La tassa que m'agrada és sobre la taula de la cuina.

Because agradar works like to be pleasing to, not like English to like.

So:

• m'agrada = it pleases me / I like it
• m'agraden = they please me / I like them

In your sentence, the thing being liked is la tassa, which is singular, so Catalan uses agrada (singular), not agraden.

A literal breakdown is:

• que m'agrada = that pleases me = that I like

This is one of the most important verb patterns for English speakers to get used to in Catalan.

m' is the unstressed pronoun em, meaning to me.

Before a vowel, em is usually shortened:

• em agrada → m'agrada

So:

• m'agrada = it pleases me
• t'agrada = it pleases you
• li agrada = it pleases him/her

The apostrophe is there because the vowel in em drops before agrada.

Here que is a relative pronoun, meaning that or which.

So:

• la tassa que m'agrada = the cup that I like

It connects la tassa to the clause m'agrada.

English sometimes allows you to omit that:

• the cup I like

But Catalan normally keeps que in this kind of sentence.

Yes. sobre can mean on, on top of, or over, depending on context.

In this sentence:

• és sobre la taula = is on the table

This is perfectly understandable Catalan. In some contexts, speakers may also use expressions such as damunt de for a very physical on top of, but sobre is common and correct.

So the structure is:

• és = is
• sobre la taula = on the table

Because Catalan uses the definite article more regularly than English in many noun phrases.

You have:

• La tassa = the cup
• la taula = the table
• la cuina = the kitchen

All three nouns are feminine singular, so they take la.

This repetition sounds normal in Catalan, even if English learners sometimes feel it is repetitive.

Catalan often expresses this idea with de + noun rather than stacking nouns the way English does.

So:

• la taula de la cuina = the table of the kitchen = the kitchen table

English commonly uses a noun as an adjective:

• kitchen table

Catalan usually prefers:

• taula de la cuina

This is a very common pattern:

• la porta de la casa = the door of the house
• el cotxe del meu amic = my friend's car / the car of my friend

Because Catalan word order here is very natural and similar to English:

• Subject: La tassa que m'agrada
• Verb: és
• Location/complement: sobre la taula de la cuina

So the sentence is structured as:

• The cup that I like
  • is
    • on the kitchen table

Catalan can sometimes move elements around for emphasis, but this neutral order is the most straightforward one.

No. In this sentence it can only mean that I like.

Why? Because m'agrada means pleases me, so me is the person experiencing the liking. The subject is the thing doing the pleasing.

So:

• la tassa que m'agrada = the cup that pleases me = the cup that I like

If you wanted to say the cup that likes me, that would not make sense semantically, and the grammar would be different too.

Because the verb agrees with the thing that is pleasing, not with the person who likes it.

Here, the thing is:

• la tassa = singular

So the verb is singular:

• agrada

Compare:

• La tassa m'agrada. = I like the cup.
• Les tasses m'agraden. = I like the cups.

This singular/plural agreement with the liked thing is a key feature of agradar.

It attaches to taula.

So the phrase groups like this:

• sobre [la taula de la cuina]

That means:

• on [the table of the kitchen]
• in natural English, on the kitchen table

It does not mean something like the cup I like is in the kitchen, on the table. The phrase specifically identifies which table: the one in the kitchen.

The main change would be in the article, noun, and the verb agradar.

For example:

• Les tasses que m'agraden són sobre la taula de la cuina.

Changes:

• La tassa → Les tasses
• m'agrada → m'agraden
• és → són

So Catalan shows plural agreement in more than one place.

Yes, in many contexts that would sound very natural.

Very roughly:

• és identifies or describes
• està often emphasizes location or temporary state

For physical location, many speakers would naturally say:

• La tassa que m'agrada està sobre la taula de la cuina.

But és sobre la taula is still understandable and acceptable in learning contexts, especially if the focus is simply on where the cup is.

A few useful points:

• tassa has a clear double s, pronounced like a voiceless s
• m'agrada is pronounced smoothly, almost as one unit
• és has an open e sound in standard pronunciation
• cuina is pronounced roughly like KWI-nə in Central Catalan

Also, don’t pause too much between words. The sentence flows naturally in chunks:

• La tassa
• que m'agrada
• és sobre
• la taula de la cuina

That chunking helps both pronunciation and comprehension.