Questions & Answers about Szedłem do domu, bo nienawidzę hałasu.
Why is the word for noise here hałasu instead of just hałas?
The verb nienawidzić (to hate) is a special verb that forces the noun following it to be in the Genitive case. Since hałas (noise) is a masculine inanimate noun, it takes the Genitive ending -u.
Is domu also in the Genitive case?
Yes! The preposition do (to or towards) always requires the Genitive case. Just like hałas became hałasu, the masculine inanimate noun dom (house) becomes domu.
Why use szedłem (I was walking) instead of poszedłem (I went)?
This is the difference between imperfective and perfective verbs. Szedłem (imperfective) focuses on the ongoing process of walking. You are saying you were in the middle of walking home. If you used poszedłem (perfective), it would focus on the completed action of going.
How do we know the person speaking is a man?
In the Polish past tense, verbs change depending on the speaker's gender. The ending -łem in szedłem tells us the speaker is masculine. If a woman were saying this, she would say szłam do domu instead.