Learn Hardcore Polish: Stół jest przy oknie.

In Stół jest przy oknie, przy means “by,” “next to,” or “at” in the sense of proximity. It indicates the table’s location relative to the window.

Which grammatical case is used in przy oknie, and why?

The phrase przy oknie uses the locative case. Preposition przy always governs the locative when expressing a static location. The base noun okno (window) changes to oknie in this case.

Why is stół in its base form (nominative) here?

Because stół is the subject of the sentence. The verb jest (is) agrees with it in the third-person singular, so the noun remains in the nominative case.

Why do we use jest instead of another form of “to be”?

Jest is the third-person singular present tense of być (to be). Since stół is singular, we use jest. If the subject were plural, we would use są.

Could I say Stół stoi przy oknie instead, and what’s the difference?

Yes. Stoi is the third-person singular of stać (to stand). Saying Stół stoi przy oknie emphasizes the table physically standing next to the window, while Stół jest przy oknie is a more neutral statement of its location.

Is the word order flexible in Polish? For example, can I say Przy oknie jest stół?

Absolutely. Polish allows flexible word order for emphasis or style. Przy oknie jest stół still means “The table is by the window,” but places focus on the location first.

Can we drop the verb jest and just say Stół przy oknie as a complete sentence?

In everyday speech, omitting jest would sound unfinished. You could say Stół przy oknie stoi, using stoi instead of jest, but even then you still have a verb. Only in very terse notes or headlines might you see Stół przy oknie without a verb.

Why don't we use na oknie to say “by the window”?

The preposition na means “on” (something) rather than “next to.” So na oknie would imply the table is on the window (which doesn’t make sense), whereas przy oknie correctly means it’s beside or adjacent to the window.

What happens to okno in the locative plural? If there were multiple windows, how would you say “The table is by the windows”?

The plural locative of okno is oknach. So you’d say Stół jest przy oknach (“The table is by the windows”).