Asking people how they are in Polish is a risky business. That’s because the question really means what the words suggest. It doesn’t mean the same thing as it does in English.

Photo: Leo Reynolds

That’s why the question is only ever asked when someone actually wants to know how someone else is.

There are two options. The first phrase sounds very geeky and nobody really uses it:

Jak się masz? (How are you?)

The other one (which translates, although not word for word, as ‘How are you?’) invites the other person to share their happy/sad news in greater detail:

Co słychać? / Co tam słychać? (What’s up? How are things?)

In English, the question ‘How are you?’ is a perfect ice breaker. A perfect tool to get a conversation going. In Polish, depending on your conversation partner’s life situation, it can potentially be a start of a very long and difficult evening!

P.S. Do not attempt to literally translate ‘Not too bad’ into Polish. You’d be encouraging questions about why you’re doing badly but ‘not too badly’.

Here’s the pronunciation:

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