Breakdown of Wieczorem myjemy zęby przy latarni, bo w namiocie jest ciemno.
Questions & Answers about Wieczorem myjemy zęby przy latarni, bo w namiocie jest ciemno.
Polish normally expresses “in the evening” with the adverbial form wieczorem, not with a preposition + noun.
- wieczór = evening (noun, nominative)
- wieczorem = in the evening (instrumental form used adverbially)
Some time expressions in Polish typically appear in this instrumental/adverbial form:
- rano – in the morning
- po południu – in the afternoon (here you do have a preposition)
- wieczorem – in the evening
- nocą – at night
w wieczór is not idiomatic in modern Polish for “in the evening” in this sense. Use wieczorem.
myjemy is the 1st person plural present tense of myć (“to wash, to clean with water”).
- myć zęby literally: to wash teeth
- In practice, myć zęby = to brush one’s teeth.
In Polish, the present tense of an imperfective verb like myć can mean:
- an action happening right now:
- Teraz myjemy zęby. – We are brushing our teeth now.
- or a repeated / habitual action:
- Wieczorem myjemy zęby. – In the evenings we (always) brush our teeth.
Here, with wieczorem, it naturally sounds like a routine or habit.
Polish usually omits possessive pronouns (mój, twój, nasz, etc.) with body parts and clothes when it’s clear whose they are.
- myjemy zęby – we brush (our) teeth
- myję ręce – I wash (my) hands
- zakładam kurtkę – I put on (my) jacket
You only add a possessive pronoun when you need to contrast or emphasize:
- Myjemy nasze zęby, nie ich. – We are brushing our teeth, not theirs.
So nasze is grammatically possible, but unnecessary in the neutral sentence.
zęby is the accusative plural of ząb (tooth).
Case pattern:
- Nominative singular: ząb
- Nominative plural: zęby
- Accusative plural (for inanimate nouns): zęby
You need the accusative for the direct object of a transitive verb like myć:
- (Myjemy) co? – zęby → accusative plural
Other forms you mentioned:
- zębów – genitive plural (e.g. nie mam zębów – I have no teeth)
- zębami – instrumental plural (e.g. gryźć zębami – to bite with (your) teeth)
In this sentence, zęby is correct because it is the direct object.
przy is a preposition that often means “by, next to, at (close to something).” It always takes the locative case.
- base noun: latarnia (lamp, lantern, streetlight) – nominative
- locative singular: latarni
So:
- przy latarni = by the lamp / at the lantern
Forms:
- latarnia – nominative (subject form)
- latarnię – accusative (direct object form)
- latarni – locative (used after przy, w, na, etc., in certain contexts)
Because przy requires the locative, przy latarni is correct.
latarnia can mean several types of lights:
- latarnia uliczna – street lamp
- latarnia morska – lighthouse
- a free-standing lamp/lantern (including a camping lantern), depending on context
In isolation, latarnia is somewhat vague. In this sentence:
myjemy zęby przy latarni, bo w namiocie jest ciemno
the mention of w namiocie (in the tent) makes it natural to interpret latarnia as some portable camping lantern or a lamp set up near the tent.
If needed, you could be more specific:
- latarka – flashlight / torch
- lampka kempingowa – camping lamp
In Polish, bo (“because”) introduces a subordinate clause giving a reason. Standard spelling rules require a comma before bo when it links two clauses:
- Myjemy zęby przy latarni, bo w namiocie jest ciemno.
You should not drop this comma in correct written Polish. It separates:
- main clause: Wieczorem myjemy zęby przy latarni
- reason clause: bo w namiocie jest ciemno
Both mean “because”, but their tone and usage differ slightly:
- bo – very common, neutral in speech, slightly more informal in writing.
- ponieważ – a bit more formal or “bookish,” often used in written or careful speech.
In this sentence you could say:
- Wieczorem myjemy zęby przy latarni, bo w namiocie jest ciemno.
- Wieczorem myjemy zęby przy latarni, ponieważ w namiocie jest ciemno.
Both are correct. The meaning is the same; only the style is a bit different.
The preposition w (“in”) usually takes either locative or accusative. When you talk about location (“inside something”), you use locative.
- base noun: namiot – tent (nominative)
- locative singular: namiocie
So:
- w namiocie = in the tent (location, where?)
- do namiotu = into the tent (motion, where to? – here do uses genitive)
w namiotu is incorrect; namiotu is the genitive form, not the locative form.
In Polish, to describe general conditions (it’s dark, it’s cold, it’s bright), you often use impersonal constructions with an adverb-like form:
- jest ciemno – it is dark
- jest jasno – it is bright
- jest zimno – it is cold
- jest gorąco – it is hot
These words (ciemno, jasno, zimno…) are not ordinary adjectives agreeing with a noun; they function as predicative adverbs describing the situation in general.
You would use an adjective like ciemny/ciemne when modifying a specific noun:
- ciemny namiot – a dark tent
- ciemne pomieszczenie – a dark room
But here we just say that it is dark in the tent → w namiocie jest ciemno.
Yes. Polish word order is relatively flexible, especially for adverbials (time, place, manner). All of these are grammatically correct:
- Wieczorem myjemy zęby przy latarni, bo w namiocie jest ciemno.
- Myjemy zęby wieczorem przy latarni, bo w namiocie jest ciemno.
- Wieczorem przy latarni myjemy zęby, bo w namiocie jest ciemno.
The differences are mostly about emphasis and rhythm:
- Starting with Wieczorem emphasizes the time.
- Putting przy latarni earlier might highlight the unusual fact that you do it by a lantern.
But for meaning, all are effectively the same.
Yes, you can insert tam (“there”) and move the location phrase around:
- bo tam w namiocie jest ciemno – literally: because there in the tent it is dark
- bo jest tam ciemno w namiocie – also possible, but sounds a bit heavier and less natural.
The original:
- bo w namiocie jest ciemno
is the most neutral and smooth. Adding tam adds a bit of emphasis (“over there in the tent…”).
You could, but it changes the meaning:
- myjemy się – we wash ourselves (whole body, or at least face/hands), no specific body part mentioned.
- myjemy zęby – we brush our teeth (specifically).
If you want a reflexive flavor while still mentioning the teeth, you can hear:
- myjemy sobie zęby – we brush our teeth (literally: we wash for ourselves the teeth)
But the standard, simplest way is still myjemy zęby.