Stawka jest wysoka.

Because stawka is a feminine singular noun, and Polish adjectives must agree with the noun they describe.

So:

• stawka = feminine singular
• wysoka = feminine singular form of wysoki (high)

Compare:

• wysoki = masculine
• wysoka = feminine
• wysokie = neuter

In this sentence, wysoka matches stawka.

Stawka is feminine.

A common clue is the ending -a, which often marks feminine nouns in Polish, though not always. Here it does.

That is why the sentence uses:

• ta stawka = this rate / this stake
• wysoka stawka = a high rate / a high stake

not masculine forms like ten or wysoki.

Jest means is. It is the 3rd person singular form of być (to be).

So the structure is:

• Stawka = the stake / the rate
• jest = is
• wysoka = high

Literally: The stake/rate is high.

Polish often drops to be in some contexts, especially in informal speech, headlines, notes, or stylistic phrases, but in a normal full sentence, jest is completely natural and standard here.

Usually, in standard neutral Polish, you should keep jest: Stawka jest wysoka.

If you say Stawka wysoka, it can sound:

• elliptical
• headline-like
• poetic
• dramatic
• conversational in a very clipped way

So for learners, the safe full sentence is:

• Stawka jest wysoka.

Stawka can mean different things depending on context. Two very common meanings are:

• rate — for example a pay rate, fee, tax rate
• stake — as in what can be won or lost in a situation

So Stawka jest wysoka could mean either:

• The rate is high
• The stakes are high

The exact meaning depends on the context around the sentence.

Yes. Polish uses wysoki / wysoka / wysokie not only for physical height, but also for abstract things like:

• wysoka cena = a high price
• wysoka temperatura = a high temperature
• wysoka stawka = a high stake / a high rate

So this is very natural Polish.

Sometimes, but it changes the feel and is often less natural.

• wysoka stawka is the normal collocation for high stake or high rate
• duża stawka would suggest a big/large stake, and can sound less idiomatic depending on the context

For English speakers, this is one of those cases where Polish chooses the equivalent of high, not big.

Here stawka is in the nominative singular because it is the subject of the sentence.

The structure is:

• stawka — subject, nominative
• jest — verb
• wysoka — adjective complement agreeing with the subject

So this is a straightforward nominative sentence.

Wysoka is also in the nominative singular feminine, because it agrees with stawka in a sentence with być (to be) plus an adjective.

So:

• stawka — nominative singular feminine
• wysoka — nominative singular feminine

This is different from some other Polish structures where different cases appear, but with a predicate adjective like this, nominative is what you expect.

Yes. Polish word order is more flexible than English, although the basic neutral order here is:

• Stawka jest wysoka.

Other orders are possible for emphasis, for example:

• Wysoka jest stawka. — emphasizes high
• Jest wysoka stawka. — possible in special contexts, but less neutral

For learners, the best default is the standard order:

• Stawka jest wysoka.

A rough pronunciation guide is:

• Stawka ≈ STAF-ka
• jest ≈ yest
• wysoka ≈ vih-SO-ka, with Polish y being a sound that does not exist exactly in English

A few useful pronunciation notes:

• w in Polish sounds like English v
• in stawka, the w is devoiced before k, so it sounds more like f
• j sounds like English y
• y in wysoka is not the same as English ee; it is a harder central vowel

A more phonetic approximation is:

• [STAF-ka yest vih-SO-ka]

Because stawka is singular.

The verb być changes depending on person and number:

• jest = he/she/it is
• są = they are

Since stawka is one thing, singular, you use:

• Stawka jest wysoka.

If the subject were plural, for example stawki (rates), then you would say:

• Stawki są wysokie. = The rates are high.

No. Polish has no articles like a or the.

So stawka can mean:

• a rate
• the rate
• a stake
• the stake

The context tells you which one is meant.

If you want to make it more specific, you can add words like:

• ta stawka = this rate / this stake
• owa stawka = that particular rate / stake (more formal/literary)

But the basic sentence works perfectly without any article.

It is neutral standard Polish.

It would sound normal in:

• conversation
• writing
• news
• business contexts
• general statements

So it is a very safe model sentence for learners.