smutny
/ˈsmut.nɘ/
The English word "sad" is translated into Polish as smutny.
Smutny/a is the most common and general term for "sad" in Polish. You can use it to describe a person's mood or a quality of an event. For example, you can say Jestem bardzo smutny/a to mean "I am very sad." Other ways to express intense sadness include Zalany/a łzami, which literally means "flooded with tears" and is used to describe a state of deep sadness or being on the verge of tears and Zgnębiony/a, which conveys a sense of being oppressed or downcast, reflecting a state of sadness due to external circumstances.
Meaning: feeling sorrow (adj)
Which one should you use?
Smutny describes a person's mood or a quality of an event, whereas smutek (noun) refers to the feeling of sadness itself.
How does it change in a sentence?
The form of the adjective changes depending on the gender and case: smutny is the masculine singular form, smutna is the feminine form and smutne is the neuter singular and plural non-masculine forms. The genitive singular form is smutnego.
How do you pronounce it?
The word is pronounced /ˈsmut.nɘ/. It has 2 syllables, with the stress on 1 of 2.
Did you know?
- In some traditional Polish songs and folk tales, sadness is not just an emotion but is linked to the word tęsknota, a complex feeling of longing and sadness for which English has no single word.
- The adjective smutny can be used to describe a 'sad' look or 'sad' eyes, but it is also commonly used to describe a 'dull' or 'lackluster' color, such as a 'sad' grey sky.
- In Polish culture, the phrase smutna mina literally means a 'sad face' but is often used as a specific idiom to describe someone who looks pouting or sullen rather than genuinely heartbroken.
Examples in context
- Co on taki smutny?Why is he sad?Tatoeba #13335643 by Radek, translation #6008209 by CannedBread
- Tom czuł się smutny.Tom felt sad.Tatoeba #4148446 by jeedrek, translation #1025779 by CK
- To był smutny widok.It was a sad sight.Tatoeba #12180522 by polski_ren, translation #9241094 by CK
- 25 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Paweł and Katarzyna are talking about a movie they just watched.
- PawełTen film był bardzo smutny.This movie was very sad.
- KatarzynaZgadzam się, prawie płakałam.I agree, I almost cried.
- PawełDlaczego jesteś teraz taka smutna, Katarzyno?Why are you so sad now, Katarzyna?
- KatarzynaBo zakończenie było straszne.Because the ending was terrible.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “sad” translations and entries smutny, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
