Learn Hardcore Polish: Na lotnisku mam ciężki bagaż i potrzebuję wózka. - At the airport I have heavy luggage and need a trolley.

In Polish, places like airports, train stations, markets or squares usually take na + locative to express “at” or “on.” So you say na lotnisku, na dworcu, na targu. By contrast, you’d use w + locative for some interiors or cities (e.g. w domu, w Warszawie).

What case is lotnisku, and how is it formed?

Lotnisku is the singular locative of lotnisko (neuter). To form it you replace the ending -o with -u. The locative is used with prepositions like na, w, o when talking about location (e.g. na plaży, w kinie, o szkole).

Why does bagaż look like the nominative even though it’s an object of mam?

In mam ciężki bagaż, bagaż (“luggage”) is the direct object and so should be accusative. However, masculine inanimate nouns have identical forms in nominative and accusative. Adjectives match that form, so ciężki (M Sg) also looks like nominative.

Why is it potrzebuję wózka instead of potrzebuję wózek?

The verb potrzebować (“to need”) governs the genitive case. Thus instead of the nominative wózek you use genitive wózka. Other verbs that take genitive include unikać, szukać, wymagać, etc.

What does wózek mean in this context?

Here wózek is the baggage trolley or cart you push at an airport to carry heavy suitcases. Outside of airports it can also mean any small wheeled cart (shopping cart, baby stroller called wózek dziecięcy, etc.).

Can I say mam ciężką walizkę instead of mam ciężki bagaż?

Yes. Bagaż is the general uncountable term “luggage.” If you mean one suitcase you’d say walizka (“suitcase”), and the adjective must agree: ciężką walizkę (accusative feminine). For a heavy bag you could also use torba (bag): mam ciężką torbę.

How do you pronounce ciężki bagaż i potrzebuję wózka?

Polish words are usually stressed on the penultimate syllable:

na lotNIsku mam CIĘŻki BA-gaż i po-trze-BU-ję WÓ-zka

Rough IPA: /na lɔtˈɲisku mam ˈt͡ɕɛ̃ʐki ˈbaɡaʐ i pɔtʂɛˈbu.jɛ ˈvuzka/

Key points:

w = [v], ó = [u]
ci = [t͡ɕ], ż = [ʐ]
stress on the second-to-last syllable of each word.

Can I change the word order, for example “Mam na lotnisku ciężki bagaż i potrzebuję wózka”?

Yes, Polish is quite flexible. Starting with Na lotnisku emphasizes location. Placing Mam first puts focus on having heavy luggage. All these versions are grammatical; shifting elements slightly changes emphasis but not the core meaning.