Learn Polish: Właściciel, który pije kawę, jest dobrym człowiekiem. - The owner, who is drinking coffee, is a good man.

Właściciel, który pije kawę, jest dobrym człowiekiem.

The owner, who is drinking coffee, is a good man.

Breakdown of Właściciel, który pije kawę, jest dobrym człowiekiem.

Questions & Answers about Właściciel, który pije kawę, jest dobrym człowiekiem.

Why does the sentence use który for 'who' instead of kto?

When linking a descriptive clause to a specific noun (like the owner), Polish uses który rather than kto. You generally only use kto for asking questions like 'Who is there?' or in broad, unspecified statements like 'He who wants to...'.

How do I know to use który and not która or które?

The relative pronoun must match the noun it describes in gender and number. Since it refers back to właściciel (owner), which is a masculine singular noun, you must use the masculine singular form który.

Why are there commas around który pije kawę?

Polish punctuation rules are very strict: you must always put a comma before a relative pronoun like który. Because this descriptive phrase interrupts the main sentence (Właściciel... jest dobrym człowiekiem), you need commas on both sides to separate it.

Why is coffee spelled kawę here instead of kawa?

Kawa is a feminine noun. Because it is the direct object being acted upon by the verb pije (is drinking), it changes to the Accusative case, where the feminine -a ending becomes -ę.