# Laundry



## Kos

Cześć Wszystkim 

I have a rather simple question that I've been wondering about.  When saying "to do the laundry" in Polish, I've heard the phrases:
prać ubranie/ciuchy/pranie/odzież

My question is, which phrase is most commonly used?

My guess it that its prać/wyprać pranie.  From my understanding though, ciuch and odzież have different meanings other than just "clothes", so I'm not sure if they're used in this construction only in certain situations.  

It's a bit of a funny post, but I'm curious.

Będę bardzo wdzięczny za odpowiedzi.
-Kos


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## robin74

Personally, I would say "robić pranie". "prać pranie" isn't good idiomatic Polish.


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## NotNow

_Ciuchy _is a slang word for clothes.  It's borrowed from Yiddish.  In my experience,  people usually use _ubranie_ when talking about clothes.  _Odzież_ is a more formal term, I think.  You see it a lot in advertisements.     

Let's see what native speakers say.


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## robin74

NotNow said:


> _Ciuchy _is a slang word for clothes.  It's borrowed from Yiddish.


Well, my dictionary says it comes from an old Slavic word, the same root as in "czuć", as it originally denoted old and smelly clothes.
Otherwise, I agree with what you said.


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## majlo

I'd opt for _robić pranie_. I'd use it in 99% of cases.


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## Kos

Thank you for the responses everyone.  I came across "robić pranie" before, but I thought that it might have been some sort of calque or direct translation from the English expression "to do the laundry." (I've also seen the phrase "zrobić komuś pranie mózgu", which made me think it may be a calque.) By the way, I had a feeling that "ciuchy" might be used as slang, so thanks for the confirmation NotNow.


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## majlo

Kos said:


> I came across "robić pranie" before, but I thought that it might have been some sort of calque or direct translation from the English expression "to do the laundry."



I think some would claim so.


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## El Torero

http://sjp.pwn.pl/haslo.php?id=53512 see pt.2
as you can see "robić" can generate tons of expressions, i really doubt that it be a calque


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## Kos

Thanks again guys. I appreciate your help.


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## Poetria.anglica

Hi,

My mother always says "zrobić pranie" or "robić pranie"  . You can also say: wyprać and add what you would like to wash, e.g. wyprać spodnie, spódnicę. 

I wouldn't say "wyprać pranie" for obvious reasons. This is simply repetitive and doesn't sound elegant. 


The word 'odzież" is rather formal. You can see it on shops' signboards. In everyday life, it would sound unnatural. 
But there are "fabryki odzieży".


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