Questions & Answers about Piszę list.
The dictionary form is pisać. Why does it change to piszę with an sz instead of just adding the ending?
Pisać (to write) belongs to the -ę / -esz verb group. Many verbs in this group have a consonant change in their stem when they are conjugated. For pisać, the s changes to sz in all present tense forms, giving us piszę (I write) and piszesz (you write).
Where is the word for 'I' (ja) in this sentence?
Polish verbs change their endings based on who is doing the action. Because the -ę ending on piszę already tells us it means 'I am writing', the pronoun ja is usually left out. You only add it if you want to emphasize who is doing the action.
List is the object of the sentence, so shouldn't it have an accusative case ending?
It is in the accusative case! However, list (letter) is a masculine inanimate noun (a thing, not a person or animal). For masculine inanimate nouns, the accusative form is exactly the same as the basic dictionary form.
How do I know if this means 'I write a letter' or 'I am writing a letter'?
Polish doesn't have a separate continuous tense like English does. Piszę list can mean either 'I write a letter (regularly)' or 'I am writing a letter (right now)'. You will know which one it is from the context of the conversation.
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