Breakdown of Bez obecności nauczyciela dzieci krzyczałyby bardzo głośno.
dziecko
child
bardzo
very
nauczyciel
teacher
głośno
loudly
bez
without
krzyczeć
to shout
obecność
presence
Questions & Answers about Bez obecności nauczyciela dzieci krzyczałyby bardzo głośno.
How does bez obecności nauczyciela function as a conditional clause here?
It replaces a full 'if' clause like gdyby nauczyciela nie było (if the teacher wasn't there). Using bez (without) + Genitive is a very common, natural way in Polish to imply the condition that triggers the conditional verb (krzyczałyby) in the main clause.
Why does the verb take the -łyby ending (krzyczałyby) instead of -liby?
The subject is dzieci (children). Even though a group of children might include boys, the word dziecko is neuter, and its plural dzieci takes the non-masculine-personal (niemęskoosobowy) verb endings. Therefore, it requires krzyczałyby rather than the masculine-personal krzyczeliby.
The English translation says 'would have shouted', but can this also mean 'would shout'?
Yes. Everyday Polish doesn't usually distinguish between the present conditional ('would shout') and the past conditional ('would have shouted'). Krzyczałyby covers both, and you must rely on context to know if it refers to a hypothetical situation happening now or one that already happened in the past.
Why are there two Genitive words in a row with obecności nauczyciela?
They are in the Genitive case for two entirely different reasons. The preposition bez always requires the Genitive, changing obecność to obecności. Then, to say 'of the teacher', we use the Genitive again to show possession, changing nauczyciel to nauczyciela.
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