• Listen

  What it means

  “Give bread and salt even to a bad enemy.” Counsel to treat even enemies with basic human dignity — or a warning that keeping an enemy fed and close is wiser than provoking them further.

  English equivalent

  Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.

  Vocabulary

  • zły — bad, wicked
  • wróg — enemy
  • chleb — bread
  • sól — salt

  Grammar note

  'Złemu wrogowi' is the dative singular — 'dać' (to give) takes the dative for the recipient. 'Chleba i soli' are genitive after 'daj' in this partitive sense.

  Cultural context

  Bread and salt are traditional symbols of hospitality in Polish culture, offered to guests as a welcome gesture.

  Intermediate

Noticed a typo, a wrong translation, or anything that doesn't look right? We'd love to fix it — just let us know via the contact page. Thank you!