EN
The aim of this paper is to present the semantic history of the verb zrodzić (się) in the Polish language against other names describing the act of giving birth or being born, most of which have a common root, e.g. rodzić (się), porodzić (się), narodzić (się), urodzić (się). It turns out that despite the fact that nowadays the discussed word is not a synonymous equivalent of either rodzić (się) or urodzić (się), it can still be found in the living speech in this meaning (e.g. zradzać potomstwo (to give birth to off spring)). Lexicographic sources document the characterised verb in one content only, cf. zrodzić ‘to originate something; to cause, create, induce’, zrodzić się ‘to be originated, to result, to arise from something; to come into being’ (e.g. konflikt, pomysł zrodził się (a conflict, idea was born); idea, inicjatywa zrodziła się (an idea, initiative was born)). The archaic content of the title verb fossilised in texts of prayers and in phraseology.