How To Learn Polish

Is it difficult to learn Polish?

The biggest worry of people wanting to learn Polish is the question: 

Is it hard to learn Polish?  Truth be told, the Polish language, or język polski, is not the easiest language to learn, especially if you don’t come from a Slavic background. 

The Polish language has a complicated orthography, a specific pronunciation, and a distinctive melody. Its alphabet (Latin) consists of 32 letters. It has seven grammatical cases and three noun genders to spice things up. 

But hey, don’t get discouraged!  Keep reading on for some tips on how to learn Polish.

Tips to Learn the Polish Language

So, what is the best way to learn Polish? Nowadays, you can learn Polish for free in ways that suit you best. You can find options online as well as offline, and you can adjust them to the needs of your daily life. 

Remember that learning a new language takes time, needs work, and requires regularity. The best way is to aside at least half an hour a day to work on your Polish language skills.

 Plus, always keep in mind the most useful advice - 

To learn a foreign language, it is best to immerse yourself in it as much as you can. 

The following are tips and tricks to get you started with learning the Polish language.  

Find a Pole to talk to

The most motivating step you can take to learning the Polish language is to find a Polish native speaker to talk to on a regular basis. There are about 50 million Polish speakers worldwide, so this shouldn’t present a problem. 

If you don’t have a Pole as a friend or a member of your family, there are plenty of websites and apps that can help you out. The best way to go about this is to find someone interested in learning your native language. 

By speaking Polish regularly and having a good reason to do so, you will be most likely to find time to immerse yourself in the Polish language.

Download a motivating app

While there are plenty of helpful books to learn Polish, modern times call for modern means.

Today, you can learn Polish with Duolingo, which keeps you motivated, lets you hear the spoken words, and invites you to speak Polish as well, plus, it opens up the door to the Polish-speaking community. You can also explore other options, like Polish learning websites.

Find A Polish Tutor

While learning Polish by yourself is a very valid option, if you are a complete beginner of the Polish language, you should probably invest in finding a tutor to get you started. Polish orthography and Polish pronunciation does get tricky, so a helpful professional would definitively make sure you are on the right track to learning how to speak Polish properly. 

Entertain Yourself in Polish

Learning Polish will come much easier if you decide to listen to Polish music, read Polish newspapers or books, watch Polish films, series, and videos, and just in general - use your time for entertainment as a time for learning as well. 

This way you will get easily used to being around the Polish language.

Learn Polish Greetings

Trying to learn Polish greetings, even if by heart only, and then using these greetings whenever possible will keep you open to conversation with Polish native speakers. A simple ‘good morning’ or ‘happy birthday’’ will show them you are trying! 

Learn Polish Phrases

Learning Polish phrases can be a fun way to learn Polish for beginners. From swear words to fun sayings - this step will open you up to the Polish culture and its sense of humor, too. And this, in turn, will motivate you to learn more about Polish culture. 

So, all this in mind, how long does it take to learn Polish fluently?

While there are estimations that Polish takes about a year to learn to speak fluently, bear in mind that language learning is a very individual concept. It depends highly on your linguistic background, your willingness to work hard, and your language abilities, which, truth be told, are not the same for everyone. Is Polish hard to learn, thus, depends on numerous factors. 

So, if you’re thinking to yourself - Should I learn Polish?  The answer is - you should definitively give it a try!

Love Polish? Read on!

If you want to go into detail and learn to count to ten in Polish, Polish words, or Polish customs, explore our blog site!

And if you want to make your living space more Polish - explore our shop with fun Polish things to get you started!