Learn Hardcore Polish: Lubię siedzieć przy oknie w kuchni. - I like to sit by the window in the kitchen.

You can say Ja lubię siedzieć… if you want to emphasize I (e.g. I like it, but someone else doesn’t), but in a neutral sentence, Lubię siedzieć… is more natural.

Why is it lubię siedzieć and not lubię siedzę?

In Polish, when one verb is “liking, wanting, being able to” etc., the second verb is usually in the infinitive.

lubię siedzieć = I like to sit / I like sitting
- lubię – finite verb (conjugated)
- siedzieć – infinitive (to sit)

You cannot put another conjugated form (siedzę) after lubię in this structure.
✗ lubię siedzę is grammatically wrong.

What’s the difference between lubię siedzieć and lubię posiedzieć?

Both express liking the activity, but aspect changes the nuance.

lubię siedzieć – uses imperfective siedzieć:
- Focus on the activity in general: I like (the activity of) sitting.
lubię posiedzieć – uses perfective posiedzieć:
- Suggests sitting for a while, often with a slightly “occasional/for some time” flavor.
- Roughly: I like to sit for a bit / I like having a sit for some time.

For a general hobby‑like statement, lubię siedzieć is more neutral and common.

Why is it przy oknie and not koło okna or obok okna? Do they mean the same?

All three can be translated as by/near the window, but there are nuances:

przy oknie
- Very common for “by the window” when sitting at a table, desk, etc.
- Implies being right at it / next to it, often in a “functional” sense (e.g. a seat, a table).
koło okna, obok okna
- More neutral “near / next to the window” in terms of spatial position.
- May sound a bit more spatially descriptive, less like a typical seat location.

In the context of sitting at a table or on a chair next to the window, przy oknie is the standard, natural choice.

What case is oknie, and how does it relate to okno?

Dictionary form: okno – nominative singular (a/the window).
oknie is the locative singular of okno.

The locative is used after certain prepositions, including przy in the sense of by, at.

Pattern for okno (singular, relevant forms):

Nominative: okno – window (subject)
Locative: (przy / w / na) oknie – by / in / on the window

So przy oknie literally means by the window using the locative case.

What case is w kuchni, and how is it formed from kuchnia?

Dictionary form: kuchnia – nominative singular (kitchen).
kuchni is the locative singular of kuchnia.

Preposition w (in) takes the locative when it means location.

Basic pattern (singular):

Nominative: kuchnia – kitchen
Locative: (w) kuchni – in the kitchen

So w kuchni = in the kitchen using kuchni (locative).

Why do both przy oknie and w kuchni use the same case (locative)? Don’t prepositions usually take different cases?

Different prepositions do take different cases, but some share the same one.

przy (in the sense by, at, next to) → locative
w (in the sense in, inside) → locative

So in this sentence we have:

przy oknie – by the window (locative after przy)
w kuchni – in the kitchen (locative after w)

If you used a different preposition, the case could change, for example:

koło okna – near the window (genitive)
do kuchni – to the kitchen (genitive)

But with przy and w (for place), locative is correct.

Could I change the word order, for example: Lubię przy oknie siedzieć w kuchni? Is that still correct?

Yes, Polish word order is relatively flexible, and this variant is grammatically correct. However, word order affects naturalness and emphasis.

Neutral, most natural: Lubię siedzieć przy oknie w kuchni.
Also correct, but with slight shifts in rhythm/emphasis:
- Lubię siedzieć w kuchni przy oknie.
- W kuchni lubię siedzieć przy oknie.

Lubię przy oknie siedzieć w kuchni is possible, but sounds a bit less smooth; learners are safest with:

Lubię siedzieć przy oknie w kuchni.
or
Lubię siedzieć w kuchni przy oknie.

How would I say “I don’t like to sit by the window in the kitchen”?

Just negate the verb lubić:

Nie lubię siedzieć przy oknie w kuchni.

Notes:

nie goes directly before the verb: nie lubię.
Nothing else in the sentence has to change.

How do you pronounce the ę in lubię? Is it always fully nasal?

In lubię, the ę is at the end of the word and is usually pronounced only lightly nasal or almost like e:

Careful pronunciation: something like [lu-bʲɛ̃].
Everyday speech: often closer to [lu-bʲe], with very slight nasality or none.

General rule of thumb:

Before a consonant: ę is clearly nasal (e.g. będę).
At the end of a word (as in lubię): it tends to be denasalized, especially in fast, casual speech.

So if you say lu-bie, you’ll still sound natural and be understood.

Why do we use siedzieć and not usiąść or siadać here?

These verbs describe related but different things:

siedzieć – to be in a sitting position (state)
usiąść – to sit down (moment of starting to sit; perfective)
siadać – to sit down (habitually / repeatedly) (imperfective)

When we say we like some ongoing activity in general, Polish typically uses imperfective verbs of state or activity. So:

Lubię siedzieć… – I like being in a sitting position… (general preference)

Using usiąść or siadać would shift focus to the act of sitting down, which is not what the original sentence expresses.

Could I use this structure with other places, like I like to sit by the window in a café?

Yes, you can reuse the pattern very productively:

Lubię siedzieć przy oknie w kawiarni. – I like to sit by the window in a café.
- przy oknie – by the window
- w kawiarni – in the café (locative of kawiarnia)

More examples with the same structure:

Lubię siedzieć przy oknie w pracy. – I like to sit by the window at work.
Lubię siedzieć przy oknie w szkole. – I like to sit by the window at school.

Just change the final noun phrase (w kawiarni, w pracy, w szkole, etc.).

Why doesn’t Polish have anything like “the” before oknie and kuchni? How do I know it’s the window and the kitchen?

Polish has no articles (a, an, the). Nouns appear without them, and context tells you whether you should understand a or the.

przy oknie can mean by a window or by the window
w kuchni can mean in a kitchen or in the kitchen

In a typical home context, a Polish speaker naturally understands it as the window (in that kitchen) and the kitchen (of the home being talked about), so the English translation uses the. The Polish sentence itself doesn’t mark this difference grammatically.