The plural title "państwo"
When formally addressing or referring to a married couple or an entire family, use the title państwo (which translates to "Mr. and Mrs." or "The [Surname] family"). Because you are talking about multiple people, any verbs connected to them must be in the third-person plural ("they" form).
Consonant surnames (-owie)
For surnames that normally end in a consonant in their basic masculine form (like Nowak or Kaczmarek), form the plural by adding the ending -owie.
Keep in mind that the "disappearing e" rule still applies here: just as Kaczmarek loses its e in other cases, it drops the e here to become Kaczmarkowie.
| The Nowaks moved in yesterday and want to introduce themselves. | Państwo Nowakowie wprowadzili się wczoraj i chcą się przedstawić. |
| The host and the hostess are Mr. and Mrs. Kaczmarek. | Gospodarz i gospodyni to państwo Kaczmarkowie. |
Adjectival surnames (-scy)
For surnames ending in -ski or -ska (like Kowalski or Zieliński), the plural form behaves just like an adjective. To refer to a mixed-gender couple or a family, replace the singular ending with the masculine personal plural ending -scy.
| I can hear the doorbell, because the Kowalskis want to meet us. | Słychać dzwonek, bo państwo Kowalscy chcą nas poznać. |
| The Zielińskis are very polite and welcome us warmly. | Państwo Zielińscy są bardzo uprzejmi i witają nas serdecznie. |
Meeting the neighbors
Using these plural titles and correct endings is the standard, polite way to introduce yourself, greet the hosts, and interact with your new community.
| Please come in, the Kaczmareks want to get acquainted with you. | Proszę wejść, państwo Kaczmarkowie chcą się z wami zapoznać. |
| The Nowaks want to get acquainted with our community. | Państwo Nowakowie chcą zapoznać się z naszą wspólnotą. |
