How to say TO GO in Polish?

We can translate all these verbs: iść, chodzić, jechać, jeździć as to go in English. But what is the difference between them and when should we use each one?

Both verbs iść and chodzić are used when we talk about going somewhere on foot, without any means of transportation. Use iść when you are talking about a one-time action. For example, “Today I’m going to the cinema” is a one-time action. Similarly, “We are going to the restaurant in the evening” is also one-time action as we are talking about going there specifically this evening.

Use chodzić when you are talking about a repeated action (something that happens always, usually, never, etc., not just one time). For example, “We often go to the cinema”. You see? Often! So it’s repeated.

First, let’s look at how to conjugate these verbs, and then I’ll give you some examples.

IŚĆ

ja idę, ty idziesz, on/ona idzie, my idziemy, wy idziecie, oni/one idą

CHODZIĆ

ja chodzę, ty chodzisz, on/ona chodzi, my chodzimy, wy chodzicie, oni/one chodzą

Have a look at the examples:

Dzisiaj idę do kina. – Today I’m going to the cinema. (one-time event!) 

Często chodzę do kina. – I often go to the cinema. (repeated!) 

Wieczorem idziemy do sklepu. – In the evening, we are going to the shop. (one-time event!) 

Co weekend chodzimy do sklepu. – Every weekend we go to the shop. (repeated!)

Now let’s focus on the verbs jechać and jeździć. Both of these verbs are used when we say that we are going somewhere by means of transportation (by car, by bike, by bus, by scooter, etc.). Use jechać for a one-time action, and use jeździć for repeated action.

The conjugation of these two verbs is irregular. It’s worth spending some time to memorize it.

JECHAĆ

ja jadę, ty jedziesz, on/ona jedzie, my jedziemy, wy jedziecie, oni/one jadą

JEŹDZIĆ

ja jeżdżę, ty jeździsz, on/ona jeździ, my jeździmy, wy jeździcie, oni/one jeżdżą

Now, let’s see some sentence examples:

Dzisiaj jadę do Warszawy. – Today I’m going to Warsaw. 

Co weekend jeżdżę do Warszawy. – Every weekend I go to Warsaw.  

Jedziemy do Polski w styczniu. – We’re going to Poland in January. 

Co roku jeździmy do Polski na wakacje. – Every year we go to Poland for vacation. 

I hope this explanation helps you understand the differences between these verbs.