Ta zmiana była trudna dla całej rodziny.

This change was difficult for the whole family.

Breakdown of Ta zmiana była trudna dla całej rodziny.

• być: to be
• rodzina: the family
• trudny: difficult
• ta: this
• dla: for
• cały: whole
• zmiana: the change

Questions & Answers about Ta zmiana była trudna dla całej rodziny.

Why is it ta zmiana and not ten zmiana or to zmiana?

In Polish, demonstratives (ten / ta / to) must agree with the noun in gender, number and case.

• ten – masculine singular (e.g. ten dom – this house)
• ta – feminine singular (e.g. ta książka – this book)
• to – neuter singular (e.g. to dziecko – this child)

The noun zmiana is feminine, so you must use ta:

• ta zmiana = this/that change

Using ten zmiana or to zmiana would be grammatically incorrect, because the genders don’t match.

How do I know that zmiana is feminine?

Most nouns ending in -a in the basic dictionary form (nominative singular) are feminine in Polish:

• kobieta (woman) – feminine
• rodzina (family) – feminine
• zmiana (change) – feminine

There are a few exceptions (e.g. some male professions: mężczyzna, kolega) but zmiana is a regular feminine noun. A dictionary will also mark the gender, usually with f (for feminine).

Why is it była, not był or było?

The past tense of być (to be) agrees with the subject in gender and number.

• masculine singular: był
• feminine singular: była
• neuter singular: było
• masculine personal plural: byli
• other plural: były

Since the subject zmiana is feminine singular, you must use była:

• Ta zmiana była… – That change was…

Był would be used with a masculine noun (e.g. ten dzień był…), and było with a neuter noun (e.g. to zadanie było…).

Why does trudna end in -a?

Adjectives in Polish agree with the noun they describe in gender, number and case.

Here:

• noun: zmiana – feminine, singular, nominative
• adjective: trudna – feminine, singular, nominative

So:

• trudny (basic form)
  → masculine nominative singular: trudny (e.g. trudny dzień)
  → feminine nominative singular: trudna (e.g. trudna zmiana)
  → neuter nominative singular: trudne (e.g. trudne zadanie)

Even though trudna comes after the verb była, it still agrees with zmiana, and therefore it must be in the feminine nominative form trudna.

Why is the preposition dla used here, and what case does it take?

Dla means for (in the sense of to the benefit / disadvantage of someone).

In Polish, every preposition requires a specific case. Dla always takes the genitive case.

Examples:

• dla mamy (for mum) – mama → genitive mamy
• dla dzieci (for the children) – dzieci is already genitive form here
• dla rodziny (for the family) – rodzina → genitive rodziny

In your sentence:

• dla
  • całej rodziny (genitive)
    because dla requires genitive.

Why is it dla całej rodziny and not dla cała rodzina?

Two reasons:

1. The preposition dla requires genitive

   • base form: cała rodzina (nominative)
   • genitive: całej rodziny

   Since dla takes genitive, both words must be in genitive:

   • dla całej rodziny – for the whole family

2. Adjective–noun agreement
   The adjective cały (whole) must match rodzina in gender, number, and case.

   • nominative feminine singular: cała rodzina
   • genitive feminine singular: całej rodziny

So dla cała rodzina is wrong; you need the genitive forms całej and rodziny after dla.

Is rodziny singular or plural in dla całej rodziny?

In dla całej rodziny, rodziny is singular, not plural.

Declension of rodzina (family):

• nominative singular: rodzina (a family)
• genitive singular: rodziny (of a family / of the family)
• nominative plural: rodziny (families)

So the form rodziny can be:

• genitive singular, or
• nominative plural

Here, because it follows dla (which needs genitive), rodziny is genitive singular, referring to one family (the whole family), not to multiple families.

Could I say Ta zmiana była trudna dla rodziny without całej? What changes?

Yes, you can say:

• Ta zmiana była trudna dla rodziny.

Both sentences are correct:

• dla rodziny – for the family
• dla całej rodziny – for the whole / entire family

Adding całej emphasizes that every member of the family was affected. Without całej, it’s a bit more neutral, simply saying that the change was hard for the family as a group, without stressing “every single person”.

What’s the difference between trudna and ciężka in this sentence?

Both can often translate as hard / difficult, but the nuance is slightly different:

• trudna – difficult, challenging (more neutral, can be intellectual, emotional, practical)
• ciężka – literally “heavy”; often used metaphorically for something burdensome, painful, emotionally or physically heavy

In your sentence you could say:

• Ta zmiana była trudna dla całej rodziny.
  – The change was difficult (challenging) for the whole family.

• Ta zmiana była ciężka dla całej rodziny.
  – The change was heavy, very hard to bear for the whole family (more emotional weight).

Both are understandable; trudna is a bit more general/neutral, ciężka can sound more “emotionally heavy”.

Can I drop ta and just say Zmiana była trudna dla całej rodziny?

Yes, that is also correct:

• Zmiana była trudna dla całej rodziny.

With ta, you are pointing to a specific, identifiable change, similar to English this/that change.

Without ta, it’s more like the change or just change in a general narrative context. In practice, both versions are common; context usually makes it clear which change you’re talking about.

Can I change the word order, for example Dla całej rodziny ta zmiana była trudna?

Yes. Polish word order is relatively flexible, and all of these are grammatical:

• Ta zmiana była trudna dla całej rodziny. (neutral order)
• Ta zmiana była dla całej rodziny trudna. (slight emphasis on trudna)
• Dla całej rodziny ta zmiana była trudna. (emphasis on “for the whole family”)

Changing word order in Polish is mostly about emphasis and style, not about basic grammar, as long as all the endings and agreements (cases, genders) are correct.