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  What it means

  “When March comes, more than one old man will die.” March’s unpredictable, harsh weather ; cold snaps, wind, and damp ; was seen as particularly dangerous for the elderly, who had survived winter only to be felled by the treacherous early spring.

  Vocabulary

  • marzec — March
  • umrzeć — to die
  • niejeden — more than one, many a
  • starzec — old man

  Grammar note

  'Niejeden' (literally 'not one') is an indefinite pronoun meaning 'many a'. 'Umrze' is the perfective future of 'umrzeć'.

  Cultural context

  March was considered a dangerous month in Polish folk belief ; its sudden cold spells after the relative warmth of late February were blamed for the deaths of elderly people weakened by winter.

  Beginner

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