Word
Gardło mnie boli i nie mogę jeść.
Meaning
My throat hurts and I cannot eat.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Questions & Answers about Gardło mnie boli i nie mogę jeść.
Why does it say Gardło mnie boli instead of using the word for "my" like moje?
In Polish, you usually don't use possessive words like "my" or "your" with body parts because it is already obvious whose body it is. Instead of saying "my throat hurts," Polish uses the structure "throat hurts me," which is gardło mnie boli.
Why use the pronoun mnie here instead of mi?
The verb boleć (to hurt) requires a direct object in the accusative case. Mnie is the accusative form of ja (I). While an English speaker might be tempted to use the dative form mi thinking "it is hurting to me", Polish grammar specifically requires the accusative here.
How do we get mogę from the dictionary form móc (to be able to)?
The verb móc is highly irregular. In the present tense, "I can" is mogę and "they can" is mogą, but the other forms use a different consonant entirely, like możesz (you can) or może (he/she/it can).
Why is the verb jeść in its dictionary form here?
Because it comes directly after mogę (I can). Just like in English, when you use a modal verb showing ability or obligation like "can" or "must", the second verb that follows it stays in its basic dictionary form (the infinitive).