Podpalovač je pod roštem.

Je is the 3rd person singular present form of být, which means to be.

So:

• podpalovač = the subject
• je = is
• pod roštem = under the grate / under the rack

In this sentence, je works just like English is.

Czech does not use articles. There is no direct equivalent of English a/an or the in ordinary sentences.

So Podpalovač je pod roštem could be translated as:

• A firelighter is under the grate
• The firelighter is under the grate

The exact English choice depends on context.

Because the preposition pod can require different cases, and here it expresses location: something is already under something.

With location, pod takes the instrumental case.

• dictionary form: rošt
• instrumental singular: roštem

So:

• pod roštem = under the grate

If you used pod rošt, that would be a different case pattern, typically used with movement toward a position under something.

No. This is a very common and important pattern.

With pod:

• instrumental = location (where?)
• accusative = direction/movement (where to?)

Compare:

• Podpalovač je pod roštem. = The firelighter is under the grate.
• Dám podpalovač pod rošt. = I’ll put the firelighter under the grate.

So the case changes depending on whether something is stationary or moving.

In this sentence:

• podpalovač is in the nominative singular, because it is the subject
• roštem is in the instrumental singular, because it follows pod in a location meaning

So the structure is:

• Podpalovač = subject
• je = verb
• pod roštem = prepositional phrase showing location

Both nouns are masculine.

• rošt is masculine inanimate
• podpalovač is a masculine noun too

A small nuance: podpalovač can refer to a person in some contexts, and then it behaves as animate. If it refers to an object such as a firelighter, it is treated as an inanimate thing in meaning. In this sentence, the form podpalovač itself does not show a difference, because it is nominative singular.

Yes. Czech word order is more flexible than English word order.

The neutral version is:

• Podpalovač je pod roštem.

But you could also say:

• Pod roštem je podpalovač.

That still means the same thing, but the emphasis changes. Putting pod roštem first gives more focus to the location, something like Under the grate is the firelighter.

So Czech word order often reflects emphasis or information structure, not just grammar.

Normally, no. In a standard present-tense sentence like this, Czech keeps the verb být.

So you say:

• Podpalovač je pod roštem.

not normally:

• Podpalovač pod roštem.

Leaving out je would sound incomplete in standard Czech.

A rough pronunciation guide is:

POD-pa-lo-vach ye pod ROSH-tem

A few useful sounds:

• č sounds like ch in church
• š sounds like sh in shoe
• j sounds like y in yes

Also, Czech stress is usually on the first syllable of each word:

• PODpalovač
• je
• pod
• ROŠtem

Not in the way this sentence works grammatically.

In Podpalovač je pod roštem:

• the first pod- is part of the noun podpalovač
• the second pod is the separate preposition meaning under

So you should treat podpalovač as one complete vocabulary item, not as pod + palovač in the sentence.

Even though the forms look similar, only the second pod is functioning as the preposition under here.