W przychodni lekarka pyta, czy mam gorączkę i kaszel.

Questions & Answers about W przychodni lekarka pyta, czy mam gorączkę i kaszel.

Why does the sentence start with w przychodni? Does it mean at the clinic or in the clinic?

W przychodni literally means in the clinic, but in English it is often best translated as at the clinic.

  • w = in / at
  • przychodnia = clinic / medical office
  • after w, the noun here takes the locative case
  • przychodniaprzychodni

So:

  • w przychodni = in/at the clinic

In Polish, this kind of location phrase often comes first to set the scene.

What exactly is przychodnia? Is it the same as a hospital?

Not usually. Przychodnia is typically an outpatient clinic, doctor’s office, or medical center where you go for appointments. It is not the same as a hospital.

Compare:

  • przychodnia = clinic / medical practice
  • szpital = hospital

So this sentence suggests a normal medical visit, not necessarily hospital treatment.

Why is it lekarka and not lekarz?

Lekarka is the female form meaning female doctor.
Lekarz is the general or masculine form meaning doctor.

So:

  • lekarz = male doctor / doctor in general
  • lekarka = female doctor

Because the sentence uses lekarka, we know the doctor is a woman.

Why is it pyta and not something like pytam?

Because pyta agrees with lekarka.

  • pytać = to ask
  • pytam = I ask
  • pyta = he/she asks

Here the subject is lekarka, so the verb must be she askspyta.

Structure:

  • lekarka pyta = the doctor asks
Why does the sentence say czy mam? Who is mam referring to?

Mam means I have, so it refers to the speaker/patient.

This may feel surprising at first because the sentence begins with lekarka pyta (the doctor asks), but the second part gives the content of her question from the patient’s point of view:

  • lekarka pyta = the doctor asks
  • czy mam gorączkę i kaszel = whether I have a fever and a cough

So the full sense is:

  • The doctor asks whether I have a fever and a cough.

Polish often omits pronouns when the verb already shows the person:

  • mam = I have
  • no need to say ja mam unless you want emphasis
What does czy do here?

Here czy introduces an indirect yes/no question. It means something like whether or if.

So:

  • Czy mam gorączkę? = Do I have a fever?
  • Lekarka pyta, czy mam gorączkę. = The doctor asks whether I have a fever.

This is a very common use of czy after verbs like:

  • pytać = to ask
  • wiedzieć = to know
  • sprawdzać = to check

Important: this czy is not asking the listener directly. It introduces the question inside a larger sentence.

Why is it gorączkę and not gorączka?

Because mam takes the accusative case for the thing you have.

The dictionary form is:

  • gorączka = fever

But after mam (I have), it becomes accusative:

  • mam gorączkę = I have a fever

This is a very common pattern:

  • mam książkę = I have a book
  • mam herbatę = I have tea
  • mam gorączkę = I have a fever

So gorączkę is the correct case form after mam.

Why is it kaszel, not kaszlu or some other form?

Because kaszel is also the object of mam, but in this case the accusative form looks the same as the dictionary form.

  • dictionary form: kaszel = cough
  • accusative singular: kaszel

So:

  • mam kaszel = I have a cough

This happens with some masculine nouns in Polish: the nominative and accusative singular can be identical.

So the sentence has two objects after mam:

  • gorączkę
  • kaszel

Both are in the accusative, even though only one visibly changes.

Why is there no word for a in a fever and a cough?

Polish does not have articles like English a and the.

So:

  • gorączka can mean a fever or the fever, depending on context
  • kaszel can mean a cough or the cough

In this sentence, English naturally uses a fever and a cough, but Polish just says:

  • gorączkę i kaszel

This is completely normal.

Can the word order be changed?

Yes, Polish word order is fairly flexible, though some versions sound more natural than others depending on emphasis.

The original:

  • W przychodni lekarka pyta, czy mam gorączkę i kaszel.

This is natural because it starts with the setting: At the clinic...

You could also say:

  • Lekarka w przychodni pyta, czy mam gorączkę i kaszel.

This is also understandable, but it may shift the focus a little more toward the doctor.

Polish often puts time/place expressions early in the sentence when setting the scene.

Is there anything special about the comma before czy?

Yes. In Polish, a comma is normally used before czy when it introduces a subordinate clause like this one.

So:

  • Lekarka pyta, czy mam gorączkę i kaszel.

The comma separates:

  • main clause: Lekarka pyta
  • subordinate clause: czy mam gorączkę i kaszel

This is standard Polish punctuation.

How would this sentence sound if the patient were a woman speaking?

It would stay the same.

  • mam = I have

Polish past tense changes for gender, but the present tense form mam does not. So both a man and a woman would say:

  • mam gorączkę
  • mam kaszel

So the sentence does not tell us the patient’s gender, only the doctor’s gender because of lekarka.

How would I pronounce the tricky parts of this sentence?

A few parts may be difficult for English speakers:

  • przychodni
    roughly: pshi-HOD-nyi
    The rz here sounds like the Polish sound written ż in many contexts.

  • lekarka
    roughly: le-KAR-ka

  • gorączkę
    roughly: go-RONCH-keh
    The ą is a nasal vowel, and cz sounds like ch in chop.

  • kaszel
    roughly: KA-shel
    The sz sounds like sh.

  • czy
    roughly: chi but with a harder Polish cz sound at the start

A broad pronunciation of the whole sentence could be written approximately as:

  • V pshi-HOD-nyi le-KAR-ka PYA-ta, chi mam go-RONCH-keh ee KA-shel.

This is only approximate, but it can help as a starting point.

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