Breakdown of Te puenty są okropne, nikt na nie nie czeka.
być
to be
ten
this (m)
na
on, at / to (motion toward) / for (a meal) / for (waiting for)
okropny
terrible
czekać
to wait
nikt
nobody
nie
them (after a preposition)
puenta
the punchline
Questions & Answers about Te puenty są okropne, nikt na nie nie czeka.
Why do we say na nie instead of na je?
Because of the preposition na. When a third-person pronoun like je (meaning "them" for non-masculine-personal nouns) comes directly after a preposition, it adds an 'n' to the beginning. So, je becomes nie. This rule applies to all third-person pronouns to make them easier to pronounce after prepositions.
Why are there two nie words right next to each other in na nie nie czeka?
They are two completely different words that just happen to look identical! The first nie is the pronoun meaning "them" (referring to the punchlines). The second nie is the negative particle "not". Polish requires double negatives, so because the clause has nikt (nobody), we must also put nie before the verb czeka.
Why do we use the preposition na with czekać here?
In Polish, the most common way to say "to wait for" someone or something is to use czekać na followed by the accusative case. While English speakers wait "for" something, Polish speakers literally wait "on" (na) it.
Why do we use Te puenty instead of Ci puenty for "These punchlines"?
The singular noun puenta (punchline) is feminine. In the plural, feminine nouns fall into the non-masculine-personal gender group (niemęskoosobowy). Because of this, they take the demonstrative pronoun te rather than the masculine-personal ci.
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