Learn Hardcore Polish: Jej ulubiona koszulka wisi na krześle przy łóżku. - Her favourite T-shirt is hanging on the chair by the bed.

jej is:
- a possessive pronoun (her)
- used for female owner
It is invariable: it does not change for gender, number, or case.
- jej koszulka – her T‑shirt
- jej spodnie – her trousers
- nie ma jej koszulki – there is no her T‑shirt
- idę do jej brata – I’m going to her brother

So you always use jej for “her” (possessive), no matter what comes after it.

Why is it ulubiona koszulka and not ulubiony koszulka?

In Polish, adjectives agree with the noun in:

gender
number
case

Koszulka is:

gender: feminine
number: singular
case: nominative (subject of the sentence)

The adjective ulubiony (favorite) has different forms:

masculine: ulubiony (e.g. ulubiony film)
feminine: ulubiona (e.g. ulubiona koszulka)
neuter: ulubione (e.g. ulubione miejsce)

Since koszulka is feminine singular nominative, the adjective must also be feminine singular nominative: ulubiona.

What is the difference between koszulka and koszula?

Both are related to “shirt,” but they’re used differently.

koszulka
- usually: T‑shirt, sports shirt, lighter top
- often short‑sleeved, casual
- also used in sports: koszulka piłkarska – football jersey
koszula
- dress shirt, button-up shirt, more formal
- has a collar, buttons, often long sleeves
- koszula do pracy – shirt for work

In the sentence Jej ulubiona koszulka wisi..., we’re talking about something like a T‑shirt or casual top.

Why do we use wisi and not jest in this sentence?

wisi comes from wisieć – to hang, to be hanging.
jest comes from być – to be.

In Polish, if something is specifically hanging, we usually use wisieć:

Koszulka wisi na krześle. – The T‑shirt is hanging on the chair.
Obraz wisi na ścianie. – The picture is hanging on the wall.

If we said:

Koszulka jest na krześle. – The T‑shirt is on the chair.

…it would still be correct, but more neutral – it doesn’t say how it’s there (folded, lying, hanging, etc.).
Wisi adds the extra information that it is hanging.

What person and tense is wisi, and what is the infinitive?

Infinitive: wisieć – to hang (be hanging)
Form in the sentence: wisi
Person and tense: 3rd person singular, present tense

Some forms of wisieć (present):

ja wiszę – I hang / I am hanging
ty wisz – you hang
on/ona/ono wisi – he/she/it hangs
my wisimy – we hang
wy wisicie – you (pl.) hang
oni/one wiszą – they hang

Why is it na krześle and not na krzesło?

The preposition na can take:

locative case (where? – static location)
accusative case (where to? – movement onto something)

Here, the T‑shirt is already on the chair (no movement), so:

na
- locative = na krześle – on the chair (location)

Examples:

location (locative):
- Koszulka wisi na krześle. – It is on the chair.
movement (accusative):
- Wieszam koszulkę na krzesło. – I am hanging the T‑shirt onto the chair.

So na krześle answers “where?”, while na krzesło would answer “onto what?” (direction).

Why is krzesło changing to krześle?

Krzesło (chair) is neuter, nominative singular.

In the locative case (used after na when it means “on” in a static sense), neuter nouns ending in -o usually change to -e, and there is often a consonant change.

krzesło → na krześle (locative)
- the sł becomes śl (soft consonant + e)

Another example:

miasto (city) → w mieście (in the city)

So na krześle is simply krzesło in the locative case after na (where?).

Why is it przy łóżku and not przy łóżko?

The preposition przy (by, next to, near) always takes the locative case.

The base noun:

łóżko – bed (neuter, nominative)

Locative of łóżko is:

łóżku

So:

przy łóżku = by the bed / next to the bed

You cannot say przy łóżko; przy never takes the accusative.

What is the difference between na łóżku and przy łóżku?

na łóżku – on the bed
- something is located on top of the bed
- Książka leży na łóżku. – The book is lying on the bed.
przy łóżku – by the bed / next to the bed
- something is near the bed, at its side
- Krzesło stoi przy łóżku. – The chair stands by the bed.

In the sentence na krześle przy łóżku, the idea is:

the T‑shirt is on the chair,
and that chair is by the bed.

Can the word order be changed, for example Na krześle przy łóżku wisi jej ulubiona koszulka?

Yes. Polish allows relatively flexible word order, especially in simple sentences.

All of these are grammatically correct:

Jej ulubiona koszulka wisi na krześle przy łóżku.
Na krześle przy łóżku wisi jej ulubiona koszulka.
Na krześle przy łóżku jej ulubiona koszulka wisi.

The difference is mostly in emphasis:

Starting with Jej ulubiona koszulka – you focus on what we are talking about.
Starting with Na krześle przy łóżku – you focus on where something is.

The basic, neutral order is the one in the original sentence.

Why don’t we need an article like “the” or “a” before koszulka?

Polish has no articles (no words like “a / an / the”).

Whether English would use “a” or “the” depends on context, but in Polish you just say:

Jej ulubiona koszulka – literally “her favorite T‑shirt”

Depending on context, this could be translated as:

Her favorite T‑shirt (most natural here)
Her favourite shirt
or even a favourite T‑shirt of hers (in some contexts)

The definiteness (“the” vs “a”) is understood from the situation, not from a separate word.

Why is koszulka in the nominative case?

The subject of a Polish sentence is in the nominative case.

Here, Jej ulubiona koszulka is the thing that is doing the action (or experiencing the state) of wisieć (to hang). So:

subject → koszulka → nominative
adjective agrees → ulubiona
possessive pronoun → jej

So Jej ulubiona koszulka is nominative because it is the subject of wisi.

Does jej ever change when the noun changes case, like in nie widzę jej koszulki?

No. Jej stays exactly the same in all cases.

Examples:

Nominative:
- Jej koszulka wisi na krześle. – Her T‑shirt is hanging on the chair.
Genitive:
- Nie widzę jej koszulki. – I don’t see her T‑shirt.
Dative:
- Przyglądam się jej koszulce. – I am looking at her T‑shirt.
Accusative:
- Widzę jej koszulkę. – I see her T‑shirt.
Locative:
- Myślę o jej koszulce. – I’m thinking about her T‑shirt.
Instrumental:
- Idę w jej koszulce. – I’m going in her T‑shirt.

In all of these, jej never changes form.

Could we say obok łóżka instead of przy łóżku? Is there a difference?

Yes, you could say obok łóżka:

obok łóżka – beside the bed / next to the bed
przy łóżku – by the bed / at the bed / next to the bed

The difference is subtle:

przy often suggests being right at something, in contact with it or very close.
obok is “beside,” a little more neutral, simply “next to.”

In many everyday contexts, they are interchangeable:

Krzesło stoi przy łóżku.
Krzesło stoi obok łóżka.

Both can describe a chair that is next to the bed.

Is koszulka a diminutive? Does it sound “cute”?

Yes, koszulka is formed with the diminutive suffix -ka, originally from koszula.

Historically:

koszula – shirt
koszulka – “little shirt”

However, in modern usage koszulka is the normal, standard word for “T‑shirt,” and it does not necessarily sound cute or childish. It’s just the usual word you use:

koszulka sportowa – sports shirt
koszulka piłkarska – football jersey

So while it is formally a diminutive, for T‑shirts it’s neutral, everyday vocabulary.