Breakdown of Zrobił krok i zabolała go noga.
i
and
zrobić
to do / to make (someone something)
go
him / it
noga
leg, foot
krok
step
zabolać
to start hurting
Questions & Answers about Zrobił krok i zabolała go noga.
Why is the verb zabolała used here instead of just bolała?
The prefix za- is added to the imperfective verb boleć (to ache or hurt) to mark the sudden start of a state or action. While bolała means his leg was hurting over a period of time, zabolała means it suddenly started hurting right at the moment he took the step.
Why is the pronoun go (him) in the accusative case here? Doesn't the leg belong to him in the dative sense?
Polish uses the accusative case for the person experiencing pain with the verbs boleć and zaboleć. You can think of it literally as the leg directly hurting him, making him the direct object of the verb rather than an indirect receiver.
If a man took the step (zrobił), why is the second verb zabolała in the feminine form?
The subject of the second half of the sentence is noga (leg), which is a feminine noun. The leg is the one performing the action of hurting, so the verb must agree with it, regardless of the gender of the person feeling the pain.
Why does the Polish sentence use zrobił (he made) instead of a verb for taking?
In Polish, the natural phrase is to make a step (zrobić krok) rather than take a step. Since the step was a single, completed action, the perfective verb zrobić is used.
Learn Zrobił krok i zabolała go noga 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