Polish is a Slavic language , an entirely different branch of the Indo-European language tree. So the roots of this language are far from the Germanic origins of English. With the exception of modern words, there is not much crossover between English and Polish vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation. This may make Polish a bit of a challenge for beginners. However, it can also be a refreshingly clean slate for language learners.
One of the most interesting facts about the Polish language is that it is widely-spoken in the country, making it the most linguistically homogeneous in Europe. More than 90% of the citizens in Poland speak Polish as a first language. While there are several regional dialects, most Polish speakers can easily understand one another.
To work on your fluency in Polish, your lessons should start with the basics of common words and pronunciations. Then you can scale naturally towards a much more complex understanding of the Polish language. Rosetta Stone’s Dynamic Immersion® methodology teaches you the Polish language by using an approach that introduces words alongside both visual and audio cues—to help you learn vocab in the context of true-to-life conversations. In addition, Rosetta Stone uses an award-winning mobile app to deliver bite-sized lessons that help you learn Polish anytime, anywhere, on your schedule!
Learn Polish Language
If you are familiar with Latin, chances are new learners will be able to easily pick up Polish. That’s because Polish derives a great deal of its vocabulary directly from Latin. There are also many similarities between the Polish language and French, Czech, Hungarian, and Turkish. With that said, because the Polish language is highly inflected when spoken, and has a specific subject-verb-object word order, Polish may feel challenging to English-speaking learners.
Learning Polish must begin by acquiring an understanding of Polish basics and sounds. The Polish language is not a tonal language. Polish pronunciation is fairly consistent, most commonly with words that place stress on the second syllable. With a few exceptions, Polish is phonetic, meaning most Polish words are pronounced with sounds that correspond to the way the words are spelled. For instance, once you learn to pronounce the “cz” in words such as cześć (“hello”) and klucz (“a key”), many Polish words will no longer feel like a jumble of confusing consonants. As you begin to focus on pronouncing individual letter sounds of the Polish alphabet, you’ll gain confidence speaking Polish out loud.
The ability to refine your Polish pronunciation depends on immediate and accurate feedback on your pronunciation efforts. This feedback will allow you to hear proper pronunciation and then make any needed corrections to your own. This is where Rosetta Stone’s patented speech-recognition engine, TruAccent™ comes in. This powerful engine provides immediate feedback on your pronunciation, so you can align your Polish accent with that of fluent speakers. TruAccent can be a very useful tool in helping you learn, understand, and be understood in Polish.
Try Our Award-Winning App
Surround yourself with Polish whenever, wherever with the Rosetta Stone app .
Download a unit and knock it out on the train or a flight. Select a 5-10 minute lesson and sneak it in while you wait in line or for your ride to show up. And explore dynamic features, like Seek and Speak, where you can point at an object in the real world and get a translation .
The best part? You don’t have to choose between app or desktop. Both come with your subscription and sync, so you can switch between devices seamlessly.
