-ę / -esz

The -Ę, -Esz Pattern

Level 2

The -ę, -esz pattern (also called the -ę/-esz conjugation) is a high-frequency verb group in Polish. It is used for many essential verbs like pisać (to write), chcieć (to want), and móc (can).

How It Works

The -ę, -esz pattern is the most diverse conjugation group in Polish. It covers many -ać verbs that don't follow the standard -am, -asz pattern, as well as verbs ending in -ować, -uć, -nąć (like kliknąć), and certain consonant stems (like piec).

1. The Endings:

  • Ja: -ę
  • Ty: -esz
  • On/Ona/Ono: -e
  • My: -emy
  • Wy: -ecie
  • Oni/One: -ą

2. Stem Changes from the Infinitive:
Many verbs in this group change their stem consonant when moving from the infinitive to the conjugated forms. For example, in pisać, the s becomes sz throughout the entire conjugation (piszę, piszesz, pisze, etc.). For verbs ending in -ować (like kupować) or -uć (like psuć), in the productive pattern, replace those endings with -uj- before adding the personal endings (e.g., kupuję, kupujesz).

3. The "Sandwich" Pattern:
Some verbs feature a stem alternation where the "outer" forms (ja and oni/one) use one stem, while the "middle" forms (ty, on, my, wy) use another:

  • Consonant changes: In jechać, the visible forms alternate between jadę/jadą and jedziesz/jedzie/jedziemy/jedziecie (jadę vs. jedziesz).
  • Vowel changes: Verbs like nieść (to carry) use o for the outer forms (niosę, niosą) but e for the middle forms (niesiesz, niesie).

4. Tense and Aspect:
If the verb is imperfective, this pattern creates the present tense. If the verb is perfective, this same pattern creates the future tense.

The infinitive inventory also includes -ść and -źć: nieść → niosę, niesiesz (carry), wieźć → wiozę, wieziesz (transport). Learn the first two present forms with the infinitive, because its ending alone does not reliably predict the present stem. The productive -ować → -uj- pattern has lexical exceptions such as chować → chowam, chowasz.

Examples (5)

  1. Ja piszę list, a ty piszesz e-mail.

    I am writing a letter, and you are writing an e-mail.

    Word by Word: I write letter, and you write e-mail.

    Shows the -ę and -esz endings for the verb 'pisać' (to write).

  2. Czy pijesz kawę?

    Do you drink coffee?

    Word by Word: Whether [you] drink coffee?

    The verb 'pić' (to drink) follows this pattern: piję, pijesz.

  3. On chce iść do kina.

    He wants to go to the cinema.

    Word by Word: He wants to-go to cinema.

    The verb 'chcieć' (to want) uses the -e ending for the third person singular.

  4. Jutro napiszę do ciebie.

    Tomorrow I will write to you.

    Word by Word: Tomorrow [I] will-write to you.

    The perfective verb 'napisać' uses this pattern to express the future tense.

  5. My nie możemy teraz rozmawiać.

    We cannot talk right now.

    Word by Word: We not can now to-talk.

    The verb 'móc' (can/be able) uses the -emy ending for 'we'.

Common Mistakes

  • Applying the -am/-asz pattern to all -ać verbs.

    Ja pisam list.
    Ja piszę list.

    Many common -ać verbs like 'pisać' or 'brać' belong to this group, not the -am/-asz group. You must learn which -ać verbs are irregular.

  • Forgetting the consonant shift (softening) in the 'you' form.

    Ty pisesz.
    Ty piszesz.

    The stem consonant often changes before the -e endings. In 'pisać', the 's' must become 'sz'.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

-ę / -eszLevel 2The -Ę, -Esz Pattern

Learn This First

Learn Present Tense before The -Ę, -Esz Pattern.

Words in This Pattern

-ę