Musimy poczekać kilka minut.

We must wait a few minutes.

Breakdown of Musimy poczekać kilka minut.

• musieć: must
• minuta: the minute
• poczekać: to wait
• kilka: a few

Questions & Answers about Musimy poczekać kilka minut.

Why is it poczekać and not czekać?

Polish distinguishes aspect:

• czekać (imperfective) = the ongoing process of waiting.
• poczekać (perfective) = to wait once for a limited time, until it’s done. With a short, bounded wait like “a few minutes,” poczekać sounds very natural. You could say Musimy czekać kilka minut, but it emphasizes the process more than the completion.

What exactly does musimy express? Is it “have to,” “must,” or “should”?

Musimy (from musieć) is strong necessity: “must/have to.” Softer or different flavors:

• Powinniśmy = we should (advice).
• Mamy [coś zrobić] = we’re supposed/expected to.
• Impersonal trzeba poczekać = it’s necessary to wait (no subject).

How do you conjugate musieć in the present?

• ja: muszę
• ty: musisz
• on/ona/ono: musi
• my: musimy
• wy: musicie
• oni/one: muszą

How do I say it in the past or future?

• Past: Musieliśmy/Musiałyśmy poczekać… (we, masc‑personal/feminine). For I: Musiałem/Musiałam.
• Future: Będziemy musieli/musiały poczekać… (we will have to). Present musimy often implies immediate future in context.

Why is it kilka minut, not kilka minuty or kilka minuty?

Kilka governs the genitive plural. The genitive plural of minuta is minut, so: kilka minut. (Nom. pl. is minuty, but not after kilka.)

Can I say parę minut instead of kilka minut?

Yes. Parę minut ≈ kilka minut (“a few minutes”). Parę is common and a bit more colloquial; both are fine.

Why not “Musimy poczekać na kilka minut”?

Because na with czekać means “wait for [something/someone],” not duration. For duration, use just the time phrase (kilka minut) or optionally przez kilka minut. So:

• Correct: Musimy poczekać kilka minut.
• Correct (emphasis on duration): … przez kilka minut.
• Incorrect here: … na kilka minut.

What’s the word order flexibility here?

All are grammatical, with different emphasis:

• Musimy poczekać kilka minut. (neutral)
• Musimy kilka minut poczekać. (slight focus on the amount of waiting)
• Kilka minut musimy poczekać. (strong focus on “a few minutes”)

How do I say “Let’s wait a few minutes” (suggestion) instead of “We must…”?

Use the 1st‑person plural imperative: Poczekajmy kilka minut. It’s a polite suggestion.

How do I pronounce the tricky sounds?

• musimy ≈ “moo‑SHEE‑mih” (the si is like a soft “sh”).
• poczekać ≈ “po‑CHEH‑katch” (hard cz like “ch” in “church”; final ć is a soft “tch”).
• kilka minut ≈ “KEEL‑ka MEE‑noot.” Polish stress is on the second‑to‑last syllable: mu‑SI‑my, po‑CZE‑kać, KIL‑ka MI‑nut.

How do I say “wait for someone/something”?

Use czekać/poczekać na + accusative:

• poczekać na autobus, na Tomka, na ciebie. Do not use na for duration.

Is “poczekać X minut” with a number okay? What about 1, 2–4, 5+?

Yes:

• 1: minutę (acc. sg.) → poczekać minutę
• 2–4: minuty → poczekać 2/3/4 minuty
• 5+ (and most quantifiers): minut (gen. pl.) → poczekać 5/10 minut, kilka minut

What’s the difference between poczekać and zaczekać?

Both mean “wait (a bit).” Poczekać is the most neutral. Zaczekać is very common in speech and can feel a touch more informal/“hold on a sec” in tone. They’re largely interchangeable here.

If I want to say “We don’t have to wait,” how do I negate it? And how do I say “We mustn’t wait”?

• “We don’t have to wait”: Nie musimy czekać/poczekać.
• “We mustn’t” (not allowed): Nie wolno nam czekać. You can also say Nie możemy czekać (“we can’t”), or Nie powinniśmy czekać (“we shouldn’t”).

Do I need the pronoun my?

No. Polish usually drops subject pronouns because the verb ending shows the person. Musimy already means “we must.” Use My musimy only for emphasis or contrast.

Does musimy refer to now or the future?

Context decides. Musimy poczekać… in conversation usually means “we need to wait (now/soon).” If you need clear future, use będziemy musieli…

What’s the difference between kilka minut and za kilka minut?

• kilka minut = duration (“for a few minutes”).
• za kilka minut = time point in the future (“in a few minutes/from now”). Example: Musimy poczekać kilka minut. Za kilka minut nas wpuszczą.

Is przez required before time spans?

No. It’s optional and adds emphasis on duration. Both are correct:

• Musimy poczekać kilka minut.
• Musimy poczekać przez kilka minut. (more explicit about “for the duration of…”)