Is Polish hard to learn? From pronunciation to grammar, there are many bumps on the road to speaking Polish fluently. If you're starting to learn Polish (or thinking about it), you might be wondering how hard Polish is to learn. Here are the 4 main challenges of learning Polish that beginners often face.
Maybe you've been thinking about learning Polish for a while now and have finally decided to take the big step. You're browsing online courses, you've signed up for the Duolingo app, and maybe even taken your first lesson with a Polish teacher.
But once you've started diving deeper into the learning process, you've discovered that Polish is actually pretty hard to learn.
First of all, because it's so different from most languages (unless you speak another Slavic language fluently). And secondly, what's the deal with all the words with different endings (kawa, kawę, kawy, kawie)?
If you feel that learning Polish will be a bumpy and lengthy road, you're not alone. And you're right.
Polish is considered to be one of the most challenging languages to learn in the world. In fact, Statista places it in Category IV of the hardest languages, which means it takes roughly 44 weeks to achieve "general speaking and reading professional proficiency" in this language.
So, what is it that makes Polish hard to learn for non-Slavic-language speakers? Here are the 4 challenges you might face when learning Polish as a beginner (most of my students struggle with these).
Polish Pronunciation Is Hard
If you've ever heard a Polish person speak, it might have sounded something like vshzshshvysko to your ears. That's because Polish words often have more consonants clustered together than they have vowels. Even the basic hello in Polish can be hard to pronounce for English speakers.
Plus, many sounds that are normal in the Polish language don't exist in other languages. Or, at least, they aren't used so frequently. For instance, you may often see clusters of consonants such as sz, trz, or szcz in Polish words. That's exactly what makes someone speaking Polish sound like a possessed cat.
But some of these sounds do exist in English. For example, the Polish "sz" is the equivalent of the English "sh" and the Polish "cz" is similar to the English "tch." So, while Polish pronunciation may seem scary in the beginning, you're 100% capable of producing those sounds.
The good thing about the Polish language is that words are usually pronounced how they're written. This isn't the case for languages like English or French, where one word can have two different pronunciations depending on the context (take "read" for example) or where the same cluster of letters can be pronounced differently depending on the word (take "live" and "alive").
🤓 Want to learn basic Polish expressions you must know as a foreigner? Get my FREE list HERE.
Polish Grammar Can Be Confusing
I feel that the majority of my students fear Polish grammar the most. And for a good reason, because Polish grammar is way more complex than English grammar.
Polish implements various grammatical concepts that don't exist in English, such as the conjugation of verbs, gender of nouns and adjectives, and - by far, the most feared of them all - the declination of nouns of adjectives.
If you've been wondering why some words in Polish end differently in different sentences, the declination is to blame. The Polish language implements what we call przypadki - 7 cases of declination, aka the conjugation of nouns and adjectives.
Here's what that's going to look like in a sentence:
This is black coffee. = To jest czarna kawa.
I'm drinking black coffee. = Piję czarną kawę.
I want to drink a black coffee. = Chcę się napić czarnej kawy.
See how the endings have changed depending on the context? But don't worry, there are rules to this. And if you're going to take classes with me, I can explain these rules to you in a way so easy even a 5-year-old will understand.
Polish Orthography May Cause Headaches
Not many Polish learners realize that Polish is actually full of orthographical rules they'll need to learn at some point (if they want to write correctly).
The main issue for many learners with Polish orthography is that there are some pairs of letters that sound the same. For example, the letters "rz" and "ż" sound exactly the same when pronounced (as in, "rzeka" and "żaba").
So, the only way to know how to spell these words correctly is by.... knowing how to spell these words correctly.
Just kiddin'. There are rules to this, too, although many words are written a certain way just because.
Polish Is Full of Exceptions & Rules
Polish is a complicated language that implements many grammar, pronunciation, and orthography rules. But once you're familiar with the rules and understand them, it becomes easier to speak Polish without making too many mistakes.
However, another challenge Polish learners often face is the fact that Polish is also full of exceptions. So, even if you know all the rules and how to apply them correctly in a sentence, there will still be some instances where you'll make an unintentional mistake (and that's ok).
Yes, Polish loves to break its own rules. Or the problem is that there are just so many rules that apply to different nuances of the language that we must categorize them as exceptions so as not to go crazy.
If I wanted to dive so deeply into the rabbit hole of every nuance of the Polish language with my students, we'd never find a way out.
Let's Learn Polish Together
So, as you can see, Polish is, in fact, a difficult language to learn.
Because it's so different from most languages, it not only makes it more challenging to learn the vocabulary (it's not like you can make word comparisons with English most of the time), but it also introduces new grammar concepts you probably didn't know about (such as przypadki or Polish plural, which is insanely complex for some reason).
If you're up for the challenge, learning Polish can be truly rewarding. It's such a niche language to learn that once you speak it fluently, it can bring you a ton of benefits, both personally and professionally.
But most of all, because you'll finally be able to have a conversation with your Polish family and colleagues in their native language.
So, if you're ready to learn this beautiful language, book a trial lesson with me, and let's get started. Or, follow me on Instagram, where I create (almost) daily videos with quick Polish tips.
Questions You Might Be Asking Yourself
How hard is it to learn Polish?
Well, I won't lie to you: learning Polish is hard. You may struggle with pronunciation and grammar rules. You may find it hard to memorize new vocabulary that differs greatly from any other non-Slavic language. But overall, learning Polish is a rewarding process. And if you enjoy it, it'll go more smoothly than you think. Don't get discouraged!
How long does it take to learn Polish?
Honestly? It depends. According to Statista, it takes roughly 44 weeks for an English speaker to reach professional proficiency in Polish. But your process will depend on a couple of things, including the languages you already speak fluently. What's more, some people are just naturally gifted at languages, and it comes really easy to them (I consider myself one of them).
Can you learn Polish on Duolingo?
No, you can't. You can learn some Polish words and basic grammar on Duolingo. You can learn quite a big pool of vocabulary on Duolingo. The app will also help you learn how to structure sentences and mix and match the words it teaches.
But overall, you can't learn to speak a language fluently with only a language-learning app (unless you sign up for 1:1 classes with native teachers like me on iTalki). Unless you have someone to practice with and implement other learning methods, your Duolingo quest may end with a big pool of vocabulary you don't know how to use in practice.
