Breakdown of One jechały na wycieczkę w góry.
one
they (non-masculine personal)
w
in / on (a day)
na
on, at / to (motion toward) / for (a meal) / for (waiting for)
jechać
to travel
wycieczka
trip
góra
mountain
Questions & Answers about One jechały na wycieczkę w góry.
Why does this sentence use jechały instead of jechali?
Because the subject is one (they - non-virile). This pronoun is used for groups that don't include any men (like a group of women, children, or animals). Therefore, the verb takes the non-virile past tense ending -ły. If there was at least one man in the group, we would use oni and the virile ending -li (oni jechali).
Could jechały mean they were walking to the mountains?
No, the verb jechać specifically means to go by a vehicle (like a car, train, or bus). If they were walking, the sentence would use the past tense of iść (to walk), which for a non-virile group is szły.
Why does the word wycieczka change to wycieczkę here?
It is because of the accusative case! When the preposition na shows motion towards a destination or a purpose (like going 'on a trip'), the noun following it takes the accusative case. For feminine nouns ending in -a, the ending changes to -ę.
Why do we say w góry instead of using do for 'to the mountains'?
Going 'to the mountains' is a set phrase in Polish. While the preposition do usually means 'to', with mountains you always use w + the accusative case (w góry), which literally translates as 'into the mountains'. As a fun fact, if you say do góry, it actually means 'upwards'!
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