Polish is rightfully a difficult language to learn, especially for English native speakers who have to struggle with declensions, gender system, and convoluted pronunciation. At the same time, it’s far from being the most difficult one out there, and if you master any foreign languages belonging to the Slavic group, you’ll learn Polish in no time!
Just like with any other language, mastering Polish takes time, effort, and a great deal of patience. If you are ready to put in the hours and not afraid of the hardships of learning something new — then Polish is definitely for you.
It’s a long journey from learning the Polish alphabet to communicating freely with the native speakers. This article aims at helping you get started by showing you some ways to study the language and achieve fluency as soon as possible.
However, we’re here not only to give you some helpful tips and tricks but also provide with qualified tutoring assistance. At Preply, you can choose your preferred tutor from thousands of certified native Polish experts, available 24/7. The online lessons will take place right from your browser via the special video chat, so no extra software is needed.
The major challenge with learning a language by yourself is that you don’t tend to speak out loud as much as you need to. Studying with a personal tutor means that there is no escape from practicing speaking, which helps break the language barrier and leads to better pronunciation. Just enter the virtual classroom and start learning right away! But firstly find your perfect tutor!
Why learn Polish?
The foundation of any language is the community behind it. Polish is spoken by 45 million people worldwide, which makes it the second most widely spoken Slavic language. Not surprisingly, the answer to the question “what language is spoken in Poland” is Polish. The Polish communities can be found around the globe, including English-speaking countries like the UK, US, and Australia. This means that you are never far away from taking the opportunity to practice.
The Polish alphabet inherited Latin letters, but you’ll also find new letters and sounds pertaining to this language. Polish has a lot in common with Slovak, Czech, Ukrainian and Bulgarian, although the last two use the Cyrillic script. If you need some inspiration — here are some reasons why learning Polish is such a rewarding experience:
Enjoy the rich culture
Polish will be your pathway to one of the most fascinating cultures in the world. From music and literature to arts and cinema, Poland is the native land of such prominent figures as Adam Mickiewicz, Jan Matejko, and Frédéric Chopin. Speaking Polish is a way to connect with this outstanding European heritage.
Approach Slavic group of languages
Since Polish shares the same roots with the Slavic branch, it can be a great start if your aim is to learn other languages of this family. For example, you can quickly grasp the basics of Bulgarian, Ukrainian, Slovak, Serbian when you have already mastered Polish language basics.
Enrich your traveling experience
With its charming old cities, Poland is a historical treasure-trove that has the ambiance of a medieval and modern metropolis-like lifestyle. Besides making your traveling experience more convenient, knowing even a few Polish phrases will let you feel at home in this country.
Better career opportunities
Speaking more than one language can make your resume stand out from the competition. In addition to the position-relevant experience, companies often look for candidates who can offer more in terms of cultural diversity. Learning to speak Polish is absolutely necessary if you intend to run a business in this country. Poland’s economy is one of the strongest in the region, so the language is in high demand.
The best way to learn Polish: 7 helpful steps to language proficiency
Polish belongs to the West Slavic languages, which means that it has different roots compared with Germanic languages. Thus, Polish stands out from this group and English in particular. The vocabulary, grammar, spelling rules may present a big challenge for beginners.
But it doesn’t mean that you can never reach language fluency. We’re here to show you the best way to achieve your language learning goals.
Learn pronunciation rules
Learning how to speak Polish starts with the alphabet. At this step, you will come across strange letters with apostrophes, tails, and dots. There are also nasal sounds (“ą” and “ę”), soft sounds (“ć”, “ś”, “ź”, “ń”), vibrating sound ( “ż”), digraphs like “cz”, which cannot be found in English.
Coping with Polish pronunciation may be a hardship. At first glance, words look like a mesh of consonants which are hard to utter. For instance, take a look at the phrase “Krzesło z powyłamywanymi nogami” which translates as “A chair with broken legs”.
The most complicated thing about the sound system is that the same sounds can be spelled differently — as one letter or as a combination of letters. The stress is fixed and lies on the next-to-last syllable. Thus, you should initially learn how to pronounce individual letters and digraphs. After you have it down, you’ll feel more confident reading out loud and speaking.
Consider Polish noun gender
Noun gender denotes whether it’s feminine, masculine, or neutral. The English language has no gender, so if you have never learned a language with genders, this part of grammar can be a head-scratcher.
How hard is it to learn Polish noun gender? Luckily, with some exceptions, you can always tell a noun gender by the letter in which the word ends. The gender of a noun influences the endings of words in a sentence and phrases, which leads us straight to declension.
