Word
Był miły wobec sprzedawcy.
Meaning
He was kind towards the seller.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Był miły wobec sprzedawcy.
być
to be
miły
kind
sprzedawca
the salesman
wobec
towards; in relation to
Questions & Answers about Był miły wobec sprzedawcy.
Why is there no word for he in this sentence?
Polish often drops subject pronouns when they are clear from the verb form.
Here, był is the past tense, masculine singular form of być (to be), so in context it usually means he was.
You could say On był miły wobec sprzedawcy, but on would normally be added only for emphasis, contrast, or clarity.
What exactly is był?
Był is the masculine singular past tense form of być (to be).
Some related forms are:
- była = she was
- było = it was
- byli = they were (masculine personal)
- były = they were (non-masculine-personal)
So był miły tells you the subject is masculine singular.
Why is it miły and not miłym?