To jest zły pomysł.

To jest is a very common way to say this is or that is in Polish.

• to = this/that/it
• jest = is

So To jest zły pomysł literally means This/That is a bad idea.

In everyday Polish, to is often used in identifying or pointing-out sentences. You can sometimes omit to in other kinds of sentences, but here to jest sounds natural and standard.

For example:

• To jest problem. = This is a problem.
• To jest dobre. = This is good.

In this sentence, to works like this, that, or sometimes it, depending on context.

Polish to is very flexible. It does not always map neatly onto just one English word. In To jest zły pomysł, it usually means:

• This is a bad idea
• That is a bad idea

The exact English choice depends on the situation, not on a different Polish word here.

ł in modern Polish is pronounced like the English w sound.

So zły is pronounced roughly like z-wih or z-łih, with a very short vowel after the zł cluster.

A few pronunciation notes:

• z = like English z
• ł = like English w
• y = a Polish vowel that does not exist exactly in English; it is somewhat similar to a short, central i sound

So zły may feel tricky because of the beginning cluster zł-. Try saying it slowly:

• z
• zw
• zły

Because pomysł is a masculine singular noun, and the adjective has to agree with it.

In Polish, adjectives change form to match the noun’s:

• gender
• number
• case

Here:

• pomysł = masculine singular
• so zły must also be masculine singular

Compare:

• zły pomysł = bad idea (masculine)
• zła książka = bad book (feminine)
• złe jedzenie = bad food (neuter)

This is called adjective agreement.

The noun pomysł is grammatically masculine. In Polish, many nouns ending in a consonant are masculine, and pomysł ends in -ł.

That is a strong clue, though not an absolute rule for every word in Polish. Here, the dictionary form is:

• pomysł = idea, masculine noun

Because it is masculine, the adjective appears as zły.

It is in the nominative singular.

That is because this sentence is an equational / identifying sentence:

• To jest zły pomysł.
• This/That is a bad idea.

The noun phrase zły pomysł is the thing being identified, so nominative is used.

You may learn that after some forms of to be, Polish sometimes uses the instrumental case, especially in sentences like:

• On jest nauczycielem. = He is a teacher.

But with to jest, nominative is very common and natural:

• To jest nauczyciel.
• To jest problem.
• To jest zły pomysł.

Yes, in many contexts you can.

• To jest zły pomysł. = full, neutral, standard
• To zły pomysł. = slightly shorter, also natural

Omitting jest is common in spoken Polish, especially in simple present-tense statements like this. The version with jest may sound a bit more explicit or careful.

As a learner, it is safest to learn the full version first:

• To jest zły pomysł.

Then later you can get comfortable with the shorter:

• To zły pomysł.

Yes, Polish word order is fairly flexible, but not every order sounds equally neutral.

The most neutral order here is:

• To jest zły pomysł.

You might also hear:

• To jest pomysł zły.

But that version sounds more marked, literary, contrastive, or unusual in normal conversation.

For everyday use, stick with:

• zły pomysł = adjective before noun
• To jest zły pomysł.

Often yes, but not always in exactly the same way as English bad.

zły can mean:

• bad
• wrong
• evil
• angry

depending on context.

Examples:

• zły pomysł = bad idea
• zły człowiek = bad/evil person
• Jestem zły. = I am angry (usually said by a male speaker)

So in your sentence, zły clearly means bad, not angry or evil.

Usually yes, but learners should know it often means idea in the sense of a plan, notion, or suggestion.

So zły pomysł can mean:

• a bad idea
• a bad plan
• a bad suggestion

depending on context.

That is very similar to English idea, especially in sentences like That’s a bad idea.

A rough pronunciation guide is:

To jest zły pomysł
≈ to yest zwih puh-mihsł

A few details:

• to = to
• jest = roughly yest
• zły = roughly zwih
• pomysł = roughly PO-mi-sł, with ł again sounding like w at the end, so something like PO-mi-suw or PO-mi-sw

A more careful breakdown:

• To → to
• jest → yest
• zły → zwy with Polish y
• pomysł → PO-mih-sł

The stress in Polish is usually on the second-to-last syllable, so:

• po-MY-sł

Yes, very often.

Depending on context, To jest zły pomysł can correspond to:

• This is a bad idea
• That is a bad idea
• It’s a bad idea

Polish often uses to where English might choose this, that, or it. The context tells you which English version sounds best.

You would change both the adjective and the noun:

• To są złe pomysły. = These/Those are bad ideas.

Changes:

• jest → są (is → are)
• zły → złe (plural adjective form here)
• pomysł → pomysły (plural noun)

So the singular/plural pair is:

• To jest zły pomysł. = This/That is a bad idea.
• To są złe pomysły. = These/Those are bad ideas.