Breakdown of Nie mam nic przeciwko, ale to trudna decyzja.
to
this
ale
but
nic
nothing
decyzja
decision
trudny
difficult
mieć coś przeciwko
to have something against (masz coś przeciwko?; nie mam nic przeciwko)
Questions & Answers about Nie mam nic przeciwko, ale to trudna decyzja.
Why are there two negative words in Nie mam nic?
Polish requires double negation. When you use a negative word like nic (nothing), you still must put the negative particle nie before the verb. You are literally saying 'I don't have nothing'.
Doesn't the word przeciwko usually need a noun after it?
Usually, yes. The preposition przeciwko (against) normally requires a noun or pronoun in the dative case. However, nie mieć nic przeciwko is a fixed idiom meaning 'to not mind', and it perfectly stands on its own without needing an object.
Could I add a word for 'it' after przeciwko?
Yes, you could say Nie mam nic przeciwko temu, using the dative form of to. But in everyday speech, native speakers frequently drop temu because the meaning is already clear from the context.
Why is trudna decyzja in the basic nominative case here instead of the instrumental case?
When you use the pronoun to as a shortcut for 'it is' or 'this is', you drop the verb jest and leave the noun phrase in the basic nominative case. If you included the verb, you would use the instrumental case: to jest trudną decyzją. Both forms are correct, but the shorter version used in this sentence is extremely common.
Learn Nie mam nic przeciwko, ale to trudna decyzja and more in Polish
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free