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Questions & Answers about Opis książki jest ciekawy.
What does opis mean, and what is its grammatical gender?
Opis translates as description in English. In Polish, it is a masculine inanimate singular noun, which means adjectives and verbs referring to it must agree in the masculine singular form.
Why is książki in the genitive case here, and not in the nominative?
In Polish the phrase “description of something” is built as opis + genitive (i.e. opis czegoś). Here, książka (book) takes its genitive singular form książki. Although książki can also look like nominative plural, the fact that the head noun opis is singular forces książki to be genitive singular by meaning.
How does the adjective ciekawy agree with opis?
Because opis is a masculine inanimate singular noun in the nominative case (the subject), the adjective ciekawy must also appear in the nominative masculine singular form, which is ciekawy. If opis were feminine, plural, or in another case, the form of ciekawy would change accordingly (e.g. ciekawa, ciekawi, ciekawą, etc.).
Why is the verb jest necessary here, and can it be omitted?
Jest is the 3rd person singular present tense of być (“to be”), serving as the copula linking opis książki (the subject) with ciekawy (the predicate adjective). In standard Polish full sentences, you normally include jest. In headlines, notes, or very colloquial speech you might see it dropped (“Opis książki ciekawy”), but that’s an ellipsis, not the norm in everyday conversation.
Why don’t we say To opis książki jest ciekawy by adding to at the front?
To is a demonstrative pronoun meaning “this/that” and is used for identification (“To jest kot” = “This is a cat”). In a plain descriptive sentence you don’t need to. You simply place the subject (opis książki) before the verb jest.
How would you express “The descriptions of the books are interesting” in Polish?
You would say:
• Opisy (nominative plural of opis)
• książek (genitive plural of książka)
• są (3rd person plural of być)
• ciekawe (nominative plural adjective agreeing with opisy)
Putting it all together: Opisy książek są ciekawe.
Can I change the word order to “Ciekawy jest opis książki”, and does it change the meaning?
Yes—Polish word order is fairly flexible. “Ciekawy jest opis książki” is grammatically correct and puts extra emphasis on ciekawy (“It’s interesting that the book’s description…”). The basic meaning stays the same, but the neutral order is Subject – Verb – Predicate.
How do you pronounce Opis książki jest ciekawy, and where do you place the stress?
Approximate IPA transcription:
/ˈɔ.pʲis ˈkɕɔ̃ʂ.kʲi jɛst t͡ɕɛˈka.vɨ/
Polish stress is almost always on the penultimate syllable:
• ˈO-pis
• ˈKSIĄŻ-ki
• jest (one syllable)
• cie-ˈKA-vy