Learn Polish: Myślę, że on ją złapie obok karuzeli. - I think that he will catch her next to the merry-go-round.

Myślę, że on ją złapie obok karuzeli.

I think that he will catch her next to the merry-go-round.

Breakdown of Myślę, że on ją złapie obok karuzeli.

Questions & Answers about Myślę, że on ją złapie obok karuzeli.

Why is karuzela (merry-go-round) written as karuzeli here?

It is in the Genitive case because it follows the preposition obok (next to). Just like dookoła from this lesson, obok is a preposition of location that forces the noun after it into the Genitive case. Since karuzela is a feminine noun, its -a ending changes to -i.

Why is the pronoun ją (her) placed before the verb złapie instead of after it?

Short pronoun forms like ją do not like to stand at the very end of a sentence or a clause unless absolutely necessary. Putting ją right before the verb (on ją złapie) sounds much more natural to a Polish ear than leaving it dangling at the end.

Why is the future tense expressed with just złapie instead of będzie łapał?

Złapie is a perfective verb, which focuses on the result of the action (he will catch her and it will be done). If you used the imperfective form będzie łapał, it would change the meaning to an ongoing action in the future, like he will be trying to catch her or chasing her for a while.

Is the comma before że strictly necessary?

Yes! Unlike in English where the comma before 'that' is usually skipped, Polish punctuation rules strictly require a comma before że whenever it connects two clauses.