Tymczasem, natomiast, zaś: the switching words
A story often runs along two lines at once: I was cooking, meanwhile he was cleaning. Polish joins such lines with one of three words. For example: “Gotowałem obiad, tymczasem on sprzątał kuchnię” — I was cooking dinner, meanwhile he was cleaning the kitchen. A rule from the Polish course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
A story often runs along two lines at once: I was cooking, meanwhile he was cleaning. Polish joins such lines with one of three words.
Tymczasem means meanwhile. It switches to the second line, often with a hint of contrast: Gotowałem obiad, tymczasem on sprzątał kuchnię. News reports use it a lot.
Natomiast means whereas. It is a clean contrast, polite and a little written: Jan lubi kawę, natomiast Maria woli herbatę. Zaś means the same, shorter and more bookish: On pracuje, zaś ona studiuje. In everyday speech both give way to a plain a.
When these words join two parts, Polish always puts a comma before the second part: Pracuję, natomiast on odpoczywa.
Table
| Word | Character | Example | Where heard |
|---|---|---|---|
| tymczasem | a second line + time | Tymczasem w mieście... | news, a story |
| natomiast | a contrast | Jan lubi kawę, natomiast... | letters, speech |
| zaś | a bookish contrast | On pracuje, zaś ona studiuje | texts |
| a | a neutral "and/but" | Ja pracuję, a ty? | conversation |
| równolegle | in parallel | równolegle z pracą | business speech |
| podczas gdy | while | podczas gdy on śpi | texts |
| jednak | however (stronger) | Chciałem, jednak nie mogłem | an argument |
| z kolei | for its part | Ona, z kolei, milczała | texts |
By example
- Gotowałem obiad, tymczasem on sprzątał kuchnięI was cooking dinner, meanwhile he was cleaning the kitchen
- Jan lubi kawę, natomiast Maria woli herbatęJan likes coffee whereas Maria prefers tea
- Ceny rosną, zaś zarobki stoją w miejscuPrices are rising while wages stand still
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
Tymczasem, natomiast, zaś: how does it work in Polish?
A story often runs along two lines at once: I was cooking, meanwhile he was cleaning. Polish joins such lines with one of three words.
What does it look like in a Polish example sentence?
“Gotowałem obiad, tymczasem on sprzątał kuchnię” — I was cooking dinner, meanwhile he was cleaning the kitchen. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.