• Listen

  What it means

  Literally “to bury the war axe,” this phrase means “to bury the hatchet” — to end a conflict, make peace, and put hostilities behind you. It describes a mutual decision to stop fighting and move forward, whether between individuals, groups, or nations. Poles use it in both serious and lighthearted contexts: resolving a family feud, ending a business dispute, or patching up a friendship after a falling-out.

  Vocabulary

  • zakopać — to bury (perfective)
  • topór — axe, hatchet
  • wojenny — of war, war-related (adjective)
  • topór wojenny — war axe; hatchet (in the idiom)

  Grammar note

  The verb 'zakopać' is perfective, indicating a definitive, completed action — the conflict is over. The object 'topór wojenny' is in the accusative case (masculine inanimate), the expected case for direct objects. The adjective 'wojenny' agrees with 'topór' in gender, number, and case.

  Cultural context

  This idiom is a borrowing of the concept of the 'peace pipe' or 'burying the hatchet' from Native American culture, popularized in European languages through Western literature and colonialism. In Polish it is fully naturalized and widely used across all registers. Direct equivalent of the English 'bury the hatchet.'

  Intermediate

Noticed a typo, a wrong translation, or anything that doesn't look right? We'd love to fix it — just let us know via the contact page. Thank you!