Dive into declension rules
A noun’s ending is defined by its gender, case, and number. There are also other parts of speech that have their own endings as well. To a Polish beginner, it might seem overwhelming to learn all the combinations and so you will be using the declension table quite frequently. Just like with any other language, if you practice extensively, you’ll quickly grasp the right endings intuitively. The more you read and listen, the stronger your intuitions will get.
Don’t be scared of verb conjugation
By learning Polish, you will come to see that a verb has only 3 tenses. Besides tense, it’s ending is defined by the grammatical person (first, second, third) and number (singular, plural). There are also irregular verbs to which no rules are applied, so you’ll have to learn them individually. The fastest way to learn the verb endings is by speaking and doing fill-in-the-blanks exercises. Many learners recommend 301 Polish Verbs that focuses solely on conjugation.
Don’t worry about sentence structures
Polish typically has a subject-verb-object word order, but it’s possible to move words around in the sentence. Thus, the sentence will have the same meaning, but with the free word order, you can emphasize a particular word by placing it into the first place in a sentence. Also, when a word is obvious from context, you can just drop it.
Prepare to speak confidently
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Expose yourself to the language
The best way to learn Polish is to immerse yourself into it as much as possible. Ideally, visiting Poland would be an invaluable experience. However, this can be expensive, especially if you are traveling overseas.
Finding a native speaker in your vicinity for occasional conversations would be the next best thing. This way, you will be able to pick up the language patterns in a natural way, which will accelerate your learning.
It’s also essential to create a Polish environment for yourself. Here is what you can do:
- Watch Polish movies and TV shows. IMDb and YouTube have a great collection of movies and videos in this language. An alternative can be watching TV or online streaming services. Don’t forget to turn on the subtitles.
- Learn to read Polish by looking through the news in the Polish media. Reading is an essential skill and takes time to learn, so be sure to use a dictionary as you begin.
- Play Polish video games. You may not know it, but Poland has an exceptional reputation for producing popular video games like “The Witcher,” which have become a global phenomenon.
- Explore traditional food. Pierogi is not the only thing that Polish food can offer. Cooking some traditional food is a tasty way to immerse yourself in the Polish language and culture.
Apply the language through daily practice
This is the best thing you can do to succeed in learning a new language. Preply lets you learn Polish online from anywhere with private online lessons. With a native of Polish as your tutor, you will build your confidence in speaking the language in a short time.
Join our friendly community of language learners and learn to speak Polish with Preply. Your perfect tutor is waiting for you!
FAQs
The desktop version of Anki is free, as is the basic version of Memrise. Duolingo is a popular language learning app that introduces you to both Polish vocabulary and grammar. It's a gamified platform, so it's fun to use and addictive, so you'll keep coming back to learn more.
What is the easiest way to learn Polish? ›
Many language experts recommend immersion as the fastest way to become fluent in Polish; move to Poland, live with a host family and have every interaction in Polish. The idea is that, without English to fall back on, the desire to speak Polish will become a real necessity, a sink-or-swim survival pressure.
Which is harder Polish or Russian? ›
Grammatically, Russian is not as difficult as Polish but pretty darn close. Polish has seven cases, while Russian has six. Also, Russians omit the verb “to be” in the present tense, which can throw beginners for a loop when they try to form basic sentences.
Is the Duolingo Polish course good? ›
A lot of Polish learners enjoy Duolingo for its interactive game-like exercises. It has a lot of vocabulary, and even absolute beginners will be able to build speaking skills. You can progress through the higher levels and earn badges, but you will probably top out at some point.
How long does it take to learn Polish fluently? ›
According to the FSI (Foreign Service Institute) of the US government, a native English speaker would need about 1100 class hours or 44 weeks of practice to become fluent in Polish. Thus, Polish is not actually one of the hardest languages to learn because it does not compete directly with Japanese, Chinese or Korean.
Can you learn Polish on your own? ›
You Can Learn Polish By Yourself
But, you don't need a teacher or a school to reach fluency. You can learn Polish easily by using trusted methods. The following 10 steps are essential for your Polish fluency.
What is the hardest part about learning Polish? ›
Polish Is Phonetic
While one of the reasons that Polish is hard to learn was the pronunciation, there are a couple of reasons that make it easier. Polish is phonetic. So, when you learn the Polish alphabet, you know it for life. You won't ever have to question how a letter is pronounced.
What's the longest word in Polish? ›
Dziewięćsetdziewięćdziesięciodziewięcionarodowościowego. This word consists of fifty-four letters, and it is the genitive singular form of an adjective meaning roughly “of nine-hundred and ninety-nine nationalities”. It is often considered the longest Polish word.
How is Ł pronounced? ›
Ł – The mysterious ł with a slash is pronounced like an English 'w' like in the word 'wool. '
What language is closest to Polish? ›
Among the major languages, it is most closely related to Slovak and Czech but differs in terms of pronunciation and general grammar.
