Breakdown of Oni niecierpliwie czekają na sygnał.
oni
they (masculine personal)
na
on, at / to (motion toward) / for (a meal) / for (waiting for)
czekać
to wait
niecierpliwie
impatiently
Questions & Answers about Oni niecierpliwie czekają na sygnał.
English says "waiting for a signal", so why does Polish use na instead of dla?
In Polish, the verb czekać (to wait) naturally pairs with the preposition na. While dla translates to "for" in sentences like "a gift for you", verbs of waiting and looking specifically require na. You just have to memorize the phrase czekać na as a single unit meaning "to wait for".
The lesson says czekać na requires the Accusative case. Why hasn't the word sygnał changed its ending?
Sygnał is indeed in the Accusative case here! Because it is a masculine inanimate noun (a non-living thing), its Accusative form is identical to its basic dictionary form. If they were waiting for a living person or animal, the ending would change—for example, czekają na psa (they are waiting for a dog) or czekają na brata (they are waiting for a brother).
How is the word niecierpliwie (impatiently) formed?
I sometimes mix up verb endings for "they". Why is it czekają instead of just adding -ą to the stem?