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  What it means

  Literally “Don’t play for, fool, what isn’t on the table.” The proverb tells someone not to count on or show off resources, advantages, or winnings that do not yet exist. The image comes from card or gambling culture — you should not bet with money you don’t have in front of you. More broadly it means: don’t promise, boast about, or spend what isn’t yours yet.

  English equivalent

  Don't count your chickens before they hatch.

  Vocabulary

  • grać — to play (cards, music, etc.); here: to bet/play for something
  • matoł — fool, blockhead (colloquial, mildly pejorative); 'matole' is vocative
  • stół — table; 'stole' = on the table (locative singular)
  • czego — what (genitive of 'co'), used after negation

  Grammar note

  After the negated verb 'nie graj' (don't play), the direct object shifts to the genitive case, hence 'czego' (genitive of 'co') rather than 'co'. This is the standard Polish rule: negation changes accusative objects to genitive. 'Matole' is the vocative case of 'matoł', used to address the person directly and giving the proverb its blunt, colourful edge.

  Cultural context

  The address 'matole' (vocative of 'matoł') makes this proverb unusually direct and colourful compared to most — it insults the listener into paying attention. It belongs to a lively folk tradition of proverbs with internal rhyme (matole / stole) that made them easier to remember. The gambling register hints at its origins in rural card games. It is informal and slightly coarse in register.

  Intermediate

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