Muszę obrać ziemniaki przed obiadem.

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Breakdown of Muszę obrać ziemniaki przed obiadem.

• obiad: the dinner (main meal)
• przed: before
• musieć: to have to

Questions & Answers about Muszę obrać ziemniaki przed obiadem.

What does muszę mean?

Muszę means I must or I have to.

It is the 1st person singular form of the verb musieć (to have to / must). So:

• muszę = I have to
• musisz = you have to
• musi = he/she/it has to

In this sentence, muszę shows necessity or obligation.

Why is there no ja in the sentence?

Polish often leaves out subject pronouns when they are already clear from the verb form.

Since muszę already means I have to, adding ja is usually unnecessary. So:

• Muszę obrać ziemniaki = I have to peel the potatoes
• Ja muszę obrać ziemniaki also works, but ja adds emphasis, like I have to peel them.

Why is obrać used here instead of obierać?