Breakdown of Na poczcie kolejka jest dłuższa niż w aptece, więc czekam cierpliwie.
ja
I
być
to be
w
in
na
at
więc
so
dłuższy
longer
niż
than
apteka
the pharmacy
poczta
the post office
kolejka
the line
czekać
to wait
cierpliwie
patiently
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Questions & Answers about Na poczcie kolejka jest dłuższa niż w aptece, więc czekam cierpliwie.
Why is na poczcie used instead of w poczcie?
In Polish, certain public institutions and open spaces take the preposition na with the locative case. Common examples are na poczcie, na dworcu, na uczelni. Using w or na often depends on idiomatic usage rather than a strict rule.
Why is w aptece and not na aptece?
Most shops, offices or enclosed spaces take w with the locative: w aptece, w sklepie, w restauracji. Pharmacies follow this pattern.
What case are poczcie and aptece?
Both words are in the locative case (miejscownik), which is required after the prepositions na and w when indicating location.
Why is kolejka in the nominative case?
Kolejka is the subject of the sentence (“the queue”), so it appears in the nominative case (mianownik).
Why are there no articles like the or a in Polish?
Polish does not have definite or indefinite articles. Context, word order, and sometimes demonstratives (ten, ta) convey definiteness instead.
Why is the comparative adjective dłuższa used instead of dłuższy?
Comparative adjectives in Polish agree with the noun they modify in gender, number, and case. Kolejka is feminine singular, so the comparative of długi (“long”) is dłuższa (feminine singular form).
Why can we say niż w aptece instead of repeating niż kolejka jest w aptece?
Polish often omits repeated words when they’re clear from context. Here niż w aptece is understood as niż (kolejka) jest w aptece.
What does więc mean and why is it placed before czekam?
Więc is a conjunction meaning so or therefore, used to introduce a result or conclusion. It typically appears at the beginning of the clause it connects: więc czekam….
Why is czekam (imperfective) used and not poczekam (perfective)?
The verb czekać is imperfective, describing an ongoing or habitual action (“I am waiting”). The perfective poczekać would imply a single, complete waiting event (“I will wait until it’s done”), which doesn’t fit this context.
Why is cierpliwie (an adverb) used instead of cierpliwy (an adjective)?
Adverbs (like cierpliwie, “patiently”) modify verbs and describe how an action is performed. Adjectives (like cierpliwy, “patient”) modify nouns. Since we’re describing how you wait, we use the adverb.