Breakdown of W niedzielę lubię wstać późno.
ja
I
lubić
to like
późno
late
wstać
to get up
w niedzielę
on Sundays
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Polish grammar and vocabulary.
Questions & Answers about W niedzielę lubię wstać późno.
Why is niedzielę in its accusative form instead of the nominative niedziela?
Time expressions with w + day of the week take the accusative case. So niedziela → niedzielę after w (“on Sunday”).
Why do we need the preposition w before niedzielę?
In Polish, to say “on [day],” you use w + accusative. Without w, niedzielę alone could be misinterpreted or require a different case.
What tense and aspect is lubię, and why is it used here?
lubię is the first-person singular present tense of the imperfective verb lubić (“to like”). It expresses a general preference or habit (“I like …”).
Why isn’t the subject pronoun ja included?
Polish verbs show person and number in their endings, so subject pronouns are often omitted when context is clear.
Why is wstać (perfective) used, and could I use wstawać (imperfective) instead?
- wstać is perfective (“to get up” as a complete action).
- wstawać is imperfective (“to be getting up,” repeated or ongoing).
With lubić for habits, the imperfective wstawać is often more natural (Lubię wstawać późno), but perfective wstać isn’t wrong if you emphasize the whole action of getting up.
Can the word order be changed? For example, Lubię w niedzielę późno wstać?
Yes. Polish word order is flexible. You can say:
• Lubię w niedzielę późno wstać.
• W niedzielę późno lubię wstać.
All mean essentially the same; fronting time expressions or adverbs just shifts the emphasis slightly.
What part of speech is późno, and why not później?
późno is an adverb meaning “late.” później is its comparative, “later,” which would change the meaning (e.g., “I prefer to wake up later” relative to something else). Here you state the general lateness of the action.
Could I use na niedzielę instead of w niedzielę?
No. na + accusative with days usually means “for [day]” in the sense “scheduled for,” not “on that day” habitually. For a habitual statement like this, use w niedzielę.