Breakdown of Jeśli nie masz gotówki, bankomat jest zaraz obok parkingu.
być
to be
ty
you
mieć
to have
nie
not
Questions & Answers about Jeśli nie masz gotówki, bankomat jest zaraz obok parkingu.
What does Jeśli mean in this sentence, and how is it different from Kiedy?
Jeśli means “if,” introducing a condition. You use it when you talk about something hypothetical: “If you don’t have cash…”
Kiedy means “when” in a temporal sense (“When you arrive, call me.”), so it wouldn’t fit here.
Why is there a comma after gotówki?
In Polish, a comma separates the subordinate (conditional) clause introduced by jeśli from the main clause. So after Jeśli nie masz gotówki, you put a comma, then continue with bankomat jest….
Why is gotówki in the genitive case instead of the accusative?
With verbs of possession like mieć in the negative form, Polish traditionally uses the genitive for the direct object.
Positive: mam gotówkę (Accusative)
Negative: nie mam gotówki (Genitive)
What is the difference between gotówka and pieniądze?
Gotówka = physical cash (coins and banknotes) only.
Pieniądze = money in general (could include cash, card balance, digital).
If you specifically need banknotes/coins, say gotówka.