Questions & Answers about Gdzie śpią inne ptaki?
Why do we use inne instead of inni for "other"?
In Polish, plural nouns are divided into two groups: "virile" (groups including at least one man) and "non-virile" (everything else, including women, objects, and animals). Since ptaki (birds) are animals, they belong to the non-virile group. Because of this, the adjective takes the non-virile plural ending -e, giving us inne.
How is the plural word ptaki formed from the singular?
The singular word for bird is ptak. It is a masculine noun. To make non-virile masculine nouns plural, we usually add -y or -i. Because ptak ends with the letter -k, Polish spelling rules dictate that we must add an -i (since -ky is not an allowed combination in native Polish words), resulting in ptaki.
What is the base form of the verb śpią?
Śpią is the "they" form of the verb spać (to sleep). While the stem changes slightly from spa- to śpi-, it uses the standard -ą ending that you will see on almost all present-tense verbs for the "they" (third-person plural) form.
The words are ordered "Where sleep other birds". Could I also say Gdzie inne ptaki śpią?
Yes, you can! Polish word order is very flexible. Saying Gdzie inne ptaki śpią? is completely correct and means the same thing. Putting the verb right after the question word, as seen in Gdzie śpią inne ptaki?, is just a common stylistic choice that gives the sentence a very natural, flowing rhythm.
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