Ten balsam pachnie wanilią, ale dezodorant wolę bez zapachu.

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Breakdown of Ten balsam pachnie wanilią, ale dezodorant wolę bez zapachu.

• ale: but
• woleć: to prefer
• ten: this

Questions & Answers about Ten balsam pachnie wanilią, ale dezodorant wolę bez zapachu.

Why does the sentence start with ten? Why not ta or to?

Ten means this and agrees with the noun it describes.

Here, balsam is:

• singular
• masculine
• in the nominative case

So the correct form is ten balsam = this lotion / this balm.

Compare:

• ten for masculine nouns
• ta for feminine nouns
• to for neuter nouns

For example:

• ten krem = this cream
• ta szminka = this lipstick
• to mydło = this soap

What does balsam mean here?

In this sentence, balsam usually means a body lotion, balm, or a similar cosmetic product.

In Polish, balsam can refer to different kinds of balm-like products depending on context, for example:

• balsam do ciała = body lotion
• balsam do ust = lip balm
• balsam po goleniu = aftershave balm

So here it is best understood as some kind of scented cosmetic product, probably a lotion or balm.

Why is it pachnie wanilią and not pachnie wanilia?