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  What it means

  Literally “a bear’s favour.” A favour that caused more trouble than it was worth — well-intentioned help that made things worse.

  Vocabulary

  • niedźwiedź — bear
  • niedźwiedzi — bear's (possessive adjective)
  • przysługa — favour / service

  Grammar note

  'Niedźwiedzia' is the feminine nominative of the possessive adjective 'niedźwiedzi', agreeing with 'przysługa' (feminine noun).

  Cultural context

  Based on an old fable in which a bear, trying to help his sleeping master by shooing away a fly, kills him with a rock. The image stuck.

  Intermediate

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