Learn Hardcore Polish: On jest bardziej zajęty rano niż wieczorem. - He is busier in the morning than in the evening.

Bardziej modifies adjectives and adverbs (how something is), while więcej modifies nouns and some verbs (how much/many). You say bardziej zajęty (“busier”), not więcej zajęty.
Polish has two ways to make comparatives:
- synthetic (one word): e.g., drogi → droższy, miły → milszy
- periphrastic (with bardziej): e.g., skomplikowany → bardziej skomplikowany
Zajęty is a participial adjective and does not form a natural synthetic comparative, so zajętszy is considered incorrect/nonstandard. Use bardziej zajęty.

Can I drop the subject pronoun On?

Yes. Polish is pro‑drop, so if context makes the subject clear, you can say: Jest bardziej zajęty rano niż wieczorem. Keep On if you want to emphasize “he” or avoid ambiguity.

Do I have to keep jest, or can I say On bardziej zajęty rano niż wieczorem?

In standard Polish you should keep the copula: On jest bardziej zajęty… Dropping jest is telegraphic/elliptical (headlines, notes, very casual speech) and not recommended in neutral prose.

Why is there no preposition before rano? Shouldn’t it be something like w rano?

No. Rano is an adverb/adverbial noun meaning “in the morning,” so it needs no preposition. Alternatives:

rankiem (slightly more formal/literary)
z rana (colloquial-ish “in the mornings/early”)
nad ranem (“towards morning/dawn,” different nuance)

Why wieczorem and not w wieczór or w wieczorze?

Wieczorem is the instrumental form of wieczór used adverbially to mean “in the evening.” You normally don’t say w wieczór/w wieczorze in this sense. Another common adverbial option is wieczorami (“in the evenings,” habitually).

What’s the difference between niż and od in comparisons here? Do I need a comma before niż?

After comparatives, standard Polish uses niż: bardziej X niż Y.
You can sometimes use od
- Genitive: większy od ciebie. But with times of day, od wieczora risks meaning “since evening,” not “than in the evening,” so niż wieczorem is clearer.
No comma before niż in this sentence.

Is jak acceptable instead of niż?

In many regions/speech, people say bardziej… jak…, but in standard Polish, use niż after comparatives. For formal or careful speech/writing, prefer niż.

How flexible is the word order?

Polish allows some flexibility for emphasis:

Neutral: On jest bardziej zajęty rano niż wieczorem.
Focus on time: Rano jest (on) bardziej zajęty niż wieczorem.
Strong focus on the predicate: Bardziej zajęty jest on rano niż wieczorem. (marked, stylistic) All versions keep the same basic meaning; the differences are about emphasis.

How does zajęty agree for gender and number?

Masculine singular: zajęty (On jest bardziej zajęty…)
Feminine singular: zajęta (Ona jest bardziej zajęta…)
Neuter singular: zajęte (Ono jest bardziej zajęte…)
Plural:
- masculine personal: zajęci (Oni są bardziej zajęci…)
- non‑masculine personal: zajęte (One są bardziej zajęte…)

How do I pronounce the tricky parts?

zajęty: roughly “za‑YEN‑tih.” The ę before t sounds like “en.” Stress the second syllable: za‑JĘ‑ty.
wieczorem: “vye‑CHO‑rem” (cz = “ch” in “church”). Stress: wie‑CZO‑rem.
niż: “neezh,” with ż like the “s” in “measure.” Note it’s spelled with ż, not ź.
rano: “RA‑no,” stress on RA.
jest: “yest.”

Can I intensify or soften the comparison?

Yes:

Intensify: o wiele/znacznie/dużo bardziej zajęty (much/significantly/a lot busier)
Soften: nieco/trochę mniej zajęty (a bit less busy) or trochę bardziej zajęty (a bit busier)

How do I say “less busy” instead of “busier”?

Use mniej with the adjective: On jest mniej zajęty rano niż wieczorem.

Does zajęty only mean “busy (with work)”?

No. Zajęty also means “occupied/taken”:

To miejsce jest zajęte. (This seat is taken.)
Linia jest zajęta. (The phone line is busy/engaged.) Context disambiguates the meaning.

How would I express habits, past, or future?

Tendency/habit: On bywa bardziej zajęty rano niż wieczorem. (He tends to be…)
Past: On był bardziej zajęty rano niż wieczorem.
Future: On będzie bardziej zajęty rano niż wieczorem.

Are there other natural ways to say “in the morning/in the evening”?

Morning: rano, rankiem, z rana, o poranku (more literary), nad ranem (towards dawn)
Evening: wieczorem, wieczorami (in the evenings, habitually) Choose based on nuance (habitual, literary, specific time).

Can I say On jest zajęty bardziej rano niż wieczorem?

Yes, and it subtly shifts the focus to the time distribution (“busy more in the morning than in the evening”). The original (jest bardziej zajęty…) emphasizes the degree of busyness. For frequency, you can be explicit: On jest częściej zajęty rano niż wieczorem.

If I swap the parts, do I change the meaning? For example: On jest bardziej zajęty wieczorem niż rano.

Yes, that says the opposite (busier in the evening than in the morning). Keep the more‑busy time immediately before niż to preserve the intended meaning.

Any common spelling or punctuation pitfalls here?

niż is spelled with ż, not ź.
No comma before niż in this construction.
Don’t add a preposition before rano or wieczorem in this meaning (avoid w rano, w wieczór).