How to Ask How Much Something Is

Learn how to ask how much something is

Dialogue

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Vocabulary (Review)

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Lesson Notes

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Lesson Transcript

Welcome to Can Do Polish by PolishPod101.com.

In this lesson, you’ll learn how to ask how much something is in Polish.

For example, "How much does it cost?" is

Ile to kosztuje?

Konrad Kowalski is at a small grocery store.

He sees a snack with no visible price tag, and asks for the price.

Before you hear the conversation, let's preview some of its key components.

To.

"this"

To.

Dwa.

"two"

Dwa.

Ile to kosztuje?

Dwa złote.

Once more with the English translation.

Ile to kosztuje?

"How much does it cost?"

Dwa złote.

"Two zlotys."

Let’s break down the conversation.

Do you remember how Konrad asks,

"How much does it cost?"

Ile to kosztuje?

Let’s start with ile, "how much" in this context. Ile. Ile.

Next is to, "this." To. To.

You can use this word while pointing at something near you. It’s useful when you want to refer to something you don't know the word for in Polish.

Last is kosztuje, "costs" as in "this costs." Kosztuje. Kosztuje.

Kosztuje is from the verb kosztować, "to cost." Kosztować.

All together, it's Ile to kosztuje? Literally, this means "How much it costs," but translates as "How much does it cost?"

Ile to kosztuje?

Let’s take a closer look at the response.

Do you remember how the shop clerk says,

"Two zlotys."

Dwa złote.

First is dwa, "two." Dwa. Dwa.

Next is złote, "zlotys." Złote. Złote.

Note: złote is the plural form of the masculine noun złoty, the name of the currency. Złoty. Złoty.

Together it’s Dwa złote. "Two zlotys."

Dwa złote.

Note: The phrase to kosztuje, "it costs" is omitted as it is understood from context.

The pattern is

Ile ITEM kosztuje?

"How much does ITEM cost?"

Ile ITEM kosztuje?

To use this pattern, simply replace the {ITEM} placeholder with the thing you’d like to know the price of.

Note: This pattern requires a pronoun.

Imagine you’d like to know the price of something located out of reach, "that," tamto. Tamto.

Ask, "How much does that cost?"

Ready?

Ile tamto kosztuje?

"How much does that cost?"

Ile tamto kosztuje?

If you don’t know the name of an item, and consequently its gender, you can use the neuter pronouns to, "this," and tamto, "that."

Again, the key pattern is

Ile ITEM kosztuje?

"How much does ITEM cost?"

Ile ITEM kosztuje?

Let’s look at some more examples.

Listen and repeat or speak along with the native speakers.

Ile to kosztuje?

"How much does it cost?"

Ile to kosztuje?

Ile tamto kosztuje?

"How much does that cost?"

Ile tamto kosztuje?

Ile kosztuje chleb?

"How much does bread cost?"

Ile kosztuje chleb?

Ile kosztuje ciastko?

"How much does cake cost?"

Ile kosztuje ciastko?

Ile kosztuje kawa?

"How much does coffee cost?"

Ile kosztuje kawa?

Did you notice how the last three speakers use a different pattern?

Ile kosztuje kawa? Literally means "how much costs coffee," but translates as "How much does coffee cost?"

Let’s start with ile, "how much."Ile.

Next is kosztuje, "costs." Kosztuje.

Kosztuje is from the verb kosztować, "to cost." Kosztować.

Last is kawa, "coffee." Kawa. Kawa.

All together, it's Ile kosztuje kawa? Literally, this means "How much costs coffee," but translates as "How much does coffee cost?"

This pattern requires a noun.

Let’s try another. Imagine you want to know the price of a "cake," ciastko. Ciastko

Ask, "How much does a cake cost?"

Ready?

Ile kosztuje ciastko?

"How much does a cake cost?"

Ile kosztuje ciastko?

You will use this pattern later in this lesson.

Let's review the new words.

Kawa.

"coffee"

Kawa..

Kawa.

Ciastko.

"cake"

Ciastko.

Tamto.

"that"

Tamto.

Let's review.

Respond to the prompts by speaking aloud. Then repeat after the native speaker, focusing on pronunciation.

Ready?

When you don’t know the word for something, do you remember how to say "this?"

To.

And how to say "how much?"

Ile.

Do you remember how Konrad Kowalski says,

"How much does it cost?"

Ile to kosztuje?

Do you remember how to say "zloty?"

Złote.

And how to say "two?"

Dwa.

Do you remember how the clerk says,

"It costs two zlotys."

Dwa złote.

Do you remember how to say "coffee?"

Kawa.

And how to say "cake?"

Ciastko.

Do you remember how to say "that?"

Tamto.

Let's practice.

Imagine you’re Konrad , and you’re at a farmers’ market. You'd like to try a snack with no price tag located close to the clerk. Ask the price using the word for "that," or Tamto in Polish.

Ready?

Ile tamto kosztuje?

Dwa złote.

Listen again and repeat.

Ile tamto kosztuje?

Let’s try another.

Imagine they’re also selling artisan coffee. Ask for the price of a coffee, or kawa in Polish.

Ready?

Ile kosztuje kawa?

Trzy złote.

Listen again and repeat.

Ile kosztuje kawa?

Let’s try one more.

They’re also selling cake, or ciastko in Polish.

Ready?

Ile kosztuje ciastko?

Cztery złote.

Listen again and repeat.

Ile kosztuje ciastko?

In this lesson, you learned how to ask how much something costs. This plays an essential role in the larger skill of shopping at a grocery store. Let’s review.

Do you remember how to say "please?"

Poproszę.

Do you remember how to say,

"This, please."

Poproszę to.

Do you remember how to say "salt?"

Sól.

Do you remember how to ask,

"Excuse me, do you have salt?"

Przepraszam, czy jest sól?

Imagine you're Jack Jones , you're at a grocery store, and you'd like to buy something located close to the clerk.

Do you remember how to say "this" in Polish?

To.

Ask the clerk for "this."

Poproszę to.

Proszę.

Listen again and repeat.

Poproszę to.

You remembered that you also wanted to buy milk

Do you remember how to say "milk" in Polish?

Mleko.

Now ask the clerk if the store has milk.

Ready?

Przepraszam, czy jest mleko?

Tak, jest tutaj.

Listen again and repeat.

Przepraszam, czy jest mleko?

You'd also like to know the price of coffee.

Do you remember how to say "coffee" in Polish?

Kawa.

Now ask for the price of a coffee.

Ile kosztuje kawa?

Trzy złote.

Listen again and repeat.

Ile kosztuje kawa?

Well done! This is the end of the lesson and the Can Shop at a Grocery Store unit of this course.

Remember, these Can Do lessons are about learning practical language skills.

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