Doktor mówi powoli.

The doctor speaks slowly.

Breakdown of Doktor mówi powoli.

• doktor: the doctor
• powoli: slowly
• mówić: to speak

Questions & Answers about Doktor mówi powoli.

Why are there no articles in Polish? How do I know if Doktor is “the doctor” or “a doctor”?

Polish does not use articles like “a” or “the.” Instead, context tells you if it’s definite or indefinite. Doktor mówi powoli can mean either A doctor speaks slowly or The doctor speaks slowly, depending on what you already know in the conversation.

What case and grammatical function does Doktor have in this sentence?

Doktor is in the nominative case and serves as the subject. It answers the question Who? – in this case, the doctor is the one doing the speaking.

How is mówi formed, and what are the other present‐tense forms of mówić?

mówi is the 3rd person singular present tense of mówić (to speak). The full present‐tense conjugation is:
• ja mówię
• ty mówisz
• on/ona/ono mówi
• my mówimy
• wy mówicie
• oni/one mówią

How do you pronounce mówi and powoli?

In Polish, ó is pronounced like the English oo in food. So:
• mówi = /’mu.vi/ (“MOO-vee”)
• powoli = /pɔ.’vɔ.li/ with stress on the second syllable (“po-VO-li”)

What part of speech is powoli, and does it change form?

powoli is an adverb meaning slowly. Adverbs in Polish don’t decline, so powoli stays the same regardless of gender, number, or case.

Is there a difference between powoli and wolno?

Both mean slowly, but powoli is more neutral and unambiguous. wolno can also mean it’s allowed (archaic usage) or free (rarely), so powoli is often preferred for “slowly.”

Can I move powoli around in the sentence for emphasis?

Yes. Polish word order is flexible.
• Doktor mówi powoli. (neutral)
• Doktor powoli mówi. (slightly emphasizes the manner of speaking)

How would I turn this into a question?

Two common ways:

1. Add the question particle czy at the start: Czy doktor mówi powoli? (Does the doctor speak slowly?)
2. Simply use rising intonation: Doktor mówi powoli? (The doctor speaks slowly?)

What’s the difference between doktor and lekarz?

lekarz is the everyday word for a medical doctor. doktor can mean someone with a doctoral degree or be a more formal word for a physician. In everyday speech, people usually say lekarz, but doktor is perfectly understood in a medical context.