Students of Polish very often ask not only how to do the shopping in Polish (check here for more on that), but also what to call some basic foodstuffs. One of the nouns that are taught at the very beginning within this vocabulary range is chleb (bread). Later, during the course you will find out in what idioms this noun is used. Let’s take a closer look at some of them.
LEARNING POLISH. CIĘŻKI KAWAŁEK CHLEBA?!
When we’re talking about people who go abroad to look for better job opportunities, we say that they wyjeżdżają za chlebem (that is to improve the standard and conditions of their lives). Living far from home and friends, in new environment, must be ciężki kawałek chleba (literally: a tough piece of bread; a hard way to make a living). This idiom may refer not only to the issue of labour migration, but any activity or task that is difficult for you or involves mental or physical effort. One of the advantages of such travel is the possibility to get to know new cultures and customs, and after some time the traveller can say that he or she z niejednego pieca chleb jadł (literally: has eaten bread from more than one oven; he/she has seen quite a few things), i.e. they have a lot of life experience.
Just as the expression ciężki kawałek chleba this idiom does not only refer to travel experience. Anyone who has a wealth of experience in any area of life may say z niejednego pieca chleb jadłam/jadłem. And gaining new experience is chleb powszedni for people like that (i.e. nothing unusual, something common, natural).
We can encounter obstacles in every part of our lives (our relationship, work, hobby, project), and then we can comment, discouraged: z tej mąki chleba nie będzie (literally: one can’t make bread with this flour), i.e. it’s a fruitless effort, with no chance of success.
POLISH COURSE. BUŁKA Z MASŁEM?
When we are not frightened by the obstacles and believe that we’ll overcome them easily, we say it’s bułka z masłem (literally: a roll with butter; a piece of cake), which means it’s easy, not too complicated. Reading a crime story in Polish may turn out to be bułka z masłem. If the crime story is popular we can imagine it rozszedł się jak świeże bułeczki (sold like hot cakes), i.e. it sold very well. And if the author of the book complains about the loss of privacy as a result of their success, we can state that they chciał(a)by on/ona zjeść ciasto i mieć ciastko (would like to have their cake and eat it, too), which means they want things that can’t possibly go together, they exlude each other.
As you can see, we use the names of foodstuffs to say something more than just describe what we had for breakfast.