Total Scores and Rank on a 10-Point Scale for Fluency
| Language | Points | Glossika Fluency Course |
|---|
| Spanish | 20 | Spanish |
| French | 21 | French |
| German | 28 | German |
| Polish | 54 | Polish |
14 more rowsSep 1, 2018
Speaking Polish Gets You Better Career Opportunities
Studies have shown that people who speak more than one language earn 5-20% more than monolinguals.
What level of Polish does Duolingo get you to? ›
Duolingo won't make you fluent in Polish, but it can help you build a solid foundation in the language. The lessons in Duolingo help you practice reading, writing, speaking, and listening.
Is Rosetta Stone good for Polish? ›
Out of all the language learning tools out there, I 100% recommend Rosetta Stone! Rosetta Stone is so easy and effective!
What makes Polish hard to learn? ›
But Polish is a very difficult language to learn as an adult English speaker, for two formidable reasons: The sounds you need to produce and understand, and the grammar.
How many words do you need to know to be fluent in Polish? ›
You can be fluent for most everyday situations if you know at least the 5000 most popular Polish words. You will have a vocabulary similar to that of a native speaker with high school diploma.
Are you Polish if your parents are Polish? ›
You are entitled to Poland citizenship by descent if your parents, grandparents, or great-grandparents were born in Poland. The ancestor needs to fulfill the following requirements: Ancestor should have been born in Poland. Ancestor should have resided in Poland after 1920.
Do you have to speak Polish to be Polish? ›
You do not need to speak Polish to claim your Polish citizenship - you are only required to prove your lineage to a Polish ancestor.
What is harder German or Polish? ›
Many English speakers believe it is easier to learn German than Polish. With German, there is significant overlap in vocabulary with English, versus very little overlap with English and Polish. Polish has far fewer commonalities with English, making it harder to learn generally.
Is Russian or Polish harder to speak? ›
Polish uses Latin letters, just like English. So, when you're learning the Polish alphabet, all you have to pay attention to are the special accents and the pronunciation. This makes Polish a much much easier language to learn than Russian.
We've used data from the Foreign Service Institute (FSI) to rank them from the easier to the somewhat more challenging.
- Frisian. ...
- Dutch. ...
- Norwegian. ...
- Spanish. ...
- Portuguese. ...
- Italian. ...
- French. ...
- Swedish.
The Polish word baba and its diminutive, babka, mean either 'grandmother' or 'old woman' (or even just 'woman', in some contexts).
What dupa means in Polish? ›
So, what does dupa mean in Polish? Dupa in English is most accurately translated as ass. And if used as such, it is a bit vulgar, but not the worst swear word available.
What does Dupa Yash mean? ›
"dupa yash" - Will most likely be "dupa jaś" or "głupi jaś". Means someone silly, naive.
What is the hardest sentence in Polish? ›
W Szczebrzeszynie chrząszcz brzmi w trzcinie i Szczebrzeszyn z tego słynie – “In the town of Szczebrzeczyn, a beetle buzzes in the reeds and this is what Szczebrzeszyn is famous for” - and now for the Polish favourite - the famous beetle of Szczebrzeszyn.
What is the most common letter in Polish? ›
Accordingly, the letters I, E and A are the most frequent letters in the Polish language.
What is Ż with a line through it in Polish? ›
In Polish, the character Ƶ is used as an allographic variant of the letter Ż although once used in Old Polish. In Greek, the character Ƶ is a handwritten form of the letter Xi (ξ), where the horizontal stroke distinguishes it from Zeta, ζ.
What is the Polish alphabet called? ›
The polish alphabet (“alfabet polski“) consists of 32 letters (23 consonants and 9 vowels). Unlike other slavic languages, the polish language (“język polski“) uses Latin Script with additional diacritics for the special polish phonemes (such as ą and ł).
What is the T with a slanted line? ›
Ŧ (lowercase: ŧ, Latin alphabet), known as T with a bar or T with stroke, is the 25th letter in the Northern Sámi alphabet, where it represents the voiceless dental fricative [θ].
What country speaks the most Polish? ›
Polish speaking countries
The Polish language (native name: język polski, polszczyzna) has its roots in the Indo-European language family. As a percentage of the total population, the largest share of around 98 percent is in Poland. A total of about 38.7 million people worldwide speak Polish as their mother tongue.
Wymysorys is an endangered language with very few speakers. It is native to Wilamowice, but, unlike the similarly endangered Karaim language, it was practically unknown during the preparation of the aforementioned Act.
