Breakdown of Zielone światło oznacza, że lot nie jest opóźniony.
być
to be
nie
not
że
that
światło
the light
zielony
green
lot
the flight
oznaczać
to mean
opóźniony
delayed
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Questions & Answers about Zielone światło oznacza, że lot nie jest opóźniony.
Why is there a comma before że?
In Polish, you always place a comma before że when it introduces a subordinate clause. It’s a fixed punctuation rule: że (that) must be preceded by a comma in such cases.
What is the part of speech and case of światło in this sentence?
światło is a neuter noun in the nominative singular. It’s the subject of the sentence (“green light”), so it appears in its base form without any additional endings.
Why is lot not inflected here? Shouldn't it have a case ending?
In the clause lot nie jest opóźniony, lot functions as the subject of the subordinate clause. As the subject, it takes the nominative case, which for masculine nouns often looks like the bare stem (no extra ending).
What kind of word is opóźniony and why is jest used with it?
opóźniony is a past passive participle used adjectivally to describe lot. To form a predicate with a participle in the present you need a linking verb—here jest (is). So lot nie jest opóźniony literally means “the flight is not delayed.”
Could I say lot się nie opóźnia instead of lot nie jest opóźniony?
Yes. lot się nie opóźnia uses the active reflexive verb opóźniać się and means “the flight isn’t getting delayed.” The nuance is that jest opóźniony describes a current state, while się opóźnia emphasizes the process of delay.
How do you pronounce the Polish letters ś, ł, and ź in words like światło and opóźniony?
- ś is a soft “sh” (palatalized).
- ł sounds like English w.
- ź is a soft “zh” (palatalized, like the s in “vision”).
Also ó is pronounced like u.
So światło ≈ [sh-vyat-wo], and opóźniony ≈ [o-pu-zh-ˈɲo-ny].
Where does the stress fall in Zielone światło oznacza, że lot nie jest opóźniony?
Polish words are almost always stressed on the penultimate (second-to-last) syllable. So you get:
• Zielone
• Światło
• Oznacza
• oPÓŻniony
Why is there no article for “the” green light?
Polish has no articles (no words for a/the). The context tells you whether you mean “the green light” or “a green light.”
What’s the difference between oznaczać and znaczyć in Polish?
Both mean “to mean,” but oznaczać often carries the sense of “to indicate” or “to mark” something specific (e.g. a sign, a symbol), whereas znaczyć is more general for “meaning” or “definition” (e.g. what a word means). They overlap in usage, but the nuance differs.