle
• a carton
• a plastic container
• other packaging

So in natural English, you might translate it as:

• the container
• the packaging
• the package

The best choice depends on what kind of item the label is attached to.

Yes. Polish often uses the singular in this kind of general instruction because it refers to the individual item in your hand.

So opakowanie is singular because the sentence means something like:

• Empty and crush this package/container before recycling.

English may prefer packaging in some contexts, but Polish is perfectly natural with the singular here.

This is about aspect, which is very important in Polish verbs.

• gnieść = to be crushing / to crush (imperfective)
• zgnieść = to crush completely / to crush down (perfective)

In an instruction like this, Polish uses the perfective verb because the focus is on completing the action:

• zgnieć = crush it fully / crush it down

That is very natural in commands on labels and instructions.

After przed meaning before, Polish uses the instrumental case.

So:

• recykling = nominative
• recyklingiem = instrumental

That is why the sentence says:

• przed recyklingiem = before recycling

This is a very common pattern:

• przed obiadem = before dinner
• przed pracą = before work
• przed wyjazdem = before leaving / before the trip

Literally, it means before recycling.

But in real-world usage on packaging, it usually means:

• before you recycle it
• before putting it in the recycling bin/stream

So the Polish is a little more compact, while English often spells out the practical meaning more explicitly.

It is a borrowing, ultimately from English recycling.

In Polish, it behaves like a normal noun:

• recykling = recycling
• recyklingu = of recycling
• recyklingiem = with/by/before recycling, depending on context

Borrowed words are very common in modern Polish, especially in technical or environmental language.

Because Polish has no articles like English a/an/the.

So opakowanie can mean:

• a package
• the package
• packaging
• the container

The exact meaning comes from context.

On a label, readers naturally understand it as the package/container in question.

These are tricky for English speakers.

A rough guide:

• opróżnij ≈ oh-PROOZH-nyee
• zgnieć ≈ zg-nyetch or zg-nyech with a very soft final consonant

A few helpful points:

• ó sounds like u
• ż sounds like the s in measure
• ni before another consonant or at the end often gives a ny sound
• gn in zgnieć is pronounced together, not separated like in English

The exact Polish sounds are subtler than English approximations, but that should help you get close.

Yes. A few natural alternatives are possible, depending on tone and context:

• Opróżnij i zgnieć opakowanie przed wyrzuceniem do recyklingu.
  Empty and crush the container before throwing it into recycling.

• Przed recyklingiem opróżnij i zgnieć opakowanie.
  Same meaning, just different word order.

• Opróżnij opakowanie i zgnieć je przed recyklingiem.
  Adds je (it) for extra clarity.

The original version is short, efficient, and very natural for packaging instructions.

Polish word order is fairly flexible, but this order is natural because it presents the instruction in a clear sequence:

1. what to do — opróżnij i zgnieć
2. to what — opakowanie
3. when / before what — przed recyklingiem

So it reads very smoothly as a label instruction.

Other orders are possible, but the original sounds concise and standard.