Questions & Answers about Sąsiad zawsze podgląda ludzi.
How exactly does the prefix pod- create the meaning of "spying" in podgląda?
The root -gląd- is related to looking or sight, as seen in words like oglądać (to watch) and wyglądać (to appear). As you are learning in this lesson, the prefix pod- can indicate a stealthy, hidden, or sneaky action. By attaching it to a "looking" verb, you get "looking secretly," which means to peep or spy.
Is it correct to use a preposition here, like podgląda na ludzi (spies on people)?
No, you shouldn't use a preposition. Unlike English, where you spy on someone, the Polish verb podglądać is transitive and takes a direct object in the accusative case. You simply say podgląda ludzi (literally "he spies people").
Since podglądać takes the accusative case, why does the word ludzi look like it is in the genitive?
Because ludzie (people) is a masculine personal noun. As a quick refresher: for masculine personal nouns in the plural, the accusative form is always identical to the genitive form. So, ludzi is grammatically the accusative direct object here, even though it shares its form with the genitive.
What is the perfective version of this verb, and why is the imperfective used instead?
A common perfective equivalent for catching a secret glimpse of something is podpatrzeć. However, the sentence includes the word zawsze (always), which tells us this is a habitual, repeated behavior. Habitual actions in Polish must use the imperfective aspect, which is why we use the imperfective form podgląda.
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