Breakdown of Gdy byłem dzieckiem, dużo grałem.
być
to be
dziecko
child
grać
to play
dużo
a lot / much
gdy
when (conjunction, = kiedy, more written)
Questions & Answers about Gdy byłem dzieckiem, dużo grałem.
Why does the word for child change to dzieckiem here instead of dziecko?
When you state what someone or something is using the verb to be (here: byłem), Polish requires the Instrumental case for the noun that follows. The basic neuter noun dziecko changes its ending to become dzieckiem.
Would this sentence change if a woman were speaking?
Yes. In the Polish past tense, verbs change depending on the gender of the speaker. A male speaker uses words ending in -łem, like byłem (I was) and grałem (I played). A female speaker would change these to -łam, making the sentence: Gdy byłam dzieckiem, dużo grałam.
Why is there no Polish word for 'I' (ja) in this sentence?
Polish verbs have specific endings that tell you exactly who is doing the action. The endings on byłem and grałem already mean 'I'. Because of this, pronouns like ja are usually dropped unless you want to add special emphasis.
I learned that 'when' is kiedy. Can I use kiedy instead of gdy?
Yes, you can! Gdy and kiedy both mean 'when' and are completely interchangeable in this context. Kiedy is also used for asking questions (When?), whereas gdy is only used to connect sentences like this one.
Learn Gdy byłem dzieckiem, dużo grałem and more in Polish
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free