Learn Hardcore Polish: Mówi się także, że przy stole nie wolno plotkować o innych. - People also say that at the table it is not allowed to gossip about others.

Mówi się, że…
- impersonal
- means It is said that… / People say that…
- introduces a general opinion, rule, or rumor
Mówi, że…
- personal (even though the subject might be omitted)
- means He/She says that…
- refers to a specific person (understood from context)

Example:

Mówi się, że przy stole nie wolno plotkować o innych.
It is said / People say that at the table you must not gossip about others.
(On) mówi, że przy stole nie wolno plotkować o innych.
He says that at the table you must not gossip about others.

So Mówi się, że… sounds like you are quoting social norms or common wisdom, not one particular speaker.

What does także do here, and how is it different from też or również?

także, też, and również all mean more or less also / too / as well, but they differ slightly in feel and typical use.

In the sentence:

Mówi się także, że przy stole nie wolno plotkować o innych.
→ It is also said that at the table you must not gossip about others.

także:

a bit more neutral/formal than też
common in written and somewhat careful speech
often used to add another item in a list of statements or rules

też:

very common, everyday spoken Polish
can generally replace także here with almost no change in meaning:
- Mówi się też, że…

również:

often feels slightly more formal / bookish
would also fit:
- Mówi się również, że…

In this particular sentence you can say:

Mówi się także, że…
Mówi się też, że…
Mówi się również, że…

All are correct; the difference is mainly style and register, not grammar.

Why is it Mówi się także and not Mówi także się or Także się mówi?

Polish has fairly flexible word order, but some positions are much more natural.

się tends to stick close to the verb and usually comes after it in this kind of structure:
- mówi się – natural
- się mówi – possible, but used in different word orders / emphases
- mówi także się – sounds awkward here
Adverbs like także, też, również can move around, but some positions sound more idiomatic:
- Mówi się także, że… – very natural
- Mówi się też, że… – very natural
- Także się mówi, że… – possible, but with a different, slightly marked emphasis
- Mówi także się, że… – unnatural

So the common, default pattern is:

[Verb] [się] [adverb]: Mówi się także, że…

What exactly does że do in this sentence?

że is a conjunction that introduces a subordinate clause, like that in English.

Structure of the whole sentence:

Mówi się także, – It is also said,
że – that
przy stole nie wolno plotkować o innych. – at the table it is not allowed to gossip about others.

So że connects the main clause (Mówi się także) with the content of what is said (the whole rest of the sentence). Omitting że here is not natural in standard Polish; you need it:

✔ Mówi się, że…
✘ Mówi się, przy stole nie wolno…

Why is it przy stole and not na stole or u stołu?

All three exist, but they mean different things:

przy stole – at the table (sitting/standing beside it, usually for a meal or meeting)
- przy
  - locative
- stół → przy stole
- Used for:
  - eating: Jemy przy stole. – We eat at the table.
  - talking during a meal: Przy stole nie wolno plotkować.
na stole – on the table (on the surface)
- na
  - locative (for location)
- stół → na stole
- Used for objects placed on top of the table:
  - Talerze są na stole. – The plates are on the table.
u stołu – also at the table, but a bit more formal/literary, or with a slight nuance of being seated there:
- u
  - genitive
- stół → u stołu
- Often in somewhat elevated style:
  - Siedzieli cicho u stołu.

In the sentence about table manners (przy stole nie wolno…), przy stole is the most typical, everyday way to say at the table.

What does nie wolno mean, grammatically? Is wolno a verb?

wolno is a special predicative word that roughly means it is allowed / it is permitted. It behaves somewhat like an impersonal verb.

Wolno – it is allowed
Nie wolno – it is not allowed / must not

Used with an infinitive:

Wolno palić. – It is allowed to smoke.
Nie wolno palić. – Smoking is not allowed / You must not smoke.
Nie wolno plotkować o innych. – You must not gossip about others.

You can also specify who is (not) allowed:

Nie wolno ci tego robić. – You’re not allowed to do this.
Dzieciom nie wolno tu biegać. – Children are not allowed to run here.

So nie wolno + infinitive is a very common way to state a rule or prohibition in Polish.

What’s the difference between nie wolno plotkować and nie można plotkować?

Both are translated you can’t / mustn’t gossip, but there’s a nuance:

nie wolno plotkować
- focuses on rules, permission, morality
- it is forbidden / not allowed to gossip
- expresses a stronger prohibition
nie można plotkować
- literally it is not possible to gossip, but very often also means one shouldn’t / one can’t
- can suggest:
  - practical impossibility (you can’t, because of circumstances), or
  - a more neutral / general recommendation

In a context of table manners, nie wolno plotkować clearly frames it as a rule (you must not), which fits well with Mówi się, że… (speaking about norms).

Why is plotkować in the infinitive? How would it change with a subject?

In structures with wolno / nie wolno, the action is expressed by an infinitive:

nie wolno
- plotkować – it is not allowed to gossip

If you wanted to use a finite verb form with a subject, the structure would change and you wouldn’t keep wolno like this. For example:

Nie możesz plotkować o innych. – You can’t / mustn’t gossip about others.
Nie powinniśmy plotkować o innych. – We shouldn’t gossip about others.
Oni nie powinni plotkować o innych. – They shouldn’t gossip about others.

So:

nie wolno + infinitive → rule stated impersonally
[subject] + [modal verb] + finite verb → rule addressed more personally

But with wolno / nie wolno, you always follow it with an infinitive (plotkować, palić, krzyczeć, etc.).

What does o innych mean exactly, and why is there no noun like ludziach?

o innych literally means about others (understood: other people).

Breakdown:

o – preposition meaning about (among other uses)
inni – others / other people
innych – the case form of inni required here

The preposition o takes the locative case, so:

inni (nominative) → o innych (locative plural)

You could say:

o innych ludziach – about other people

But Polish often omits the noun when context makes it clear:

o innych – understood as about other people, not about other things

So nie wolno plotkować o innych means you must not gossip about other people, with ludziach just implied.

Is the word order przy stole nie wolno plotkować fixed, or can I say przy stole plotkować nie wolno?

The default, neutral order is:

przy stole nie wolno plotkować o innych.

You can say:

Przy stole plotkować nie wolno o innych.

but it sounds more emphatic, a bit like:

At the table, gossiping about others is what is absolutely not allowed.

Word order in Polish is flexible and often used to mark emphasis or contrast. Some patterns:

Neutral rule:
Przy stole nie wolno plotkować o innych.
Emphasis on the activity (gossiping):
Przy stole plotkować o innych nie wolno.
(sounds quite marked, stylistically strong)

As a learner, it’s safest to stick with the neutral, more common order you see in the original sentence.

How would this sentence change if I wanted to address someone directly (for example, “you are not allowed to gossip about others at the table”)?

To address a specific person, Polish often adds an indirect object (like ci = to you) or uses a personal modal verb.

Using nie wolno with ci:

Przy stole nie wolno ci plotkować o innych.
– At the table you are not allowed to gossip about others.

Using a modal verb instead:

Przy stole nie możesz plotkować o innych.
– At the table you can’t / mustn’t gossip about others.
Przy stole nie powinieneś / nie powinnaś plotkować o innych.
– At the table you shouldn’t gossip about others.
(powinieneś – to a man; powinnaś – to a woman)

The original sentence with Mówi się… and nie wolno + infinitive sounds like a general rule for everyone, not a direct personal warning.