ÖW

ótt

ów is a common Polish orthographic sequence consisting of the letter ó followed by w. In everyday usage, the sequence is best known as an inflectional ending rather than a standalone word. It functions primarily as a genitive plural ending for masculine nouns and for many nouns with consonant stems.

The most typical role of -ów is to mark the genitive plural, used to express possession or “of the …” in phrases like domów (of the houses), samochodów (of the cars), and kotów (of the cats). It is the default ending for many masculine nouns whose stems end in a consonant. Other noun classes often take different genitive plural endings, such as -ów replacing -i or -y in particular declensions, depending on tradition and phonology.

Phonologically, ó represents a close back rounded vowel [u], and w represents the voiced labial-velar approximant [v] in Polish. The sequence ó + w thus yields a final sound commonly heard as [uv] in pronunciation, though assimilation in speech can alter the exact realization.

Etymologically, the ending originates in the Proto-Slavic genitive plural suffix *-ovъ, which through historical sound changes became -ów in Polish. This ending has been productive in Polish grammar since the medieval period and remains widespread in modern usage.

In sum, -ów is a central inflectional ending in Polish, most prominently marking the genitive plural of masculine nouns and shaping a large portion of noun-based possessive constructions.