What countries speak the most Polish? ›
Polish is spoken by most of the population of Poland, and by sizeable populations in Ukraine, the United States, Belarus, Lithuania, Germany, Canada, the United Kingdom, Israel, Russia, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Australia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Brazil, Argentina, Austria and Hungary.
What is the #1 hardest language? ›
Across multiple sources, Mandarin Chinese is the number one language listed as the most challenging to learn. The Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center puts Mandarin in Category IV, which is the list of the most difficult languages to learn for English speakers.
Is Polish a dead language? ›
Polish is spoken, naturally, by Polish emigrants living all around the world, also by their children and grandchildren. The total number of speakers worldwide is about 50 million.
What is the oldest language in the world? ›
Sumerian can be considered the first language in the world, according to Mondly. The oldest proof of written Sumerian was found on the Kish tablet in today's Iraq, dating back to approximately 3500 BC.
What do I need to know before learning Polish? ›
The Best Tips To Learn Polish
- Remember That Everything Is Pronounced Like It's Written. At first, this news might seem a bit alarming. ...
- Keep Calm When Learning The Noun Endings. ...
- Work On Your DŹ, Ć, Ś And Ź ...
- Don't Obsess Over Grammar (At First) ...
- Immerse Yourself In Polish.
People in Poland are incredibly kind.
Poles are very happy to share their country and culture with visitors and there is an obvious bond between Polish and American people. Interacting with locals is an important part of our trips so that you can experience the real Poland.
Are Polish well educated? ›
The Polish education system is ranked fifth in Europe and 10th in the world, and the last decade has seen rising grades across the board, including literacy, numeracy , science, and foreign languages.
How can I learn Polish fast for free? ›
The world's most popular way to learn Polish online
Whether you're a beginner starting with the basics or looking to practice your reading, writing, and speaking, Duolingo is scientifically proven to work.
Which is better Babbel or Duolingo? ›
The biggest difference between Babbel and Duolingo is the approach to language learning. Babbel is a better option if you want traditional language instructions through modules and lessons. By contrast, Duolingo works great if you need a playful, gamified experience.
Duolingo can't make you fluent by itself
The other way in which the research is misleading is that learning a language requires more than just an app, in the same way learning just about anything requires more than just a textbook.
Should I use Duolingo or Rosetta Stone? ›
Duolingo vs Rosetta Stone, which is better for travel? If you are going to be travelling and want to learn a language at a beginner to intermediate level, we believe Rosetta Stone is a better option than Duolingo. Their lessons are more comprehensive and you will learn more quickly.
Is Babbel good for Polish? ›
Whether you enroll for a Polish course to learn Polish for leisure, business, travel or another reason, Babbel offers the highest quality Polish language courses with the best teaching staff and equipment available. The courses are designed for practicing listening, writing and speaking skills.
What is the hardest language to learn Polish? ›
Polish is amongst the hardest languages to pick up in the world. Polish words are confusing and can be hard to pronounce for English speakers. Though the language uses the Latin script, it has some additional letters, a complex grammar freestyle system and relies heavily on consonants.
What makes Polish so hard to learn? ›
But Polish is a very difficult language to learn as an adult English speaker, for two formidable reasons: The sounds you need to produce and understand, and the grammar.
Is it free to use Babbel? ›
If you want to try Babbel before you buy, you can try the first few lessons of each course for free. The free version of Babbel is very limited though. To access all the features, you need a subscription. If you're not happy, Babbel offers a 20-day money back guarantee.
What is the #1 hardest language to learn? ›
Across multiple sources, Mandarin Chinese is the number one language listed as the most challenging to learn. The Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center puts Mandarin in Category IV, which is the list of the most difficult languages to learn for English speakers.
What is the closest language to Polish? ›
Among the major languages, it is most closely related to Slovak and Czech but differs in terms of pronunciation and general grammar.
Which is better babbel or Duolingo? ›
The biggest difference between Babbel and Duolingo is the approach to language learning. Babbel is a better option if you want traditional language instructions through modules and lessons. By contrast, Duolingo works great if you need a playful, gamified experience.
What is the success rate of Babbel? ›
The efficacy of Babbel is a gain of about 12.7 test points per one hour of study. For truly novice users with no knowledge of Spanish the gain is 18 points and for more advanced users it is about 10 points per hour of study. About 45% of the participants moved up at least one college semester level.
Yes. After thoroughly testing out and reviewing each language learning app, we found Rosetta Stone to be a superior program to Duolingo. While we like Duolingo's gamification of learning, Rosetta Stone is simply more comprehensive and effective.
How long does it take to finish Babbel? ›
Each course is broken down into a series of levels. Each level contains around 30 Italian lessons that go step-by-step through all the core areas of language learning. Each level takes between one and two months to complete.
