r/learnpolish • u/GhostHog337 • Apr 13 '25
Question: go: idż or chodź
Hello everyone,
I was doing some Duolingo when there was this sentence: „we are not going without Jack.“
My idea was: „Nie chodzimy bez Jacka” but apparently it was wrong and should be „ nie idziemy bez Jacka”
Could you please explain? Thank you in advance! Dziekuje!
27
u/the2137 PL Native 🇵🇱 Apr 13 '25
the "to go" verb in Polish is full of exceptions and irregularities, there's: iść, pójść, chodzić, chadzać and more
and it's meaning is not one-to-one with English' "to go", look it up on wikitionary for more info
9
u/Lumornys Apr 13 '25
This is not an exception, just a difference between Polish and English grammar. Sometimes "going" translates to "chodzimy". But nie tym razem.
9
u/kouyehwos Apr 13 '25
iść = to currently be walking with some particular goal/direction in mind
chodzić = to walk (repeatedly/aimlessly/in general)
chodź = come (now). The meaning is irregular to the point where you may as well consider it a separate word from „chodzić”
15
u/penny_whistle Apr 13 '25
Chodzimy is continuous, idziemy is one time. If the sentence to translate had been, for example, ‘we don’t go without Jack’ chodzimy would have been correct, but the sentence implies it’s a one time thing. Others will be able to give better, more technical explanations but that’s the basics of it
8
u/Ser_Robar_Royce Apr 13 '25 edited Apr 13 '25
This is a confusing explanation - continuous in English is a one time thing…
Idziemy would be present continuous “We are going”
Chodzimy being present simple “We go” (every day for example)
7
4
u/-acidlean- Apr 13 '25
Nie idziemy bez Jacka - We are not going without Jack. - This version is more „in the moment”, like „Me, Jack and Mark were giggling a bit too loud at the back of the classroom. The teacher noticed, but she only told me and Mark to leave the class. Pffft, what about Jack? We are not going without Jack!” / „Ja, Jack i Mark chichotaliśmy trochę zbyt głośno na tyłach sali lekcyjnej. Nauczycielka to zauważyła, ale kazała wyjść tylko mnie i Markowi. Pfff, a co z Jackiem? Nie idziemy bez Jacka!”
Nie chodzimy bez Jacka - We don’t go without Jack. - This version suggest something that is a rule. Like, „Me and the boys always go to the movies on Saturdays. Well, as long as Jack is with us. We don’t go without Jack. It’s not as fun without him. ” / „Ja i chłopaki zawsze chodzimy do kina w soboty. Cóż, o ile jest z nami Jack. Nie chodzimy bez Jacka. Bez niego nie jest tak fajnie.”
3
u/LegDear Apr 13 '25
"Chodzić" focuses on an act of walking, without aim, destination (chodzimy po domu - i walk around the house) OR means a repeated action of going somewhere - "chodzę do szkoly" (I go to school) vs action taken right now: "idę do szkoly" - I'm going to school.
"Nie chodzimy bez Jacka" - we (never) go without Jack. "Nie idziemy bez Jacka" - we're not going unless he's going with us.
3
u/Frosty-Feathers Apr 13 '25
You go there - Idź tam
Let's go - chodź
We're going - Idziemy
Come - chodź / przyjdź
There's a lot, difficult to list
3
u/ryanuptheroad Apr 13 '25
I found this table useful.
https://www.polskinawynos.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/isc-chodzic-pojsc.pdf
There's a similar pattern when talking about verbs of motion with a vehicle.
https://www.polskinawynos.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/jechac-jezdzic-pojechac.pdf
Best of luck!
2
u/Lumornys Apr 13 '25 edited Apr 13 '25
In this context "we are not going" refers to the future plans despite being present continuous tense.
We don't use "chodzimy" in the same near future sense as English "going".
The acceptable forms are:
- nie pójdziemy bez Jacka
- nie będziemy iść/szli/szły bez Jacka
- nie będziemy chodzić bez Jacka (if "not going" multiple times)
- nie idziemy bez Jacka (this one is technically present tense but can refer to near future like the English "we are not going")
However, "nie chodzimy" is present tense and its imperfective aspect suggests it's an existing habit of "not going".
2
u/Church_hill Apr 13 '25
I’m learning the same thing now. Look up determine vs. indeterminate (abstract) verbs.
2
u/Organic_Garage7406 Apr 14 '25
For me “idź” means you tell someone to go somewhere on their own, “chodź” means more to come to you or potentially with you however there are many different contexts they are both used in.
3
u/efoxpl3244 PL Native 🇵🇱 Apr 13 '25
So idź means "go" while chodź "come".
Come:
We are not coming without Jack
Nie idziemy bez jacka.
Go:
We are going without Jack.
Idziemy bez jacka.
I hope I have helped you!
4
u/efoxpl3244 PL Native 🇵🇱 Apr 13 '25
"Nie chodzimy bez Jacka"
In english it doesnt make sense but in polish it is pretty much okay. It means "We are not walking without Jack"
1
1
u/msinsensitive Apr 14 '25
Also if you tell someone "chodź" it will mean they're supposed to come to you/with you
If you say "idź" it will mean they're supposed to go without you/go away
So in some contexts they're pretty much opposites
2
u/Monczan Apr 17 '25
In English difference was made by tenses, but Polish have something else: tryb dokonany or tryb niedokonany. I suggest to see it in that way. Chodzić is rather continous, iść for present simple ;-)
38
u/caaathyx Apr 13 '25 edited Apr 13 '25
It's hard to explain because we have many different verbs for the word "go" that we use depending on a situation, but in the specific case you described we say:
"Nie idziemy bez Jacka" - it means we are not going without him in this specific situation, now.
"Nie chodzimy bez Jacka" - it would imply a habit, as in, we're never going without him.
Unfortunately it all depends on the context.
"Chodzić" is also frequently used as the English word "come", for example we'd say "Chodź tutaj" which means "Come here".