Breakdown of Ta stara kopalnia nie jest gotowa do wydobycia.
być
to be
nie
no / not
ten
this (m)
stary
old
gotowy
ready
do
for (purpose)
wydobycie
extraction
kopalnia
mine
Questions & Answers about Ta stara kopalnia nie jest gotowa do wydobycia.
Why is 'for extraction' translated as do wydobycia rather than dla wydobycia?
The adjective gotowy (ready) strictly requires the preposition do followed by the Genitive case when talking about being prepared for an action or purpose. While English uses 'for', translating it literally to dla is a common mistake. Since wydobycie (extraction) is a neuter noun, its Genitive form is wydobycia.
Is it ever correct to use gotowy na instead?
Yes, but the meaning changes. Gotowy do (+ Genitive) means physically prepared to do something or be used for a purpose, like a mine ready for operation. Gotowy na (+ Accusative) means mentally or emotionally prepared to endure or face something, like gotowy na najgorsze (ready for the worst).
What kind of word is wydobycia?
It is a verbal noun, derived from the verb wydobywać (to extract or mine). Polish uses these heavily to express processes. It behaves exactly like a regular neuter noun ending in -e (wydobycie), which is why it declines into the Genitive wydobycia after the preposition do.
Does the negation in nie jest affect the case of the adjective gotowa?
No. You might be remembering that negation changes a direct object from Accusative to Genitive. However, gotowa is not an object; it is an adjective describing the Nominative subject (kopalnia) alongside the verb być (to be). Because być does not take a direct object, negation does not trigger the Genitive rule here.
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