Word
Ten złożony ekosystem potrzebuje nie tylko wody, lecz także czasu.
Meaning
This complex ecosystem needs not only water, but also time.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Ten złożony ekosystem potrzebuje nie tylko wody, lecz także czasu.
ten
this (m)
woda
water
czas
time
potrzebować
to need
Questions & Answers about Ten złożony ekosystem potrzebuje nie tylko wody, lecz także czasu.
Can I say nie tylko wody, ale także czasu instead?
Yes, absolutely. You can use ale także or even ale też instead of lecz także. They all mean "but also" and are interchangeable in this structure. Lecz is slightly more formal and sounds very natural in a scientific or written context like talking about an ecosystem, but ale works perfectly well too.
Why are wody and czasu in the genitive case instead of the accusative?
Both words are the direct objects of the verb potrzebuje (needs). The verb potrzebować strictly requires the genitive case for the things being needed. The phrase nie tylko ..., lecz także ... acts like a bridge, ensuring both nouns share the same case demanded by the verb.
Why is there a comma before lecz także?
Polish punctuation rules are very strict about this: you must always place a comma before the second half of contrasting or additive pairs like nie tylko ..., lecz także ... (not only ..., but also ...).
I've seen złożony used to mean "folded". How does it mean "complex" here?
Złożony is the passive adjective formed from the verb złożyć (to put together, to assemble). If an ecosystem is "put together" from many different intersecting parts, it is intricate. Because of this, złożony is the standard Polish word for "complex" or "composite".