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  What it means

  Literally “there is no rose without thorns,” this is a well-known Polish proverb and idiom meaning that nothing good comes without a cost or difficulty. Every positive thing in life has its downside. Poles use it to console someone dealing with drawbacks of an otherwise good situation, or to caution against idealism: “To praca marzeń, ale szef jest trudny — nie ma róży bez kolców” (It’s a dream job, but the boss is difficult — every silver lining has a cloud).

  Vocabulary

  • nie ma — there is no / there are no (negated 'mieć' in 3rd person)
  • róży — genitive singular of 'róża' (rose, feminine noun)
  • bez — without (preposition governing genitive)
  • kolców — genitive plural of 'kolec' (thorn)

  Grammar note

  'Nie ma' triggers the genitive of negation: both 'róży' and 'kolców' are in the genitive. 'Bez' also requires the genitive: 'bez kolców'. The double genitive (after 'nie ma' and after 'bez') is a good illustration of how negation and certain prepositions consistently trigger this case in Polish. The sentence structure is: nie ma + Gen subject + bez + Gen object.

  Cultural context

  This expression is shared across many European languages ('No rose without a thorn' in English, 'Il n'y a pas de rose sans épines' in French), suggesting a common proverbial tradition. In Polish it is widely known and used across all age groups. It is typically deployed in a consoling or philosophical tone, not sarcastically. The closest English equivalent is 'Every rose has its thorn' or 'No pain, no gain.'

  Beginner

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