Páka je pod stolem.

Because pod changes the case of the noun after it.

In Páka je pod stolem, pod means under, and the sentence describes a location (where something is), not movement. With pod + location, Czech uses the instrumental case.

• base form: stůl = table
• instrumental singular: stolem

So:

• pod stolem = under the table (location)
• pod stůl = under the table (movement, as in put it under the table)

Stolem is the instrumental singular form of stůl.

The noun stůl is:

• masculine inanimate
• singular
• in the instrumental case here because of pod expressing location

So the grammar is:

• páka = nominative subject
• je = is
• pod stolem = prepositional phrase with instrumental

Because Czech often distinguishes between:

• location: where something is
• direction/movement: where something is going

With pod:

• pod + instrumental = under in the sense of being under
• pod + accusative = under in the sense of moving to under

So:

• Páka je pod stolem. = The lever is under the table.
• Dám páku pod stůl. = I will put the lever under the table.

This is a very common Czech pattern with prepositions.

Je means is.

It is the 3rd person singular form of the verb být = to be.

So:

• já jsem = I am
• ty jsi = you are
• on/ona/ono je = he/she/it is

In this sentence, páka is singular, so Czech uses je.

Czech does not have articles like English a/an and the.

So páka can mean:

• a lever
• the lever

And stolem comes from stůl, which can mean:

• a table
• the table

You understand which one is meant from the context.

That is why Páka je pod stolem has no separate words for the or a.

Yes, páka is a feminine noun.

A very common clue is that many Czech nouns ending in -a are feminine.

So:

• páka = feminine
• nominative singular: páka

In this sentence, it stays in the nominative because it is the subject.

If you wanted to see the gender more clearly, you could add a demonstrative or adjective:

• ta páka = that lever
• velká páka = a big lever

Both ta and velká show feminine agreement.

Because Czech nouns often change their endings — and sometimes also their stem vowels — when they decline.

Here:

• nominative singular: stůl
• instrumental singular: stolem

Two things happen:

1. the case ending changes to -em
2. the stem changes from stůl- to stol-

This kind of vowel alternation is normal in Czech. So even though stůl and stolem look quite different, they are forms of the same noun.

Yes. Czech word order is much more flexible than English word order because case endings show the grammatical roles.

The neutral order here is:

• Páka je pod stolem.

But other orders are also possible, depending on emphasis:

• Pod stolem je páka. = Under the table is a lever.
• Je pod stolem páka. = more marked, often question-like or stylistic

Even when the order changes, the meaning usually stays clear because:

• páka is nominative
• stolem is instrumental after pod

So Czech word order often expresses focus or emphasis, not just basic grammar.

A simple pronunciation guide is:

PAA-ka ye pot STO-lem

A few useful points:

• á is long, so páka has a long first vowel
• j is pronounced like English y in yes
• e in je is like ye
• d in pod may sound closer to t before the next consonant in natural speech
• stress in Czech normally falls on the first syllable of each word

So the stress pattern is roughly:

• PÁ-ka
• je
• pod
• STO-lem

Yes, but it would mean something different.

Compare:

• pod stolem = under the table, already there
• pod stůl = to under the table, movement toward that position

So:

• Páka je pod stolem. = The lever is under the table.
• Dej páku pod stůl. = Put the lever under the table.

This location-versus-movement contrast is very important in Czech prepositions.

No. It is capitalized only because it is the first word of the sentence.

The noun itself is normally written páka with a lowercase p.

So:

• Páka je pod stolem. = capitalized because it starts the sentence
• Vidím páku. = lowercase in the middle of a sentence

The structure is:

• Páka = lever
• je = is
• pod = under
• stolem = table in the instrumental case

So the pattern is:

subject + verb + prepositional phrase

More grammatically:

• Páka = subject in the nominative
• je = present tense of být
• pod stolem = adverbial phrase of place

This is a very common and useful sentence pattern in Czech.