Breakdown of Czy ona pojechała do hotelu taksówką?
ona
she / it (f)
czy
[question particle]
do
to
taksówka
taxi
pojechać
to go (by vehicle)
hotel
hotel
Questions & Answers about Czy ona pojechała do hotelu taksówką?
Why use the prefixed verb pojechała instead of just jechała?
The prefix po- makes the motion verb perfective, meaning the action is completed. Ona pojechała means she left for or went to the hotel as a single, finished event. If you used jechała, it would mean she was on her way or was riding, focusing on the ongoing process of the trip.
Would it be wrong to say poszła instead of pojechała here?
Yes, it would be incorrect! Poszła means she went on foot. Because she traveled by taxi, you must use a verb for going by a vehicle, which is pojechała.
Why does hotel change to hotelu?
The preposition do (meaning to) always forces the following noun into the Genitive case. For many masculine inanimate nouns like hotel, the Genitive ending is -u, which gives us do hotelu.
How does taksówką translate to "by taxi"? There is no word for "by"!
In Polish, you do not need a separate preposition for means of transportation. Instead, you put the vehicle into the Instrumental case. Since taksówka is a feminine noun ending in -a, its Instrumental form ends in -ą.
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