Learn Hardcore Polish: Po praniu wkładam koszule do szafy. - After the laundry I put the shirts into the wardrobe.

Here po means after and it requires the locative case. Hence po praniu is locative singular of pranie. Other meanings of po exist, but for the “after X” time meaning, use locative: po pracy, po obiedzie, po lekcji.

Why is it praniu and not pranie?

Because po (in the sense “after”) takes the locative case. The noun pranie (washing/laundry) declines; its locative singular is praniu. Mini-paradigm:

nominative: pranie
genitive: prania
dative/locative: praniu
accusative: pranie
instrumental: praniem

Does po praniu mean “after washing (in general)” or “after doing the laundry”?

It can mean either, depending on context. Pranie is a verbal noun that can refer to the activity or to the chore of laundry. If you want to specify what was washed, you can add it: po praniu koszul = “after washing the shirts.”

What tense/aspect is wkładam, and why not włożę?

Wkładam is present tense of the imperfective verb wkładać. In Polish, imperfective present often expresses a habitual action: “I (usually) put.” If you mean a one-time future action, use perfective future: Po praniu włożę koszule do szafy = “After the washing, I will put the shirts into the wardrobe (this time).”

What is the difference between wkładać and włożyć?

They are an imperfective/perfective pair:

wkładać (imperfective): ongoing, repeated, or habitual actions; present tense exists (e.g., wkładam).
włożyć (perfective): a single, completed action; present-tense forms refer to the future (e.g., włożę = “I will put in”).

What case is koszule here?

Accusative plural of koszula (a feminine noun). For inanimate feminine nouns, the accusative plural equals the nominative plural, so koszule can be either nominative plural or accusative plural; here it’s accusative as the direct object of wkładam. Singular accusative would be koszulę (“a shirt”).

Why isn’t it koszulę (singular)?

Because the sentence speaks about more than one shirt. Koszulę is the accusative singular (“a shirt”), while koszule is plural (“shirts”).

What case is szafy in do szafy, and why?

Genitive singular. The preposition do (“to/into”) requires genitive. Hence do szafy = “into the wardrobe.” Note that szafy can also be nominative plural in other contexts, but after do it’s genitive singular here.

What’s the difference between do szafy and w szafie?

do szafy (genitive) indicates movement into a place: “into the wardrobe.”
w szafie (locative) indicates location: “in the wardrobe.” So you’d say wkładam koszule do szafy when putting them in, but koszule są w szafie when stating where they are.

Is wkładam the most natural verb here, or should I use something like wieszam?

It depends on how you store shirts:

wkładam = “I put them in” (e.g., folded on a shelf or in a drawer).
wieszam = “I hang them (up)” (often more natural if your shirts go on hangers).
Other options: chowam (“put away”), odkładam (“put back”), układam (“arrange/neatly place”). All are fine if they match what you actually do.

Can wkładać also mean “to put on (clothes)”?

Yes. Wkładać can mean “to put something into something” or “to put on (clothes).” Context disambiguates. With do + genitive, like wkładam koszule do szafy, it clearly means “put in.” Without do, wkładam koszulę can be understood as “I’m putting a shirt on,” though zakładam koszulę is also common.

Do I need to say ja (“I”), or is wkładam enough?

You don’t need ja. Polish is pro-drop; the verb ending in wkładam already shows 1st person singular. Use Ja only for emphasis or contrast: Ja wkładam koszule do szafy, a on je wiesza.

How flexible is the word order? Can I move po praniu?

Word order is fairly flexible. You can say:

Po praniu wkładam koszule do szafy (neutral; sets the time frame first).
Wkładam po praniu koszule do szafy (also fine).
Koszule wkładam do szafy po praniu (puts focus on “shirts”). The meaning stays the same; you mainly adjust emphasis and flow.

How would negation affect the cases?

With a negated transitive verb, the direct object typically shifts to genitive. So:

Affirmative: Wkładam koszule do szafy.
Negative: Nie wkładam koszul do szafy. Note koszule → koszul (genitive plural).

What if I want to talk about multiple wardrobes?

Use genitive plural after do: do szaf. Compare:

do szafy = into the (one) wardrobe.
do szaf = into wardrobes (plural).

Can I replace koszule with a pronoun?

Yes: Po praniu wkładam je do szafy. Here je is the 3rd person non-masculine-personal accusative plural pronoun (“them”) and matches koszule.

Are there articles like “a” or “the” to choose in Polish?

No. Polish has no articles. Koszule can mean “shirts,” “the shirts,” or “some shirts,” depending on context.

Is po upraniu or po wypraniu also possible?

Yes, both come from perfective verbs meaning “after (having) washed.” For example: Po upraniu koszul włożę je do szafy = “After washing the shirts, I’ll put them into the wardrobe.” Po praniu is more general and common; po (u)wypraniu highlights completion of the washing event.

Does po ever take a case other than locative?

Yes, in other meanings it can take the accusative, e.g., iść po chleb (“to go for bread/to fetch bread”) or in distributive expressions po dwa jabłka (“two apples each”). But for the “after X” time meaning, it takes locative: po praniu, po pracy.

Any pronunciation tips for this sentence?

w is pronounced like English “v,” but before the voiceless k in wkładam it devoices, so you’ll hear something close to [f].
ł sounds like English “w” (so wkładam ≈ “fkwadam”).
sz in szafy is a retroflex “sh” [ʂ] (tongue slightly back).
ni in praniu before a vowel is the palatal [ɲ] (like Spanish ñ): [praɲu].
Stress is penultimate: po PRAniu wkłaDAM koSZUle do SZAfy.