Word
Gdzie jest masło? Na stole.
Meaning
Where is the butter? On the table.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Gdzie jest masło? Na stole.
być
to be
stół
table
gdzie
where
na
on, at / to (motion toward) / for (a meal) / for (waiting for)
Questions & Answers about Gdzie jest masło? Na stole.
Why does the word for table change from stół to stole here?
After the preposition na (on) indicating a fixed location, Polish uses the Locative case. For the masculine noun stół, we add the ending -e. This also causes the vowel ó in the middle of the word to shift back to a regular o, making it stole.
Could I answer with na stół instead of na stole?
No, because na stół uses the Accusative case, which implies motion towards a place (like putting the butter onto the table). Since the butter is already resting there, we use the Locative case na stole to show fixed location.
Why aren't there any words for 'the' before masło and stole?
Polish does not have definite articles like 'the' or indefinite articles like 'a' or 'an'. Context alone tells us that we are talking about the butter and the table.
How can I remember the gender of masło?
Masło ends in the letter -o in its basic dictionary form. In Polish, nouns ending in -o are almost always neuter.