Breakdown of Szef powiedział, że warunek dostawy musi być jasny w umowie.
być
to be
w
in
że
that
musieć
must
powiedzieć
to say
szef
the boss
umowa
the contract
warunek
the condition
dostawa
the delivery
jasny
clear
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Questions & Answers about Szef powiedział, że warunek dostawy musi być jasny w umowie.
Why is there a comma before że?
In Polish, subordinate clauses introduced by że are always separated from the main clause with a comma. So you write Szef powiedział, że … rather than Szef powiedział że ….
Why is powiedział used instead of mówił?
Powiedział is perfective, indicating a single, completed statement. Mówił is imperfective, suggesting ongoing or repeated speech. Since we report one finished utterance, we choose powiedział.
How does the construction musi być jasny work? Is it passive voice?
No, it’s a modal construction: musi (must) + infinitive być (to be) + adjective jasny (clear). It means “has to be clear.” There’s no passive participle; jasny simply describes the subject warunek.
Why is dostawy in the genitive case?
After warunek (condition), you ask warunek czego? (“condition of what?”). That requires the genitive. Hence dostawy (“of delivery”) is genitive.
Why is umowie in the locative case?
The preposition w (in) governing location always takes the locative case. Umowa in the locative becomes umowie, so w umowie means “in the contract.”
Can I change the word order in the subordinate clause?
Yes. Polish is quite flexible. You could say W umowie musi być jasny warunek dostawy or Musi być jasny warunek dostawy w umowie. The original order is simply the most neutral.
Why is Szef capitalized here?
It’s capitalized because it’s the first word of the sentence. As a common noun in mid-sentence it would normally be lowercase (szef).
What’s the difference between indirect speech with że and direct speech?
Indirect (reported) speech uses że plus a comma and no quotation marks: Szef powiedział, że warunek dostawy musi być jasny w umowie. Direct speech quotes the exact words, often introduced by a colon or dash and then the quoted sentence in quotes or bold, for example: Szef powiedział: Warunek dostawy musi być jasny w umowie.