Breakdown of Obyśmy wygrali mecz, trzymam kciuki!
mecz
match
wygrać
to win
trzymać
to hold, to keep
oby
hopefully / if only
Questions & Answers about Obyśmy wygrali mecz, trzymam kciuki!
Why does obyśmy wygrali refer to the future if it uses a past-tense verb?
The particle oby is used to express strong wishes or hopes. Even though it points to a desired future event, it grammatically requires the past-tense verb form (the L-participle). You can think of it as similar to a conditional structure, which also relies on past-tense forms to express hypothetical situations.
Could I leave the personal ending on the verb and say oby wygraliśmy?
You would be understood, but attaching the -śmy ending to the particle oby is much more natural and is the standard phrasing. In Polish, these personal endings are mobile and strongly prefer to attach to the first word of the clause, especially to particles like oby or conjunctions like żeby.
What case is mecz in this sentence?
It is in the accusative case, acting as the direct object of wygrali. Because mecz is a masculine inanimate noun, its accusative form looks exactly the same as its dictionary (nominative) form.
Why does the Polish sentence use trzymam kciuki instead of translating "fingers"?
The literal translation of trzymam kciuki is "I hold my thumbs." This is the standard Polish idiom for wishing someone luck, serving as the exact equivalent to the English idiom of keeping your fingers crossed.