Questions & Answers about Na rynku kupiono warzywa, a potem ugotowano zupę.
What are the forms kupiono and ugotowano? Why is there no subject?
They are the Polish impersonal past forms in -no/-to. They report that an action was performed, but by an unspecified person or people. Think of English generic they or a passive: One bought..., The vegetables were bought..., Someone bought.... Polish uses this to keep the doer unknown or irrelevant. It’s common in narratives, news, instructions, and recipes.
Is this a passive sentence?
Not exactly. It’s an impersonal active-like construction. A true passive would be:
- Warzywa zostały kupione na rynku, a potem zupa została ugotowana. In the passive, former objects become subjects in the nominative (warzywa, zupa), and you can add an agent with przez: przez nas, przez kucharza, etc. In the -no/-to construction, the direct object stays in the accusative (see zupę below), and you can’t add an agent.
How would I say it with “we” as the subject?
- Mixed or all-male group: Kupiliśmy warzywa na rynku, a potem ugotowaliśmy zupę.
- All-female group: Kupiłyśmy warzywa na rynku, a potem ugotowałyśmy zupę. You can add my for emphasis: My kupiliśmy...
Why is it zupę, not zupa? What case are warzywa and zupę?