Breakdown of W dwudziestym wieku nikt nie spodziewał się tego wynalazku.
nie
no / not
ten
this (m)
w
in / on (a day)
nikt
nobody
wiek
century
dwudziesty
twentieth
spodziewać się
to expect
wynalazek
the invention
Questions & Answers about W dwudziestym wieku nikt nie spodziewał się tego wynalazku.
Why do we use the Locative case for w dwudziestym wieku?
To say "in" a specific century, Polish uses the preposition w followed by the Locative case. The ordinal number dwudziesty (twentieth) changes to dwudziestym, and the masculine noun wiek (century) takes the -u ending to become wieku.
Why is the object of the sentence, tego wynalazku, in the Genitive case instead of the Accusative?
Because of the verb spodziewać się (to expect). This is a special verb that always demands the Genitive case for the thing being expected, regardless of whether the sentence is positive or negative. Therefore, ten wynalazek changes to tego wynalazku.
Why is there a nie after nikt? Doesn't that make a double negative?
Yes, and double negatives are mandatory in Polish! Whenever you use a negative word like nikt (nobody), nic (nothing), or nigdy (never), the main verb must also be negated with nie.
Why does the dictionary form wynalazek lose its "e" in wynalazku?
This is the famous Polish "fleeting e". For many masculine nouns ending in -ek, the e disappears when you add a case ending. So wynalazek becomes wynalazku in the Genitive, rather than keeping the "e".
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