Doktor mówi, że zadanie jest łatwe, ale ja myślę, że jest trudniejsze.

The doctor says the task is easy, but I think it is more difficult.

Breakdown of Doktor mówi, że zadanie jest łatwe, ale ja myślę, że jest trudniejsze.

• ja: I
• być: to be
• ale: but
• że: that
• łatwy: easy
• zadanie: the task
• doktor: the doctor
• mówić: to say
• myśleć: to think
• trudniejszy: more difficult

Questions & Answers about Doktor mówi, że zadanie jest łatwe, ale ja myślę, że jest trudniejsze.

Why is the verb mówi in the present tense, and how would it change if we wanted to say it in the past?

• mówi is the third-person singular present tense form of mówić, meaning “he/she says.”
• To express past action, choose between:
  • powiedział (perfective past “he said” – completed action)
  • mówił (imperfective past “he was saying” or “he used to say”)

Why is że used after mówi, and can it be omitted?

że is the conjunction “that,” introducing the subordinate clause. In standard Polish it’s required:

• Correct: Doktor mówi, że zadanie jest łatwe.
• In colloquial speech you might hear it omitted, but for clarity and in writing, always include że.

Why is zadanie in the nominative case?

In zadanie jest łatwe, zadanie is the subject of jest. Polish subjects take the nominative case, so you get:
subject (nominative) + jest + adjective (nominative).

How does the adjective łatwe agree with zadanie?

Adjectives must match the noun’s gender, number, and case. Here:

• zadanie is neuter gender, singular, nominative.
• The correct positive form for neuter nominative singular is łatwe.

Why is the comparative trudniejsze used without adding niż łatwe (than easy)?

Polish often omits the explicit “than X” when the comparison target was just mentioned. The listener infers you mean “more difficult than łatwe.” If you want to be explicit, you can say trudniejsze niż łatwe, but it’s not obligatory.

How is the comparative form trudniejsze derived from trudny?

1. Start with trudny.
2. Drop -y to get the stem trudn-.
3. Add the comparative suffix -iejszy, forming trudniejszy (masculine).
4. For neuter nominative singular, change -y to -e, yielding trudniejsze.

Why are there commas before ale and before że?

• Comma before że: separates the main clause from the subordinate clause (Doktor mówi, że...).
• Comma before ale: links two independent clauses (..., ale ja myślę, że...).
  Both commas follow standard Polish punctuation rules.

What’s the role of ja in ja myślę? Is it mandatory?

Including ja (the pronoun “I”) is optional because myślę already implies first person. Here, ja adds emphasis or contrast with the doctor’s opinion. You could simply say myślę, but ja myślę stresses “I, on the other hand, think…”.