Breakdown of Zanim robi się zimno, idę do domu.
ja
I
dom
the house
iść
to go
do
to
zimny
cold
robić się
to become
zanim
before
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Polish grammar and vocabulary.
Questions & Answers about Zanim robi się zimno, idę do domu.
What is the role of zanim in this sentence and how do I use it?
Zanim means before and introduces a temporal subordinate clause. When the zanim-clause comes first (as here), you separate it from the main clause with a comma:
Zanim robi się zimno, idę do domu.
Why is the verb in the zanim-clause in the present tense if it refers to a future event?
In Polish, temporal conjunctions like zanim, kiedy (when), gdy (when) often take the present tense even for future events. So robi się zimno literally is present “it gets cold,” but contextually it means “before it gets cold (later).”
Why do we use robi się zimno instead of jest zimno?
Jest zimno is stative: “it is cold” (a current condition). Robić się is an impersonal, intransitive form meaning “to become” or “to get.” So robi się zimno focuses on the change of state: “it’s getting cold.”
What is the literal meaning of robi się zimno?
Literally, robi się means “makes itself” (an impersonal construction), so robi się zimno is “it makes itself cold,” i.e. “it’s becoming/getting cold.”
Why is idę do domu in the present tense rather than the future?
Polish often uses the present tense for near-future or planned actions, much like English “I’m going home now/soon.” If you want to stress a future action without implying it’s already in progress, you’d use the perfective future pójdę do domu (“I will go home”).
Could I also say pójdę do domu here, and what’s the difference from idę do domu?
Yes. Idę do domu (imperfective present) suggests you’re on your way now or have the immediate plan. Pójdę do domu (perfective future) simply states you will go home at some point; it doesn’t imply you’re already setting off.
Is the comma before idę do domu mandatory?
Yes. In Polish, when a subordinate clause (introduced by zanim, gdy, kiedy, etc.) precedes the main clause, you always use a comma to separate them.