W ogrodzie jest wąska ścieżka.

to be

Breakdown of W ogrodzie jest wąska ścieżka.

• w: in
• wąski: narrow
• ogród: the garden

Questions & Answers about W ogrodzie jest wąska ścieżka.

What does jest mean in this sentence, and where is the equivalent of English “there”?

Here jest is the 3rd person singular of być (to be), used in an existential construction. Polish doesn’t use a separate word for “there” in sentences like this. You simply say W ogrodzie jest wąska ścieżka, which literally means “In the garden is a narrow path.”

Why is ogrodzie used instead of ogród?

The preposition w (in) requires the locative case. The locative singular of the masculine noun ogród is ogrodzie.

Why is ścieżka in the nominative case here, not the genitive or another case?

In existential sentences with jest or są, the noun that denotes what exists appears in the nominative case.

Why isn’t there an article a or the before wąska ścieżka?

Polish has no articles. Definiteness or indefiniteness is inferred from context or word order, so you simply say wąska ścieżka for “a narrow path.”

How do wąska and ścieżka agree in gender, number, and case?