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Category Archives: Dla Polaków
How to translate “termin” (time expression)
The Polish word “termin” can mean a period of time or a point in time. In English, the word “term” can also mean a period of time or a point in time. But “term” has very specific uses (relating to … Continue reading
How to translate “przedsiębiorca”
“Przedsiębiorca” is usually translated as “entrepreneur”. Although this is one of several possible translations, 99% of the time it is the wrong word. First of all, look at a Polish definition of “przedsiębiorca”: Zgodnie z definicją zawartą w art. 431 kodeksu … Continue reading
How to translate “nie później niż w ciągu”
I often see the literal translation of this phrase – not later than within. This is always wrong. Here’s an example: POLISH Płatności należy dokonać nie później niż w ciągu pięciu dni od daty otrzymania niniejszego pisma. WRONG The payment … Continue reading
How to translate “ujawnić”
“Ujawnić” seems to have various meanings and can be translated into numerous different words in English. Unfortunately most people regularly choose the wrong word. Here’s a typical example: POLISH W dziale I-Sp księgi wieczystej nr WA4M/00847639/5 ujawnione zostało prawo użytkowania … Continue reading
Comma before “that”
Different languages have different rules about how to use commas. You cannot use the punctuation rules of your native language when you write in English – you must use English rules. Putting a comma before “that” is a very common … Continue reading
How to translate “ekspertyza”
WRONG Please send us an electronic version of the Purchaser’s technical expertise dated 29 November 2014. RIGHT Please send us an electronic version of the Purchaser’s technical opinion dated 29 November 2014. Do NOT translate ekspertyza as expertise. These words … Continue reading
The difference between “consist of” and “consist in”
Until relatively recently I was not aware of the difference between “consist of” and “consist in”. This is probably because among native English speakers “consist in” is very infrequently used in comparison to “consist of”, which is relatively common. In … Continue reading
How to translate “dziś rano”
“Dziś rano” CANNOT be translated as today morning. Similarly, today afternoon and today evening are WRONG. Say this morning / this afternoon / this evening. But remember that yesterday morning / afternoon / evening and tomorrow morning / afternoon / evening are correct.
A brief note on how to use “a/an” and “the”: General and specific references in English
This area causes various problems for Polish people writing in English. The main problem is the correct use of articles (“a” and “the”), but another problem arises from the fact that in Polish you can use the singular to make … Continue reading
Don’t use Polish word order when you write in English
It is very common to use the word order of you native language when you write in a foreign language. It is part of what linguists call “first-language interference”, and it leads to a vast range of errors. This post … Continue reading
Common Mistakes in Business English 