Kiedy jestem chory, mam gorszy nastrój, chociaż rodzina opowiada mi żarty.

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Breakdown of Kiedy jestem chory, mam gorszy nastrój, chociaż rodzina opowiada mi żarty.

• być: to be
• mieć: to have
• rodzina: the family

Questions & Answers about Kiedy jestem chory, mam gorszy nastrój, chociaż rodzina opowiada mi żarty.

Why is it „jestem chory” and not something like „jestem chorzy”?

Chory is an adjective that must agree with the subject (ja – “I”) in gender and number.

• If the speaker is a man:
  
  • jestem chory = I am ill (male speaker)
• If the speaker is a woman:
  
  • jestem chora = I am ill (female speaker)

Forms like chorzy are plural (e.g. “ill people”) and cannot be used with jestem (“I am”).

So:

• Ja jestem chory (male)
• Ja jestem chora (female)

Why does Polish use the present tense (jestem, mam, opowiada) when talking about a repeated or general situation?

Polish, like English, uses the present tense for:

• General truths / habits
  
  • Kiedy jestem chory, mam gorszy nastrój…
    = “When I am ill, I have a worse mood…” (whenever this situation happens)

You could also talk about a specific, current situation:

• Teraz, kiedy jestem chory, mam gorszy nastrój…
  (“Right now, when I am ill…”)

So the present tense here is natural: it describes what usually happens when you are ill, not one specific past event.