Ból wraca wieczorem.

The pain comes back in the evening.

Breakdown of Ból wraca wieczorem.

• wieczorem: in the evening
• wracać: to return
• ból: the pain

Questions & Answers about Ból wraca wieczorem.

Why is there no word for “the” here?

Polish has no articles. Ból can mean either “pain” or “the pain,” depending on context. If you need to specify, use a demonstrative: Ten ból wraca wieczorem (“This/the pain returns in the evening”).

What grammatical forms are used in this sentence?

• Ból — noun, masculine inanimate, nominative singular (subject).
• wraca — 3rd person singular present of the imperfective verb wracać (“to return, come back”).
• wieczorem — instrumental singular of wieczór (“evening”), used adverbially to mean “in the evening.”

Why is it wieczorem and not something with a preposition like w?

Time-of-day words often use the instrumental without a preposition to mean “in/at”: rano (in the morning), wieczorem (in the evening), nocą (at night). W wieczór is not idiomatic. To refer to a specific evening, use genitive with a demonstrative: tego wieczoru (“that evening”).

Does wraca mean “returns” or “is returning”?

Both. Polish present covers both simple and progressive meanings. Ból wraca wieczorem typically reads as a habitual statement (“the pain returns in the evening”), but context can also make it “is coming back this evening.”

What’s the difference between wraca and wróci?

• wraca (imperfective present): ongoing or habitual action. Example: Ból wraca wieczorami (“The pain comes back in the evenings”).
• wróci (perfective future): a single, complete return in the future. Example: Ból wróci wieczorem (“The pain will come back in the evening”). Past single event: Ból wrócił wieczorem.

Can I move the time to the front for emphasis?

Yes. Polish word order is flexible. Wieczorem ból wraca emphasizes the time frame. The neutral order is Ból wraca wieczorem.

How do I say “every evening”?

Use either:

• co wieczór — “every evening”: Ból wraca co wieczór.
• wieczorami — instrumental plural, “in the evenings”: Ból wraca wieczorami. Both express habitual recurrence; co wieczór sounds more like “each and every evening.”

Are there synonyms for wraca in this context?

• powraca — a bit more formal/emphatic: Ból powraca wieczorami.
• nawraca — “recur,” often medical: Ból nawraca wieczorami. This implies repeated recurrence and is common in medical language.

How do you pronounce the sentence?

Approximation: “Bool VRA-tsa vye-CHO-rem.”

• ó in Ból = [u], like “oo” in “food.”
• wr = [vr]; r is trilled.
• c in wraca = [ts].
• cz in wieczorem = [tch] (as in “church”).
• Stress is on the penultimate syllable: wra-CA; wie-CZO-rem.

Why is it Ból and not Bólu?

The subject uses nominative: Ból. Bólu is genitive and wouldn’t be used as the subject here. (Mini paradigm: ból — bólu — bólowi — ból — bólem — bólu.)

Is wracać transitive? Do I need a preposition?

Here it’s intransitive: nothing is being returned to. If you specify a destination with people or places, use do + genitive (e.g., wracam do domu — “I return home”). With pain, you typically just say Ból wraca, and add time or cause: Ból wraca wieczorem po treningu (“…in the evening after training”).

How do I negate it?

Put nie before the verb: Ból nie wraca wieczorem (“The pain doesn’t return in the evening”).

How can I make it more specific, like “this pain” or “my pain”?

• “This pain”: Ten ból wraca wieczorem.
• “My pain”: Mój ból wraca wieczorem.
• “Headache”: Ból głowy wraca wieczorem.

Any spelling/orthography pitfalls?

• Ból uses ó (pronounced like u). Related words often show o: boleć (to hurt).
• wieczór → wieczorem (instrumental). Note the cz, not ch or rz.
• Only capitalize at the start of the sentence.

How would I ask, “Does the pain come back in the evening?”

Czy ból wraca wieczorem? In speech you can drop czy and use rising intonation: Ból wraca wieczorem?

Is na wieczór ever used?

Yes, but it means “towards/by/for the evening,” not the neutral “in the evening.” For scheduling: Umówmy się na wieczór (“Let’s meet in the evening”). Ból wraca na wieczór can suggest the pain tends to appear by evening; it’s acceptable but less neutral than wieczorem.

What if I talk about multiple pains?

Use the plural subject and plural verb: Bóle wracają wieczorem. This is less common in everyday talk unless you mean distinct types (e.g., bóle mięśni — muscle pains).