Learn Hardcore Polish: To rozmieszczenie mebli w salonie jest praktyczne, ale kanapa stoi za daleko od lampy. - This arrangement of the furniture in the living room is practical, but the sofa is too far from the lamp.

Why does the sentence start with To rozmieszczenie mebli w salonie jest praktyczne instead of just Rozmieszczenie mebli w salonie jest praktyczne?

Both versions are grammatically correct, but they feel slightly different.

Rozmieszczenie mebli w salonie jest praktyczne.
This is a simple, neutral statement: “The furniture arrangement in the living room is practical.”
To rozmieszczenie mebli w salonie jest praktyczne.
The to here works like “this” in English, and adds a pointing/emphasizing feeling, as if you’re referring to a specific arrangement that’s been mentioned or that you can see:
- “This arrangement of furniture in the living room is practical.”

So to + noun at the beginning emphasizes a specific thing, often something visible or already known in the context.

Why is it To rozmieszczenie mebli… jest praktyczne and not To jest rozmieszczenie mebli…?

These structures say different things:

To rozmieszczenie mebli w salonie jest praktyczne.
Here To rozmieszczenie mebli w salonie is one long noun phrase (the subject):
“This arrangement of furniture in the living room is practical.”
To jest rozmieszczenie mebli w salonie.
This would mean “This is an arrangement of furniture in the living room.”
You are identifying what something is, not describing its quality.

In the original sentence, we are not defining what it is; we are evaluating it (saying it is practical). That’s why to is attached directly to rozmieszczenie, and jest comes before the adjective praktyczne, not after to.

Why is the adjective praktyczne and not praktyczny or praktyczna?

Adjectives in Polish agree with the noun in:

gender,
number,
and case.

The key noun is rozmieszczenie (arrangement), which is:

neuter,
singular,
in the nominative case (subject of the sentence).

So the predicate adjective must also be:

neuter singular nominative → praktyczne.

If the noun were different, the adjective would change:

Układ (masculine): Układ mebli jest praktyczny.
Aranżacja (feminine): Aranżacja mebli jest praktyczna.

Because rozmieszczenie is neuter, the only correct form here is praktyczne.

Why is it mebli and not meble in rozmieszczenie mebli?

Meble is the basic form (nominative plural): “furniture / pieces of furniture.”

But in rozmieszczenie mebli we have a noun (rozmieszczenie) followed by another noun that depends on it: “arrangement of furniture.”

In Polish, many such relationships use the genitive case, often matching English “of something”:

rozmieszczenie czego? → mebli (genitive plural)

So:

meble = furniture (as a subject, nominative plural)
mebli = of furniture (genitive plural, after rozmieszczenie)

Other similar patterns:

szklanka wody = a glass of water (woda → wody, genitive)
kawałek ciasta = a piece of cake (ciasto → ciasta, genitive)

What case is w salonie and why is it used here?

W salonie uses the locative case:

salon → w salonie (locative singular, masculine).

The preposition w (“in”) usually takes:

the locative when it describes a static location (where something is):
- Meble są w salonie. – The furniture is in the living room.
- Kanapa stoi w rogu. – The sofa stands in the corner.
the accusative when it describes movement into something:
- Idę w góry. – I’m going to the mountains.

In rozmieszczenie mebli w salonie, we’re talking about where the furniture is placed (a static situation), so w + locative is required: w salonie.

Why is it kanapa stoi instead of kanapa jest?

Polish often uses specific posture/location verbs instead of the general być (to be) when talking about where objects are:

stać – to stand (upright, vertical)
leżeć – to lie (horizontal)
siedzieć – to sit

Furniture like a kanapa (sofa) is typically described as standing in Polish:

Kanapa stoi przy ścianie. – The sofa stands by the wall.
Lampa stoi w rogu. – The lamp stands in the corner.

You can say Kanapa jest za daleko od lampy, and people will understand you, but it sounds more vague or less natural. Stać gives a more typical, concrete description of the sofa’s position in the room.

Does za daleko mean “behind far” because za can mean “behind”?

