Verbs Governing "do"
In Polish, the preposition do generally translates as "to," "into," or "for," and it always requires the noun or pronoun that follows it to take the Genitive case. Many common verbs inherently pair with do to express belonging, suitability, or a change in attitude.
Należeć do (To belong to)
Use the verb należeć do to express ownership (belonging to a person) or to indicate that something is a component of a larger whole, such as parts belonging to a specific classic car.
| This vintage car belongs to my father. | Ten zabytkowy samochód należy do mojego ojca. |
| Do these original parts belong to this car? | Czy te oryginalne części należą do tego samochodu? |
Nadawać się do (To be suitable for)
When evaluating whether a rusted car part is still usable, you will need the reflexive verb nadawać się do. It expresses what something is fit, appropriate, or suitable for.
| This old bodywork is not suitable for anything. | Ta stara karoseria nie nadaje się do niczego. |
| Except for the rust, this bodywork is suitable for the project. | Oprócz rdzy ta karoseria nadaje się do projektu. |
Influencing Attitude: Zachęcać, Zniechęcać, and Przekonywać
Verbs that describe influencing someone's attitude or actions also pair with do. Notice that while English uses different prepositions for these concepts (encourage to, discourage from, convince of), Polish consistently uses do followed by the Genitive case.
Use zachęcać do (to encourage to) when someone motivates you to do something:
| A good mechanic encourages me to work on this engine. | Dobry mechanik zachęca mnie do pracy nad tym silnikiem. |
Use zniechęcać do (to discourage from) when a difficult task puts you off. Remember that even though English uses "from," Polish still uses do:
| This rust very much discourages me from this car. | Ta rdza bardzo zniechęca mnie do tego samochodu. |
Use przekonywać do (to convince of/to) when someone wins you over to an idea or project:
| This is the best mechanic, so he convinces me of this idea. | To jest najlepszy mechanik, więc przekonuje mnie do tego pomysłu. |
These verbs are highly useful when discussing the dedication and teamwork required for a long restoration project:
| I am not convincing her, nor am I encouraging her to do this work. | Nie przekonuję jej ani nie zachęcam do tej pracy. |
