Breakdown of Mój kot ma trzynaście lat, a twój pies?
kot
cat
pies
dog
mieć
to have
a
and / whereas (contrast)
Questions & Answers about Mój kot ma trzynaście lat, a twój pies?
Why does the Polish sentence use ma (has) instead of a word for 'is'?
In Polish, age is always expressed using the verb mieć (to have). Instead of saying someone is a certain age, you say they have that many years. So, Mój kot ma trzynaście lat literally translates to 'My cat has thirteen years.'
Why do we use mój and twój here instead of other forms like moja or twoja?
Possessive pronouns must match the gender of the noun they describe. Because both kot (cat) and pies (dog) are masculine nouns, we use the masculine singular forms mój (my) and twój (your). If we were talking about a feminine noun, we would use moja and twoja.
Why is the word for years lat instead of lata or rok?
In Polish, the word for 'years' changes depending on the number. You use rok for 1 year, and lata for 2, 3, and 4 (and numbers ending in them). But for numbers 5 and up, including trzynaście (13), you must use lat. This is a special form called the Genitive plural, which you also use after ile when asking Ile masz lat? (How old are you?).
Why is 'and' translated as a here instead of the usual i?