Which one should you use?
While smaczny is a general adjective meaning tasty, it is distinct from the formulaic expression smacznego, which is used specifically when someone is about to eat.
How does it change in a sentence?
The form of the adjective changes depending on the noun it describes. Use smaczna for feminine nouns, such as zupa (soup). Use smaczne for neuter nouns, such as danie (dish) or for non-masculine personal plurals. The form smacznych is used in the genitive case, which frequently occurs after quantities or in certain prepositional phrases.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈsmatʂ.nɘ/ (2 syllables). The stress is on the 1st syllable.
When do people say it?
When someone is about to start eating, it is customary to say Smacznego!, which is the standard Polish equivalent of 'Enjoy your meal!' or 'Bon appétit'.
Did you know?
- A Polish person might say mieć smak to describe someone who has 'good taste', whereas brak smaku describes a lack of tact or class.
- In Polish, the word smakowity is a synonym for smaczny but is often used to describe the appearance of food that looks appetizing before it is even tasted.
- If a dish is incredibly tasty, Poles may use the word pyszny, which is a stronger superlative than smaczny and translates more closely to 'delicious'.
Examples in context
- Ta zupa jest bardzo smaczna.This soup is very tasty.
- To danie jest naprawdę pyszne.This dish is really delicious.
- Ta pizza wygląda bardzo apetycznie!This pizza looks very tasty!
- Ciasto, które upiekłaś, jest niesamowicie smakowite!The cake you baked is incredibly tasty!
- Ta pierogarnia serwuje bardzo dobre pierogi.This dumpling restaurant serves very tasty pierogi.
- Kawa, którą tutaj pijemy, jest naprawdę przepyszna.The coffee we drink here is truly delicious.
- To jest bardzo smaczne.This is very tasty.
- Ten ser jest bardzo smaczny.This cheese is very tasty.
- Zrobiłem dziś smaczny obiad.I made a tasty lunch today.
Example conversation
Anna and Piotr are eating dinner at home.
- AnnaCzy ten obiad jest smaczny?Is this dinner tasty?
- PiotrTak, jest bardzo smaczny.Yes, it is very tasty.
- AnnaCieszę się, że ci smakuje.I am glad you like it.
- PiotrNaprawdę, zrobiłaś to świetnie.Really, you did a great job.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry smaczny, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
