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  What it means

  Literally “to look for a hole in something whole/complete,” this idiom means to nitpick, to find fault with everything, or to look for problems where none exist. It describes someone who is never satisfied and always hunts for flaws, even in things that are perfectly fine. Poles use it to criticise chronic fault-finders and overly critical people.

  Vocabulary

  • szukać — to look for, to search (imperfective)
  • dziura — hole, gap, flaw
  • cały — whole, complete, entire
  • w całym — in the whole (locative of 'cały')

  Grammar note

  The verb 'szukać' is imperfective and governs the genitive case: 'szukać dziury' (look for a hole). 'W całym' is the locative of the adjective 'cały' used substantively, meaning 'in the whole thing'. The genitive after 'szukać' signals that the thing sought may or may not be found — it is an indefinite search.

  Cultural context

  This is a neutral to mildly disapproving colloquial phrase. It fits any register from casual conversation to slightly elevated speech. The closest English equivalent is 'to nitpick' or 'to find fault with everything'. It is often used in the third person to describe an absent person's annoying behaviour.

  Intermediate

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