szansy

Szansa is a Polish noun meaning chance, opportunity, or possibility. In its inflected form szansy it appears in contexts where the noun is in the genitive singular, for example after certain verbs and in phrases expressing lack or absence of opportunity. The common plural form is szanse.

Origin and usage

Szansa is a borrowing from Western European languages, with connections to the word chance in languages such as French or German. In Polish, the word functions as a feminine noun. Its most frequent constructions include szansa na something, meaning a chance for something, and miec/znaczenie in phrases like mieć szansę na awans (to have a chance for a promotion). The phrase brak szansy (no chance) uses the genitive singular szansy. The standard singular forms are szansa (nominative), szansę (accusative), szansy (genitive), and the plural szanse (nominative).

Examples

Mam szansę na awans. Ta szansa na sukces jest realna. Brak szansy na porozumienie został oceniony przez ekspertów.

Related terms

Synonyms and near-synonyms include możliwość, okazja, sposobność, and prawdopodobieństwo in more technical contexts. The word is frequently used in everyday language as well as in journalism, business, and sports to describe the likelihood or opportunity to achieve a goal.

See also

Szansa na sukces; nie ma szans; możliwość.