Breakdown of Należy myć ręce przed jedzeniem.
ręka
hand, arm
myć
to wash
przed
before (in time)
jedzenie
food
należy
one should, it is necessary to (impersonal, + infinitive)
Questions & Answers about Należy myć ręce przed jedzeniem.
How is należy different from words like trzeba or powinno się?
Należy means "one should" or "it is required," and it is always followed by an infinitive verb (here, myć). It is more formal and objective than trzeba (it is necessary) or powinno się (one ought to). You will often see należy on signs, in official rules, or in instructions.
Why do we use the imperfective verb myć instead of the perfective umyć?
We use the imperfective myć because this sentence expresses a general, repeating rule or habit. If you were telling someone to wash their hands right now for a specific single meal, you might use the perfective umyć, but here we are talking about what people should do every single time.
Why is the word for "eating" written as jedzeniem instead of just jedzenie?
The preposition przed (before) requires the noun that follows it to take the Instrumental case. The dictionary form of this verbal noun (a noun made from a verb) is jedzenie, and its Instrumental form ends in -em, becoming jedzeniem.
Is ręce in the Accusative case here because it is the direct object of the verb?
Yes! The verb myć (to wash) takes a direct object in the Accusative case. For feminine nouns like ręka, the Accusative plural looks exactly the same as the Nominative plural, which is why the form is simply ręce.
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