Szczyt jest za przełęczą.

• szczyt = summit / peak
• jest = is
• za = behind / beyond / past
• przełęczą = pass in a case form required here

So literally, it is The summit is beyond the pass.

Because after za, Polish uses different cases depending on the meaning:

• location: za + instrumental
• movement toward/to behind: za + accusative

In this sentence, the summit is located beyond the pass, so Polish uses the instrumental case:

• base form: przełęcz
• instrumental singular: przełęczą

So:

• Szczyt jest za przełęczą = the summit is beyond the pass

It is the instrumental singular of przełęcz.

A learner often notices the ending -ą, which is a very common instrumental singular ending for feminine nouns.

Here:

• nominative: przełęcz
• instrumental: przełęczą

In English, behind and beyond can overlap, but in a mountain context, za przełęczą usually means on the far side of the pass, so beyond the pass sounds more natural.

So:

• in a general spatial sense, za = behind
• in this landscape context, za przełęczą often feels like past / beyond the pass

Both ideas are related: something is on the other side of something else.

Yes, structurally it could. But in natural English, with mountains and routes, beyond the pass is usually the best translation.

So the Polish sentence is broad enough to cover:

• behind the pass
• beyond the pass
• past the pass

The exact best English wording depends on context.

Jest is the normal verb is.

In a full neutral sentence, jest is natural and standard:

• Szczyt jest za przełęczą.

In some very compressed styles, like notes, captions, or map-like descriptions, Polish may omit jest:

• Szczyt za przełęczą.

But that sounds more like a label or shortened description, not a full standard sentence. For normal usage, keep jest.

Yes. Polish word order is fairly flexible, though the neutral order here is:

• Szczyt jest za przełęczą.

You could also say:

• Za przełęczą jest szczyt.

This shifts the focus a bit toward the location: Beyond the pass, there is a peak / the summit is there.

So:

• Szczyt jest za przełęczą = neutral, topic is the summit
• Za przełęczą jest szczyt = emphasis on where it is

Yes. Szczyt is a masculine noun.

That is why the verb is in the singular masculine-compatible form:

• szczyt jest

In the present tense, jest does not visibly change for gender, but the noun itself is masculine.

Not exactly.

• szczyt = summit / peak / top
• góra = mountain

So:

• góra is the whole mountain
• szczyt is the highest point or peak

In this sentence, szczyt refers specifically to the summit or peak, not the mountain as a whole.

Yes, but with a different meaning.

With za + accusative, the idea is usually movement to a position beyond something.

Compare:

• Szczyt jest za przełęczą.
  = The summit is beyond the pass.
  static location

• Poszli za przełęcz.
  = They went beyond the pass.
  movement

So:

• za przełęczą = location
• za przełęcz = motion

No. Polish has no articles.

So szczyt can mean:

• the summit
• a summit
• the peak
• a peak

Which one is intended depends on context.

In many real situations, especially if a particular mountain route is being discussed, English would naturally use the:

• The summit is beyond the pass.

Yes, szczyt is tricky for English speakers.

A rough guide:

• szcz sounds approximately like shch
• y is a Polish vowel with no exact English equivalent; it is not the same as English ee
• final t is pronounced clearly

A very rough approximation is:

• shchyt

But this is only approximate. The real Polish sound is tighter and more compact than the English-style spelling suggests.

A rough breakdown:

• prze sounds like pshe
• łę contains ę, a nasal vowel, though before some consonants it may be heard less strongly as a nasalized vowel or vowel-plus-nasal effect
• cz sounds like ch in chop
• final ą is another nasal vowel

A rough English-friendly approximation might be:

• pshe-WEN-chon

But that is only approximate. Polish nasal vowels ą and ę do not match English exactly.

Yes, przełęcz is feminine.

That is why its instrumental singular form is:

• przełęczą

Many feminine nouns in Polish take -ą in the instrumental singular.

Yes. That would be a more explicit way to say on the other side of the pass.

For example:

• Szczyt jest po drugiej stronie przełęczy.

This is slightly longer and more explicit than za przełęczą.

Comparison:

• za przełęczą = beyond / behind the pass
• po drugiej stronie przełęczy = on the other side of the pass

Both are natural, but za przełęczą is shorter and very idiomatic.

The dictionary form is przełęcz.

When you look words up in a dictionary, you normally search for the nominative singular form. So if you see przełęczą, you should learn to recognize that its base form is przełęcz.