Breakdown of Restauracja przy plaży jest czynna tylko do dziesiątej.
być
to be
restauracja
the restaurant
tylko
only
przy
by
plaża
the beach
czynny
open
do dziesiątej
until ten
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Questions & Answers about Restauracja przy plaży jest czynna tylko do dziesiątej.
Why is przy used here instead of na or obok?
In Polish przy means “next to” or “by” and expresses simple proximity. It’s the usual preposition for saying something is located beside something else. Na would mean “on” (on the beach, on a table, etc.) and obok also means “next to,” but it’s more general and doesn’t govern a specific case the way przy does.
Why is plaży in the locative case?
The preposition przy always requires the locative case. Plaża (beach) in the locative becomes plaży, so przy plaży literally means “beside the beach.”
What does czynna mean, and why is it in the feminine form?
Czynna is an adjective meaning “open” (as in “open for business”). It agrees in gender, number, and case with restauracja, which is feminine. That’s why you see czynna rather than czynny (masculine) or czynne (neuter/plural).
Why isn’t there an article like the before restauracja?
Polish does not have articles (definite or indefinite) like English the or a. Nouns stand alone, and context or word order supplies whether something is specific or general.
What role does tylko play in this sentence? Could you omit it?
Tylko means “only” or “just,” adding a limiting nuance: the restaurant is open only until ten. Omitting tylko would still be correct (Restauracja przy plaży jest czynna do dziesiątej), but you’d lose the emphasis on the time restriction.
Why is dziesiątej in the genitive case?
The preposition do meaning “until” or “up to” requires the genitive case, especially with time expressions. The ordinal dziesiąty (“tenth”) becomes dziesiątej in genitive.
How would I specify if it’s 10 AM or 10 PM?
You can add a time-of-day word, for example do dziesiątej rano (“until ten in the morning”) or do dziesiątej wieczorem (“until ten in the evening”). In more formal contexts you might use the 24-hour clock: do 22:00 for 10 PM.
Can I move przy plaży to the end of the sentence?
Yes. Polish word order is fairly flexible. You can say Restauracja jest czynna tylko do dziesiątej przy plaży, though the original order (Restauracja przy plaży jest…) sounds more natural and emphasizes location first.