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Co to znaczy?

Co to znaczy?
What does that mean?
From Lesson 133:Everyday verbs (wyglądać, zajmować się)·Polish

Breakdown of Co to znaczy?

to
this
co
what
znaczyć
to mean

Questions & Answers about Co to znaczy?

Why do we use "to" here instead of "ten" or "ta"?
In Polish, when you refer to a general idea, an unknown concept, or a whole situation, you always use the neuter pronoun to. You only use ten (masculine) or ta (feminine) when you are pointing to a specific noun whose gender you already know.
What is the base form of the verb "znaczy"?
The infinitive (dictionary form) is znaczyć (to mean). It conjugates in the third person singular as znaczy to match the pronoun to (it/that).
How can I use this to ask what a specific Polish word means?
You can just place the word at the end of the sentence. For example, if you want to know what "kot" means, you can ask: Co znaczy kot? or Co znaczy słowo kot? (What does the word "kot" mean?).
I sometimes hear Polish people say "to znaczy" in the middle of a sentence. What does it mean there?
When used in the middle of a sentence, to znaczy acts like the English phrase "I mean..." or "that is to say...". Polish speakers frequently use it as a filler phrase to clarify a thought or correct themselves while speaking.

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