Breakdown of Angażując się w to przedsięwzięcie, ryzykujesz bardzo dużo.
to
this
bardzo
very
dużo
a lot / much
w
into (direction, + Accusative)
ryzykować
to risk
angażować się
to get involved
przedsięwzięcie
undertaking
Questions & Answers about Angażując się w to przedsięwzięcie, ryzykujesz bardzo dużo.
Why do we use the accusative case (w to przedsięwzięcie) instead of the locative case here?
The verb angażować się (to get involved in) takes the preposition w followed by the accusative case. Even though English uses 'in' (which usually suggests a static location), Polish treats getting involved as directing your energy into something, acting like a figurative movement. Because przedsięwzięcie is a neuter noun, its accusative form looks identical to its nominative form.
What is the function of the -ąc ending on angażując in this sentence?
The -ąc ending creates a present adverbial participle, meaning 'while doing' or 'by doing'. You can only use it when both actions (getting involved and risking) are happening at the same time and are performed by the exact same subject. Here, it elegantly translates to 'By getting involved'.
The noun przedsięwzięcie is quite long. What is its root?
It translates directly to 'undertaking' and is built in a very similar way! It comes from the old prefix przedsię- (before oneself) and wzięcie (the noun form of taking). It is a formal but very common word for a project, venture, or enterprise.
Could the word się be placed later in the first clause, for example after przedsięwzięcie?
It is highly discouraged. The reflexive pronoun się generally avoids being placed at the very end of a clause, and it prefers to stay close to its verb. Placing it right after Angażując is the most natural and grammatically smooth word order here.
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