Present Tense
Present tense conjugation patterns in Polish
I can conjugate common verbs in present tense
Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?
Mówię po polsku.
I speak Polish.
Rozumiesz?
Do you understand?
Pracujemy każdego dnia.
We work every day.
Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?
Czas teraźniejszy — Present Tense
Polish verbs conjugate by person and number. There are 4 main patterns:
| Pattern | ja | ty | on/ona | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| -am/-asz | kocham | kochasz | kocha | kochać (to love) |
| -em/-esz | rozumiem | rozumiesz | rozumie | rozumieć (to understand) |
| -ę/-isz | robię | robisz | robi | robić (to do) |
| -ę/-esz | piszę | piszesz | pisze | pisać (to write) |
Plural: my -my (robimy), wy -cie (robicie), oni/one -ą (robią). Subject pronouns are usually dropped — the ending tells you who.
Learners mix up the four conjugation groups and apply wrong endings.
Mówię po polsku.
I speak Polish.
mówić follows the -ę/-isz pattern: mówię, mówisz, mówi.
Rozumiesz?
Do you understand?
rozumieć follows the -em/-esz pattern: rozumiem, rozumiesz.
Pracujemy każdego dnia.
We work every day.
pracować follows -ę/-esz: pracuję, pracujesz, my → pracujemy.
Practice in course
Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises
Put it into practice
Try a free exercise from the courseFrequently asked questions
- When is Czas teraźniejszy used?
- Polish verbs conjugate by person and number. There are 4 main patterns :
- How is Czas teraźniejszy formed?
- Plural: my -my (robimy), wy -cie (robicie), oni/one -ą (robią). Subject pronouns are usually dropped — the ending tells you who.
- What are common mistakes with Czas teraźniejszy?
- Learners mix up conjugation groups and apply wrong endings. The -ę/-isz and -ę/-esz groups are most confusing. English speakers: English has almost no conjugation — must memorize all six forms per verb. Russian speakers: Two conjugation groups in Russian vs four in Polish, but the concept transfers well. Czech speakers: Czech conjugation classes map closely to Polish; -ám/-áš ≈ -am/-asz, -ím/-íš ≈ -ę/-isz.