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### Expressing Permissions with "Wolno"

In Polish, to say that someone is allowed or forbidden to do something, we often use the impersonal word **wolno**. It does not change its form depending on who you are talking about.

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To say "it is not allowed" or "one must not," simply add **nie** before it. 

If a regulation (**regulamin**) applies generally to everyone, you can use **wolno** or **nie wolno** directly followed by an infinitive verb. If you break the rules, you might get a fine (**mandat**).

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### Specifying Who is Allowed using the Dative Case

Because **wolno** is impersonal (literally meaning "it is allowed"), we cannot use standard subjects like "I", "the dog", or "we". Instead, the person or animal receiving the permission must be in the **Dative** case (who is it allowed *to*?).

For example, if you want to ask if "we" are allowed to do something, you use the Dative pronoun **nam** (to us).

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When specifying a noun, such as a dog (**pies**), a guardian (**opiekun**), or children (**dzieci**), you must also decline it into the Dative case:
- Singular masculine nouns often take the ending **-owi** (e.g., *opiekunowi*) or **-u** (e.g., *psu*).
- Plural nouns always take the ending **-om** in the Dative (e.g., *psom*, *dzieciom*).

Let's look at how these Dative forms are used to discuss rules for pets in public spaces:

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Permissions with dative (wolno)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

particle

predicative

preposition

pronoun

proper noun

sentence

verb

This is (to jest)

The verb to be, singular (być)

Formal address (Pan, Pani)

Demonstrative pronouns (ten, ta, to)

Adjective agreement

Negation (nie)

Basic questions (czy, kto, co, gdzie, jak)

The verb to be, plural (być)

Present tense -m/-sz verbs

Reflexive verbs (się)

Coordinating conjunctions (i, a, ale)

Feminine direct objects (Accusative)

Inanimate direct objects (Accusative)

Animate masculine direct objects (Accusative)

Present tense verbs 2 (-ę, -isz / -ysz)

Expressing location (w, na)

Locative adjective agreement

Professions and nationalities (Instrumental)

Accompaniment (z + Instrumental)

Present tense verbs 3 (-ę, -esz)

Plural possessives (nasz, wasz)

Numbers 1 to 10

Genitive of possession

Genitive of negation

Lack or absence (nie ma)

Basic quantifiers (dużo, mało, trochę)

Liking things (podoba mi się)

Modal verbs (móc, musieć)

Subordinating conjunctions (bo, że)

Unidirectional motion verbs (iść, jechać)

Expressing age (mieć... lat)

Habitual motion (chodzić, jeździć)

Expressing destination (do)

Days of the week (poniedziałek, wtorek...)

Plural nouns for objects and animals

Plural nouns for people

Plural adjective agreement

Accusative object pronouns (go, ją, je...)

The past tense of to be (był)

Singular past tense (-łem, -łam...)

Expressing age (mieć + lata / lat)

Plural past tense (-li / -ły)

Perfective past tense

Future tense (będę + infinitive)

Age: one year (mieć rok)

Prices and currency (złoty, grosz)

Destination (na + accusative)

Non-masculine plurals (-e, -y, -i)

Instrumental pronouns (ze mną, z tobą)

To know (znać vs wiedzieć)

The future perfective tense

The imperative mood

Months of the year (styczeń, luty)

Greetings and farewells (dzień dobry, cześć)

Introducing yourself (mam na imię)

Thank you and sorry (dziękuję, przepraszam)

Left, right, up and down (po lewej stronie)

Parts of the body (ręka, noga)

Parts of the day (dzień, noc, południe)

What is it like? (jaki, jaka, jakie)

Speaking Polish (mówić po polsku)

Instrumental for adjectives (dobrym, dobrą)

Please do... (proszę + infinitive)

Interests (interesować się + Instrumental)

Can one? (można, trzeba, nie wolno)

By bus or by train (jechać autobusem)

Where are you from? (jestem z Polski)

Where exactly? (obok, przy, przed, za, pod, nad)

What time is it? (Która godzina?)

Not seeing her (go, jej, ich; niego, niej, nich)

When I have time (kiedy as a conjunction)

Irregular past stems (miał, mieli)

The verb 'iść' in the past (szedł, szli)

Imperfective future (będę odpoczywał)

Past aspect (robił vs zrobił)

Future aspect (będzie malował vs pomaluje)

Perfective motion with po- (pójść, pojechać)

Arrival verbs with przy- (przyjść, przyjechać)

Departure verbs with wy- (wyjść, wyjechać)

The Vocative case (Panie, Mamo)

Plural possessives (moi, moje)

Reflexive possessive pronouns (swój)

Genitive plural of masculine nouns (-ów, -y, -i)

Genitive plural of feminine and neuter nouns

Genitive plural of adjectives (-ych, -ich)

Accusative plural of masculine personal nouns

Question	Answer
regulations	regulamin
to enter	wchodzić
The regulations say that dogs are not allowed to enter here.	Regulamin mówi, że psom nie wolno tu wchodzić.
it is allowed (+ Dative)	wolno
to bring in	wprowadzać
leash	smycz
Are we allowed to bring a dog into the restaurant on a leash?	Czy wolno nam wprowadzać psa do restauracji na smyczy?
Let's read the regulations before we go in with the dog.	Przeczytajmy regulamin, zanim wejdziemy z psem.
to transport	przewozić
muzzle	kaganiec
Are passengers allowed to transport a dog without a muzzle?	Czy pasażerom wolno przewozić psa bez kagańca?
loose	luzem
The dog is not allowed to run loose in the park.	Psu nie wolno biegać luzem w parku.
to pet	głaskać
Children are not allowed to pet strange dogs without asking the owner.	Dzieciom nie wolno głaskać obcych psów bez pytania właściciela.
The owner must always keep the dog on a leash.	Właściciel musi zawsze trzymać psa na smyczy.
fine	mandat
You are not allowed to bring dogs into the museum; you can get a fine for that.	Nie wolno wprowadzać psów do muzeum, można dostać za to mandat.
Let's not enter this shop; dogs must wear a muzzle here.	Nie wchodźmy do tego sklepu, psy muszą tu nosić kaganiec.
The man got a fine because his dog was running loose.	Mężczyzna dostał mandat, bo jego pies biegał luzem.
Please do not pet the dog; it can be dangerous.	Proszę nie głaskać psa, może być niebezpieczny.
carer	opiekun
Is a guardian allowed to transport a dog on the bus?	Czy opiekunowi wolno przewozić psa w autobusie?
A guardian is not allowed to bring a dog into a shop.	Opiekunowi nie wolno wprowadzać psa do sklepu.