polski · A1 · grammar · 4 minutes
Noun gender
Infer common gender patterns but learn exceptions with adjective forms.
Understand the choice
Gender controls adjective, pronoun, numeral, and past-tense forms. Endings provide strong clues, but exceptions such as mężczyzna and ręka must be stored.
Core rule: Masculine nouns often end in a consonant, feminine in -a, and neuter in -o/-e/-ę; pronouns ten/ta/to reveal gender.
Notice it in context
Ten stół, ta lampa i to okno są nowe.
This table, lamp, and window are new.
Ten/ta/to display three singular genders; nowe agrees with the combined non-masculine-personal plural subject.
Ta kobieta ma nowy telefon.
This woman has a new phone.
Ta marks feminine kobieta; nowy marks masculine inanimate telefon.
To dziecko otwiera duże okno.
This child opens a large window.
To marks neuter dziecko; duże agrees with neuter okno.
What to remember
- Nouns ending -um such as muzeum are neuter and often indeclinable in singular.
- Masculine-personal is a separate plural category important later.
Common trap: Do not equate biological sex with every grammatical gender pattern.