Dzieci skaczą w ogrodzie.

The children jump in the garden.

Breakdown of Dzieci skaczą w ogrodzie.

• w: in
• dziecko: the child
• ogród: the garden
• skakać: to jump

Questions & Answers about Dzieci skaczą w ogrodzie.

Why isn’t there an article like the or a in this Polish sentence?

Polish has no articles. English uses a and the to show indefiniteness or definiteness, but Polish relies on context, word order, or extra words (like ten “this”) instead.

How do I pronounce Dzieci skaczą w ogrodzie, and where does the stress fall?

Approximate pronunciation:
• Dzieci → “JETCH-ee” ([d͡ʑɛˈt͡ɕi])
• skaczą → “ska-CHOON” ([skaˈt͡ʂɔ̃])
• w → “v”
• ogrodzie → “og-ROD-zhe” ([ɔˈɡrɔd͡ʑɛ])
In Polish, each word is stressed on its penultimate (second-to-last) syllable: DZIE-ci, SKA-czą, og-RO-dzie.

What form is dzieci and why isn’t it dziecko?

Dzieci is the nominative plural of dziecko (“child”). It’s irregular:
– Singular: dziecko
– Plural: dzieci

What information does skaczą give me about the verb?

Skaczą is the 3rd person plural present tense of the imperfective verb skakać (“to jump”). It tells you:
• Person/Number: “they” (plural)
• Tense: present (“they jump” or “they are jumping”)
• Aspect: imperfective, which denotes ongoing or habitual action

Why is the location phrase w ogrodzie in that form?

After the preposition w (“in”), Polish uses the locative case to show location. Ogród (“garden”) changes to ogrodzie in the singular locative.

How exactly do you form the locative of ogród?

1. Drop the nominative ending: ogród → stem ogrod- (note ó becomes o)
2. Add the locative ending -zie → ogrodzie

Could I say na ogrodzie instead of w ogrodzie?

No.
• w + locative expresses being “in” an enclosed or bounded space.
• na + locative expresses “on” a surface.
A garden is considered a space you stand inside, so you use w ogrodzie.

How do I make the sentence negative?

Insert nie before the verb:
Dzieci nie skaczą w ogrodzie.
(“The children are not jumping in the garden.”)

How can I turn it into a question?

1. Add Czy at the beginning for a yes/no question:
   Czy dzieci skaczą w ogrodzie?
2. Or keep the word order and use rising intonation:
   Dzieci skaczą w ogrodzie?

Is the word order fixed, or can I say it differently?

Polish word order is flexible. For emphasis you can swap parts without changing the basic meaning:
• W ogrodzie skaczą dzieci.
Both versions mean “Children are jumping in the garden,” but starting with w ogrodzie shifts the focus to the location.