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  What it means

  Literally “blue bird.” Refers to someone who avoids work, lives off others, and leads a carefree, parasitic lifestyle. “A social parasite” or “a loafer.”

  Vocabulary

  • niebieski — blue
  • ptak — bird

  Grammar note

  A simple adjective-noun phrase.

  Cultural context

  Comes from a Maeterlinck play, but in Polish, it shifted from a symbol of happiness to a description of an idle person.

  Intermediate

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