Questions & Answers about Spotkanie kończy się o siódmej.
What does się do in kończy się?
In this sentence, się is part of the verb expression kończyć się, which means to end, to come to an end, or to be over.
Compare:
- kończyć = to end/finish something
- kończyć się = to end, to finish, to come to an end
So:
- Kończę pracę = I am finishing the work
- Praca się kończy = The work is ending
In English, we often use the same verb for both ideas, but Polish often distinguishes them with się.
Why is it o siódmej, not o siedem?
Because when Polish gives the time of day after o meaning at, it normally uses an ordinal number, not a cardinal number.
So Polish says:
- o pierwszej = at one
- o drugiej = at two
- o siódmej = at seven
This comes from an understood word:
- o siódmej godzinie = at the seventh hour
In everyday speech, godzinie is omitted, but the grammar stays the same.
What case is siódmej in?
It is in the locative singular.
The preposition o usually requires the locative when it means about or when it is used in time expressions like this one.
So:
- o siódmej
- o ósmej
- o dziesiątej
All of these are locative forms.
Why is siódmej feminine if spotkanie is neuter?
Because siódmej is not agreeing with spotkanie.
It is agreeing with the implied noun godzina, which is feminine.
So the full underlying structure is:
- Spotkanie kończy się o siódmej godzinie
Since godzina is feminine, the ordinal is feminine too:
- pierwsza godzina → o pierwszej
- siódma godzina → o siódmej
So the gender here has nothing to do with spotkanie.
Can I say Spotkanie kończy o siódmej without się?
Normally, no. In standard Polish, that sounds incomplete or wrong for this meaning.
- Spotkanie kończy się o siódmej = The meeting ends at seven
Without się, kończy is usually understood as a transitive verb, so it would suggest that the meeting is ending something, which does not fit here.
So if you mean that the meeting itself comes to an end, use kończy się.
Why is the verb kończy, not something different?
Because the subject spotkanie is singular, and the verb is in the 3rd person singular.
- spotkanie = meeting, singular
- kończy się = ends
If the subject were plural, the verb would change:
- Spotkania kończą się o siódmej = The meetings end at seven
In the present tense, Polish verbs agree with the subject in number and person.
What is the difference between kończy się and skończy się?
This is a question of aspect.
- kończyć się = imperfective
- skończyć się = perfective
In this sentence:
- Spotkanie kończy się o siódmej = The meeting ends at seven / is ending at seven
This is a normal way to talk about a schedule or a general fact.
But:
- Spotkanie skończy się o siódmej = The meeting will end at seven
Because perfective verbs in Polish do not have a true present tense, their present-looking forms usually have future meaning.
So:
- kończy się = present / habitual / scheduled
- skończy się = future completed event
Is the word order fixed here?
No, Polish word order is fairly flexible.
The neutral order is:
- Spotkanie kończy się o siódmej
But you could also say:
- O siódmej kończy się spotkanie
- Kończy się o siódmej spotkanie
The last one is less neutral and more stylistically marked, but still possible in the right context.
Changing the order usually changes emphasis, not the basic meaning.
For example:
- Spotkanie kończy się o siódmej = neutral statement
- O siódmej kończy się spotkanie = emphasis on the time
How would I ask What time does the meeting end?
You would usually say:
- O której kończy się spotkanie?
Literally, this is At which hour does the meeting end?
Useful pattern:
- O której zaczyna się spotkanie? = What time does the meeting start?
- O której kończy się spotkanie? = What time does the meeting end?
So o której is the standard way to ask for a clock time.
How do I make this sentence negative?
Just add nie before the verb:
- Spotkanie nie kończy się o siódmej.
This means:
- The meeting does not end at seven
In Polish, nie is placed before the finite verb:
- kończy się → nie kończy się
How is this sentence pronounced?
A rough English-friendly guide is:
- Spotkanie ≈ spot-KAH-nye
- kończy się ≈ KON-chih shye
- o siódmej ≈ o SHOOD-may
A few pronunciation notes:
- ń is a soft n
- się sounds roughly like shye
- ó sounds like u
- sz sounds like English sh
- cz sounds like English ch, but harder
So the whole sentence is approximately:
- spot-KAH-nye KON-chih shye o SHOOD-may
That is only an approximation, but it is a useful starting point.
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