Learn Hardcore Polish: Chciałbym, żeby zaproszenie na wystawę sztuki przyszło wcześniej. - I would like the invitation to the art exhibition to come earlier.

In Polish, chcę is the simple present tense of “to want” and sounds like a direct statement (“I want”). Chciałbym is the conditional form (“I would like”), made from the past tense stem of chcieć plus the particle -by. It’s more polite or softer than chcę. (A female speaker would say chciałabym.)

What is the function of żeby in this sentence?

Żeby is a conjunction introducing a subordinate clause that expresses a wish or purpose. You can think of it as “that” in English (“I would like that…”). After żeby, Polish requires the verb in its past (perfective) form to convey a hoped-for future event.

Why is the verb przyszło in the past tense when it refers to something that hasn’t happened yet?

Polish uses the past tense form of perfective verbs in subordinate clauses after żeby to talk about future events. Here, przyjść (perfective “to arrive”) becomes przyszło (neuter past), which in this context means “may arrive” or “would arrive.”

Why is there a comma before żeby?

Polish punctuation requires a comma between the main clause and a subordinate clause introduced by żeby. Hence the comma separates Chciałbym (main clause) from żeby zaproszenie… (subordinate clause).

In zaproszenie na wystawę sztuki, why is wystawę accusative and sztuki genitive?

na wystawę: na takes the accusative when indicating direction or purpose (“to the exhibition”).
sztuki: the genitive case specifies the type of exhibition (“of art”).

Could I use aby instead of żeby, and is there any nuance?

Yes. Aby is a more formal or literary synonym of żeby. Both introduce a desired action with the same structure. In everyday speech, żeby is more common; aby appears more in written or elevated styles.

Are there alternative verbs I could use instead of przyszło?

Absolutely. Depending on nuance, you might say:
• dotarło (“reached”)
• przyjechało (“came” by transport)
• dostałem/dostałbym (“I received/would receive”)
Example: Chciałbym, żeby zaproszenie na wystawę sztuki dotarło wcześniej.

Where can wcześniej be placed, and does it change the emphasis?

Wcześniej (“earlier”) is flexible in position:

End of the clause (neutral): przyszło wcześniej
Before the verb (more emphasis on time): wcześniej przyszło
Immediately after żeby (slightly more formal/orderly): żeby wcześniej zaproszenie…
All are grammatically correct; moving wcześniej closer to the front puts stronger focus on the timing.