Questions & Answers about Boję się myszy.
Why does the word for mice look like the nominative plural here if the verb bać się requires the genitive case?
It actually is in the genitive case! The word mysz is a feminine noun ending in a consonant, which means it follows a special declension pattern. For this noun, the genitive singular, nominative plural, and genitive plural all share the exact same form: myszy.
If the singular and plural genitive forms are identical, how would I specify that I am afraid of one specific mouse?
You would need to add a modifier in the genitive singular to clarify your meaning. For example, you could say Boję się tej myszy to mean I am afraid of this particular mouse, or Boję się jakiejś myszy to mean I am afraid of some specific mouse.
Could I use the perfective verb przestraszyć się instead of bać się to say I am afraid?
No, because expressing a general, ongoing fear requires an imperfective verb like bać się. The perfective verb przestraszyć się refers to a sudden action of getting scared or taking fright at a specific moment, rather than a continuous state of being afraid.
Learn Boję się myszy and more in Polish
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free