Breakdown of Ta nowa sukienka bardzo jej się podoba.
ta
this (f)
nowy
new
bardzo
very
podobać się
to appeal / to like (aesthetically, first impressions)
sukienka
dress
jej
to her
Questions & Answers about Ta nowa sukienka bardzo jej się podoba.
Why does the sentence start with Ta nowa sukienka (this new dress) if the English translation starts with "She"?
In Polish, the verb podobać się works differently than "to like" in English. It literally translates to "to be pleasing to". Because of this, the sentence is actually structured as "This new dress is very pleasing to her." The dress is the main subject doing the action, which is why it comes first.
Why do we use jej here instead of ona for "she"?
Because the sentence literally means the dress is pleasing to her. With the verb podobać się, the person who likes the object must be in the Dative case (the case used for the receiver of an action). The Dative form of ona (she) is jej (to her).
Why are jej and się placed next to each other before the verb?
Both jej and się are short, unstressed words called clitics. In Polish, these short words like to cluster together in the middle of the sentence, usually as the second main piece of information. It is very common to see them side-by-side like this, as they try to avoid the very beginning or the very end of a sentence.
Could I use the verb lubić to say she likes the dress?
You could say Ona bardzo lubi tę nową sukienkę, but podobać się is a much better fit here. Polish speakers strongly prefer podobać się when talking about things that are visually attractive or for first impressions (like seeing a new dress). Lubić is used more for deeper attachments, personalities, or food.
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