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  What it means

  Literally: “to pronounce/renounce obedience.” The idiom means to refuse to obey, to go on strike, or to rebel against authority — formally withdrawing one’s compliance. It is commonly used both about people (a soldier who refuses orders, a citizen who rebels) and humorously about one’s own body or equipment that stops functioning: Nogi mi wymówiły posłuszeństwo — “My legs gave out on me / my legs stopped cooperating.”

  Vocabulary

  • wymówić — to pronounce, to renounce, to give notice (perfective)
  • posłuszeństwo — obedience, compliance
  • wymówić posłuszeństwo — to refuse to obey, to give up obeying

  Grammar note

  Wymówić is the perfective verb (imperfective: wymawiac). Posłuszeństwo is in the accusative case as the direct object. The verb wymówić shares its root with mówić (to speak) and carries the sense of formally declaring something — here, formally declaring an end to obedience, much like giving notice to quit a job.

  Cultural context

  The phrase has a formal, even archaic flavor rooted in feudal or military contexts where sworn obedience could be formally renounced. Today it is widely used in both serious contexts (political resistance) and humorous ones (tired muscles, a broken appliance). The humorous use — Komputer mi wymówił posłuszeństwo — is especially common and warm in tone.

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