Learn Hardcore Polish: Naprawa tramwaju to nowy projekt wolontariusza i sąsiadki. - Repairing the tram is a new project of the volunteer and the neighbor.

• naprawa is the subject of the sentence, so it takes the nominative.
• tramwaju answers the question “repair of what?” (naprawa czego?), and nouns after naprawa use the genitive.

What role does to play here, and why isn’t there a jest?

• In Polish, the word to can serve as a linking word (copula) in equational sentences: X to Y means “X is Y.”
• You could also say Naprawa tramwaju jest nowym projektem…, but then you’d use jest and change the case of the predicate (see next question).

Why is nowy projekt in the nominative, not instrumental?

• When you use to as the copula, both sides stay in the nominative: naprawa tramwaju (nom.) to nowy projekt (nom.).
• If you replace to with jest, the second noun becomes instrumental:
– Naprawa tramwaju jest nowym projektem wolontariusza i sąsiadki.

Why are wolontariusza and sąsiadki both in the genitive case?

• The noun projekt answers “project of whom?” (projekt kogo?), and Polish uses the genitive to show possession or association.
• Therefore you say projekt wolontariusza (project of the volunteer) and projekt sąsiadki (project of the neighbor), joined by i (“and”).

How do you know whether nowy projekt means “a new project” or “the new project”?

Polish has no articles (no “a” or “the”). You decide definiteness from context.
• Nowy projekt could mean a new project or the new project, depending on what you’ve already been talking about.

Could you use naprawianie tramwaju instead of naprawa tramwaju?

Yes, but there’s a nuance:
• naprawianie (gerund) highlights the ongoing process of repairing.
• naprawa (noun) refers to the act or result of the repair.
In naming a project, naprawa (the concrete task or result) is more natural.

Can the sentence order be changed?

Absolutely. You can swap subject and predicate around to:
• Nowy projekt wolontariusza i sąsiadki to naprawa tramwaju.
Meaning stays the same, though emphasis may shift slightly.

If you wanted to stress the people, could you add a pronoun like ich (“their”)?

Yes. To say “the repair of the tram is their new project,” you could add ich before nowy projekt:
• Naprawa tramwaju to ich nowy projekt wolontariusza i sąsiadki.
But in the original, possession is clear from the genitive forms alone.