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  What it means

  Literally “Work does not harm anyone.” The proverb asserts that hard work never hurt anybody, and is typically used to dismiss complaints about having to do a task or to encourage someone reluctant to start working. It implies that laziness or avoidance of labour is unjustified, since work itself causes no harm. Poles may say it with a sympathetic but firm tone when pushing someone into action.

  English equivalent

  Hard work never killed anyone / Work never hurt anyone.

  Vocabulary

  • praca — work, labour; feminine nominative singular
  • nikogo — no one, nobody; genitive of nikt — required here by negation
  • krzywdzi — harms, wrongs, hurts; 3rd person singular present of krzywdzić

  Grammar note

  'Nikogo' is the genitive form of 'nikt' (nobody), required because in Polish the direct object of a negated verb shifts to the genitive case (the rule of genitive of negation). Without negation, the accusative 'kogoś' (someone) would be used instead. This grammatical feature is one of the distinctive characteristics of Polish negation.

  Cultural context

  Neutral to slightly formal register. The proverb can be said encouragingly or ironically — occasionally used with a touch of dark humour when assigning someone a tedious or unpleasant task. Reflects the traditional Polish and broader Central European work ethic that views labour as inherently healthy and virtuous.

  Beginner

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