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Benzyna jest teraz droga.

Benzyna jest teraz droga.
Petrol is expensive now.
From Lesson 95:Shopping and services (robić zakupy)·Polish

Breakdown of Benzyna jest teraz droga.

być
to be
drogi
expensive
teraz
now
benzyna
petrol

Questions & Answers about Benzyna jest teraz droga.

I thought droga meant 'road'. Why is it used here?
You are right! Droga is a noun meaning 'road' or 'way', but here it is the feminine form of the adjective drogi (expensive). You can tell it is an adjective in this sentence because it is being used to describe the noun benzyna (petrol).
Why is droga in the nominative case here instead of the instrumental? Doesn't the verb być (to be) usually take the instrumental?
The verb być takes the instrumental case when you are linking a noun to another noun (like 'He is a doctor' -> On jest lekarzem). However, when you link a noun to an adjective (like 'Petrol is expensive'), the adjective stays in the basic nominative case. Since benzyna is feminine, we simply use the feminine nominative droga.
If the subject was a masculine noun, like bilet (ticket), how would this sentence change?
You would need to change the adjective to match the gender of the new noun. Because bilet is masculine, the sentence would become Bilet jest teraz drogi (The ticket is expensive now).
Is it grammatically correct to put teraz at the end of the sentence?
Yes, Polish word order is very flexible. You could absolutely say Benzyna jest droga teraz or even Teraz benzyna jest droga. Placing teraz (now) right after the verb is just a very natural, neutral way to structure the sentence.

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