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Questions & Answers about Ja wolę tamten.
Do I need the subject pronoun Ja here?
No. Polish normally drops subject pronouns. The neutral way is simply: Wolę tamten. Using Ja adds emphasis or contrast: Ja wolę tamten (a nie ktoś inny).
What’s the difference between ten and tamten?
- ten = this (near me/us).
- tamten = that (farther away) or “the other one” (as opposed to this one). In pointing situations, ten vs tamten is the default way to contrast two visible options. tamten can also mean “that earlier one” in a narrative or when contrasting two mentioned items.
Why is it tamten, not tamtego?
It depends on case and animacy. woleć (to prefer) takes the accusative:
- Masculine inanimate (film/kolor): accusative = nominative → Wolę tamten.
- Masculine animate (man/dog): accusative = genitive → Wolę tamtego (chłopaka/psa).
- Feminine: Wolę tamtą (sukienkę).
- Neuter: Wolę tamto (piwo).
- Plural masculine personal (men): Wolę tamtych (panów).
- Other plurals: Wolę tamte (filmy/sukienki/okna). So the sentence with tamten implies a masculine inanimate noun from context.
What if the noun is feminine or neuter? How would the sentence change?