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  What it means

  “Bread, beer, and a candle adorn a nobleman.” The essentials of a decent household — food, drink, and light — are what truly distinguish a gentleman, not luxury or ostentation.

  Vocabulary

  • chleb — bread
  • piwo — beer
  • świeca — candle
  • zdobić — to adorn, to grace
  • szlachcic — nobleman, gentry

  Grammar note

  'Zdobią' is third person plural present of 'zdobić'. The subject is a list of three nouns, hence the plural verb.

  Cultural context

  The Polish szlachta (gentry) prided themselves on hospitality; this proverb gently mocks pretension by reducing noble virtue to simple household staples.

  Intermediate

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