Proszę Means Three Things: The One Polish Word Travelers Cannot Do Without
If you learn one Polish word before a trip, make it proszę (PROH-sheh). You will hear it dozens of times a day, and you can use it in almost every exchange with a shopkeeper, a waiter or a stranger. The catch is that it means three different things depending on who says it and when, and the word that usually goes with it, dziękuję, has a trap of its own that costs tourists their change.
All of the phrases below are in the free Polish Trip Kit, fifty phrases in five days with pronunciation.
"Proszę", meaning one: please
Put it at the front of a request and it means please. "Poproszę kawę" (poh-PROH-sheh KAH-veh) is "a coffee, please", using the slightly more polite poproszę form that Poles use when ordering. "Rachunek poproszę" (rah-KHOO-nek poh-PROH-sheh) is "the bill, please". You can build most of a trip out of poproszę plus a noun and a smile.
"Proszę", meaning two: here you are
When the cashier hands you your change, the waiter puts down your plate, or someone passes you the salt, they say "proszę". Here it means "here you are" or "go ahead". You say it too, when you hand over money or pass something to someone. It is the sound of an object changing hands.
"Proszę", meaning three: you're welcome
Say "dziękuję" (jen-KOO-yeh), thank you, and the reply is "proszę" or "proszę bardzo", you're welcome. Same word, third meaning. Once you notice this, Polish shops start to sound like a small loop: poproszę, proszę, dziękuję, proszę.
The "dziękuję" trap
Now the part that costs money. In a restaurant, a taxi or a bar, saying "dziękuję" at the moment you hand over the cash means "keep the change". It is the standard tipping gesture, and it is taken literally. If you want your change, stay quiet as you pay, wait for the change to reach your hand, and then say thank you. Tipping around ten percent for good table service is normal and welcome, in cash or on the card terminal when it asks. It is simply not compulsory, and it should be your decision rather than a slip of the tongue.
There is no cover charge in Poland. Some tourist restaurants add a "serwis" line of about ten percent for larger groups, so check the bill before tipping on top of it.
"Przepraszam" does the rest
The other word you cannot do without is "przepraszam" (psheh-PRAH-shahm), which covers "excuse me" for getting a waiter's attention, stopping a stranger with a question, a small bump in a crowd, and a real apology. Polish has no separate word for squeezing past someone. On a packed tram or bus you say "Przepraszam, wysiadam" (I'm getting off) and people part. If someone behind you asks "pan wysiada?" or "pani wysiada?", they are asking whether you are getting off. Answer "nie" and swap places, or "tak" and stay where you are.
A word about the ticket
While you are on that tram: a paper ticket is only valid once you stamp it in the little yellow or orange box by the door, immediately on boarding. Plain-clothes inspectors fine on the spot, roughly 250 to 300 złoty plus the fare. Tickets bought in an app such as jakdojade are activated in the app instead, and tickets bought by card from the machine on board are already valid. The phrase on the sign is "Skasuj bilet", validate your ticket. It is day four of the kit, and it is the phrase that saves the most money.
The other forty-three
These phrases are days one, two and four of the Polish Trip Kit. The kit gives you ten phrases a day for five days, each with a readable respelling, a tip like the ones above, and audio. Day one works in your browser without an account, and the whole sheet prints on three pages if you prefer paper. For the full list of everyday phrases beyond the traps, see Essential Polish Phrases for Travelers.