Wroclaw

Meanings

1. 1proper nounproper

   A large city in southwestern Poland on the Oder River, known for its historic market square and many bridges.

   Grammar: A place name used without an article: she lives in Wrocław.

   Patterns

   • in Wrocław
   • from Wrocław
   • to Wrocław

   We took a train from Warsaw to Wrocław to see the old market square.

   Wrocław has more than a hundred bridges, which cross the Oder and its channels.

   She studied architecture at a university in Wrocław.

2. 2proper nounproperinformal

   The city's name used for its people, institutions or teams, as in a football club or a festival held there.

   Grammar: Used as the name of a group or club: Wrocław won the match.

   Patterns

   • Wrocław won
   • visit Wrocław

   Wrocław hosted the European Film Awards and brought many visitors to the city.

   Wrocław won the home match by two goals.

   The orchestra from Wrocław toured Germany last spring.

Common combinations

in Wrocław

My cousin works in Wrocław as an engineer.

visit Wrocław

Tourists visit Wrocław for its beautiful old town.

the city of Wrocław

The city of Wrocław has a rich and complicated history.

Wrocław airport

Our flight landed at Wrocław airport at noon.

Wrocław University

Wrocław University is one of the oldest in the region.

Synonyms and how they differ

Breslau

Breslau is the old German name of the city, used historically before 1945, and sounds out of place for the modern city.

Silesian capital

This descriptive phrase points to the city's historic role as the main city of Lower Silesia, rather than its name.

Word family

Wrocławian noun

a person from Wrocław

Polish adjective

relating to Poland, where the city is located

Silesia proper noun

the historic region in which the city lies

Commonly confused: Wroclaw or Warsaw? Wroclaw or Kraków?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “Wroclaw”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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