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  What it means

  Good bread with salt, as long as it comes with goodwill. Simple food shared with a willing heart is worth more than a lavish feast given grudgingly.

  English equivalent

  Better a dinner of herbs where love is, than a stalled ox and hatred therewith.

  Vocabulary

  • chleb — bread
  • sól — salt
  • byle — as long as, provided that
  • wola — will, goodwill

  Grammar note

  'Z solą' and 'z dobrą wolą' — instrumental after 'z' (with). 'Byle' introduces a condition.

  Cultural context

  Bread and salt are the traditional Polish symbols of hospitality. This proverb elevates the spirit of giving over material abundance.

  Beginner

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