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  What it means

  Literally “on Saint Never’s Day.” Means never — something that will never happen. The Polish equivalent of “when pigs fly” or “on the twelfth of never.”

  Vocabulary

  • święty — saint, holy
  • nigdy — never

  Grammar note

  'Na święty nigdy' — 'święty' is accusative masculine, treating 'nigdy' as a saint's name. A humorous construction.

  Cultural context

  Poland's Catholic calendar is full of saints' days — inventing 'Saint Never' as a feast day is a characteristically Polish way of expressing impossibility.

  Beginner

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