Here za does not mean “behind.” It is part of an intensifying pattern:

za + adjective/adverb = too + adjective/adverb

So:

daleko – far
za daleko – too far
za wysoki – too tall
za głośno – too loud

In za daleko od lampy, the structure is:

za (too) + daleko (far) + od (from) + lampy (the lamp, genitive).

If you wanted to say “behind the lamp,” you would say:

za lampą – behind the lamp (za + instrumental)

So:

za daleko od lampy = too far from the lamp
za lampą = behind the lamp

Why is it od lampy and what case is lampy here?

The preposition od takes the genitive case and is often used to express:

distance from something,
separation,
origin (in some contexts).

In za daleko od lampy:

od = from
lampa (nominative) → lampy (genitive singular)

The pattern is:

za daleko od + [genitive] = too far from …

So:

od domu – from the house
od okna – from the window
od lampy – from the lamp

If we used other prepositions, the meaning would change:

przy lampie – next to/near the lamp
koło lampy – near the lamp
pod lampą – under the lamp

But with za daleko, Polish naturally combines it with od + genitive.

Could we say Kanapa jest za daleko od lampy instead of Kanapa stoi za daleko od lampy?

Yes, Kanapa jest za daleko od lampy is grammatically correct and understandable.

However, native speakers more often use stać (or leżeć, siedzieć) for objects’ location. Być is more general and can sound:

a bit more abstract, or
more like stating a fact without visualizing the posture.

In everyday speech, descriptions of furniture and objects usually go:

Stół stoi przy oknie. – The table stands by the window.
Fotel stoi obok kanapy. – The armchair stands next to the sofa.

So Kanapa stoi za daleko od lampy sounds slightly more natural and vivid.

Can the word order change, like Kanapa stoi za daleko od lampy, ale to rozmieszczenie mebli w salonie jest praktyczne?

Yes, that word order is perfectly fine.

Polish has relatively flexible word order. In this sentence, both versions:

To rozmieszczenie mebli w salonie jest praktyczne, ale kanapa stoi za daleko od lampy.
Kanapa stoi za daleko od lampy, ale to rozmieszczenie mebli w salonie jest praktyczne.

are correct. The main effect of changing the order is shifting the focus:

Version 1 starts by emphasizing the arrangement is practical, then adds the sofa problem as a contrast.
Version 2 starts by emphasizing the problem (sofa too far), then softens it with the positive comment about the overall arrangement.

Grammatically, nothing changes; the conjunction ale still means but and the clauses remain independent.

Why is there a comma before ale?

In Polish, ale is a coordinating conjunction meaning but, and it normally connects two independent clauses (each with its own verb):

To rozmieszczenie mebli w salonie jest praktyczne,
(clause 1: has its own verb jest)
ale kanapa stoi za daleko od lampy.
(clause 2: has its own verb stoi)

When ale connects such full clauses, you must put a comma before it:

Jest zimno, ale świeci słońce.
Chcę wyjść, ale muszę pracować.

So the comma in the sentence is required by standard punctuation rules.

Could we drop jest and say To rozmieszczenie mebli w salonie praktyczne, ale kanapa stoi za daleko od lampy?

No, in standard Polish you cannot drop jest here. Predicative adjectives (like praktyczne = practical) normally need the verb być:

To rozmieszczenie … jest praktyczne. – correct
To rozmieszczenie … praktyczne. – ungrammatical in neutral, standard speech

You may sometimes see jest omitted in:

very informal speech,
headlines,
telegram style or notes:

e.g. Film świetny! (The film is great!)
But in a normal, full sentence like this one, jest must be present.

Is salon here like an English “salon” (beauty salon, hair salon), or does it mean “living room”?

In this context, salon means “living room”:

salon – living room (especially a larger, more representative one)
pokój dzienny – living room / day room (more neutral)

So:

meble w salonie – furniture in the living room

Salon can also mean a kind of shop or service place (closer to English “salon”), but then it’s clear from context, e.g.:

salon fryzjerski – hair salon
salon kosmetyczny – beauty salon
salon samochodowy – car showroom

With rozmieszczenie mebli w salonie, the natural reading is “in the living room.”