Tak dobrze, czyż nie? (Sentence Note & Question)

  • czy (conjunctive, interrogative particle) = whether, if, (disjunctive) or
  • czyż nie? = or isn’t it?
  • czyżby? (interrogative) = is that so? can that be?

Hi, can anyone explain the difference between czy (which seems a lot more common) and czyż? Looking at the examples above is czyż usually teamed with a negation? Thanks!

“Czyż” is quite archaic and literary, and mainly used in rhetorical questions or for the dramatic effect.

“Czyż nie?” is probably the most common use of this particle.

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Thanks, as it archaic/literary, that perhaps explains why I’ve not seen it on CM before. From a learner’s perspective it is probably just OK to know it/use it in the context of ‘czyż nie’ and be able to recognise it in other contexts.