Breakdown of Kolejny film zaczyna się za dziesięć minut.
film
the movie
zaczynać się
to start
minuta
the minute
dziesięć
ten
za
in
kolejny
next
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Questions & Answers about Kolejny film zaczyna się za dziesięć minut.
What does kolejny mean in this sentence, and how is it different from następny?
kolejny literally means “another” or “one more,” and by extension “the next” in a series. It emphasizes continuation—“an additional film” after the previous one. następny also means “next,” but it focuses more on the immediate following item in a scheduled order.
Example:
- Kolejny film może być dobry. (Here’s another film, one more after the last.)
- Następny film zacznie się o ósmej. (The very next film on the schedule starts at eight.)
Why is there się in zaczyna się? Is it necessary?
The basic verb zaczynać is transitive (“to start something”: on zaczyna lekcję – he starts the lesson). To say “to begin” intransitively (“something starts”), Polish uses the reflexive form zaczynać się or the perfective zacznie się. The się makes the verb middle‐voice/intransitive, so film zaczyna się = “the film starts.” Without się, you’d need a direct object.
The verb zaczyna się is in the present tense. Shouldn’t we use a future form for an event happening in ten minutes?
In Polish, the present tense is often used for fixed or scheduled future events, much like English “The train leaves at 5.” You can also say the future perfective zacznie się:
- Film zaczyna się za dziesięć minut. (present for schedule)
- Film zacznie się za dziesięć minut. (explicit future)
Both are correct; the present is more colloquial for timetables or announcements.
In za dziesięć minut, why do we say dziesięć minut and not dziesięć minuty or dziesięć minutów?
Polish numerals have special agreement rules: with numbers from five upward, the counted noun takes the genitive plural form. The noun minuta (nominative plural minuty) turns into genitive plural minut. So dziesięć minut is the correct form. There is no form minutów in standard Polish.
What does za indicate here, and why is it followed by the accusative?
When talking about time, za + accusative expresses “in” a certain amount of time from now: za dziesięć minut = “in ten minutes.” Grammatically, za governs the accusative case for time expressions (just as za pięć dni, za pół godziny).
Sometimes I see w dziesięć minut. Can we say Kolejny film zaczyna się w dziesięć minut?
No – w dziesięć minut with accusative usually describes the duration needed to accomplish something (“in ten minutes I wrote the letter”). It doesn’t mark a point in the future when something will start. To say when it starts, you must use za + accusative.
Can we change the word order to Za dziesięć minut zaczyna się kolejny film? Does that sound natural?
Yes. Polish has flexible word order. Starting with Za dziesięć minut places emphasis on the time (“In ten minutes…”), then follows the verb and subject. The meaning is identical and both versions sound natural in announcements or conversation.
Can I use rozpoczyna się instead of zaczyna się? Are there any differences?
Yes. rozpoczynać się/rozpocznie się is fully interchangeable with zaczynać się/zacznie się, but rozpoczynać się is often slightly more formal or literary. In everyday speech you’ll hear zaczyna się more frequently.