Breakdown of Podjęliśmy decyzję, żeby wynająć mieszkanie w nowej dzielnicy.
w
in
nowy
new
żeby
in order to
mieszkanie
the apartment
podjąć decyzję
to make a decision
wynająć
to rent
dzielnica
the district
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Questions & Answers about Podjęliśmy decyzję, żeby wynająć mieszkanie w nowej dzielnicy.
Why is there a comma before żeby in this sentence?
In Polish, a comma separates the main clause from a subordinate clause introduced by conjunctions like żeby. Here żeby wynająć mieszkanie… is a purpose clause following Podjęliśmy decyzję, so you place a comma before żeby.
What does żeby wynająć mean and why do we use żeby plus an infinitive?
Żeby introduces a clause of purpose or intention, similar to English “in order to.” When followed by an infinitive (wynająć), it tells us why the action in the main clause was done. So żeby wynająć mieszkanie = “to rent an apartment,” explaining the purpose of the decision.
Can we use aby instead of żeby here? Are they interchangeable?
Yes. Aby and żeby both introduce purpose clauses. Aby is a bit more formal or literary, while żeby is more common in everyday speech. You could write Podjęliśmy decyzję, aby wynająć mieszkanie... with no change in meaning.
Why is wynająć used instead of the imperfective wynajmować?
Wynająć is perfective, focusing on the single, completed action of renting the apartment. The imperfective wynajmować would imply a repeated or ongoing activity (“to be renting”). Since the decision refers to the one-time act of securing an apartment, the perfective wynająć is appropriate.
What case is mieszkanie in, and why does it look the same as the nominative?
Mieszkanie is in the accusative case as the direct object of wynająć. In neuter nouns, the nominative and accusative singular are identical in form, but functionally here it’s accusative.
Why do we say w nowej dzielnicy instead of na nowej dzielnicy?
For locations like districts or neighborhoods, Polish generally uses w + locative case (here nowej dzielnicy). Na is used on surfaces or some named regions (e.g., na wyspie, na Mazurach), but for city districts you normally say w dzielnicy.
How do we form nowej dzielnicy from nowa dzielnica?
Dzielnica is a feminine noun. After the preposition w (indicating location), you use the locative case. Feminine nouns ending in -a change to -i/-y (dzielnica → dzielnicy), and adjectives change -a to -ej (nowa → nowej).
Could we rephrase the sentence as Zdecydowaliśmy się wynająć mieszkanie w nowej dzielnicy? Does it mean the same thing?
Yes. Zdecydowaliśmy się + infinitive is a common, more concise alternative to podjęliśmy decyzję, żeby. Both mean “we decided to rent an apartment in a new district.”
What aspect is the verb podjęliśmy, and why is it perfective here?
Podjęliśmy is the past tense of the perfective verb podjąć, indicating that the act of making the decision is complete. The imperfective counterpart podejmowaliśmy would imply repeated or ongoing decisions, which doesn’t fit when you talk about a single choice.