Lubię układać puzzle z córką.

Because Polish often drops subject pronouns when they are already clear from the verb form.

Here, lubię means I like, so the -ę ending already tells you the subject is I.
You could say Ja lubię układać puzzle z córką, but ja would usually add emphasis, like:

• Ja lubię... = I like...
• maybe in contrast to someone else

So the version without ja is completely normal.

Lubię is the 1st person singular present tense form of lubić (to like).

So:

• lubić = to like
• lubię = I like

This present-tense form is also used for general preferences or habits, just like English I like doing puzzles.

After verbs like lubić (to like), Polish usually uses the infinitive to say what someone likes doing.

So the structure is:

• lubię + infinitive
• lubię czytać = I like to read
• lubię gotować = I like to cook
• lubię układać puzzle = I like doing/putting together puzzles

This is very common and natural in Polish.

This is about aspect, which is very important in Polish verbs.

• układać = imperfective
• ułożyć = perfective

In this sentence, układać is used because the speaker means the activity in general: it is something they enjoy doing.

With lubię, the imperfective is usually the natural choice when talking about hobbies, habits, or repeated actions.

So:

• Lubię układać puzzle. = I like doing puzzles / putting puzzles together.

A perfective form like ułożyć would focus more on completing a puzzle, not just enjoying the activity as such.

Because Polish has no articles.

English needs words like:

• a
• an
• the

Polish does not. So nouns appear without them.

That means córką does not by itself tell you a daughter or the daughter. Context tells you that.

This is normal in Polish, and learners need to get used to understanding definiteness from the situation rather than from an article.

In this sentence, puzzle is used as a borrowed plural noun. In everyday Polish, people often say:

• układać puzzle

You may also see the more Polonized spelling:

• puzle

As the direct object here, the form does not need an extra ending.

A useful contrast:

• układać puzzle / puzle = to do puzzles
• nie mam puzzli = I don’t have any puzzles
• brakuje puzzli = some puzzle pieces are missing

So puzzli is a different case form, not the form needed in this sentence.

Because the preposition z meaning with requires the instrumental case.

So:

• córka = nominative
• córką = instrumental

That is why Polish says:

• z córką = with (my/the) daughter
• z mamą = with mom
• z koleżanką = with a female friend

This is one of the most common uses of the instrumental case.

Córką is the instrumental singular form of córka.

For many feminine nouns ending in -a, the instrumental singular ends in -ą:

• kobieta → kobietą
• koleżanka → koleżanką
• córka → córką

So here the change is:

• córka → córką

This is a very useful pattern to learn early.

It can say that:

• Lubię układać puzzle z moją córką.

That version is more explicit: with my daughter.

But Polish often leaves out possessives like my when the relationship is obvious from context. So z córką can be understood as with my daughter if the speaker is talking about their own daughter and the situation makes that clear.

So:

• z córką = with daughter / with the daughter / with my daughter, depending on context
• z moją córką = explicitly with my daughter

No. Z can mean different things depending on the case that follows.

Most importantly:

• z + instrumental = with
• z + genitive = from / off / out of

Examples:

• z córką = with daughter (instrumental)
• z domu = from the house (genitive)

So in this sentence, córką shows that z means with.

As for ze: that is just a variant used in some sound environments, for easier pronunciation. For example:

• ze mną = with me
• ze szkoły = from school

But here, z córką is the normal form.

No. Polish word order is fairly flexible.

The basic sentence:

• Lubię układać puzzle z córką.

But you could also say:

• Z córką lubię układać puzzle.
• Puzzle lubię układać z córką.

These versions change the focus or emphasis, not the core meaning.

Because Polish uses endings and cases, word order is often freer than in English. Still, the original sentence sounds very natural as a neutral statement.

A few useful points:

• lubię

  • stress is on the first syllable: LU-bię
  • the final ę is often pronounced weakly in everyday speech, especially at the end of a word

• córką

  • ó sounds like Polish u
  • ą is a nasal vowel; before k, it is heard with a nasal quality

You do not need a perfect English-style approximation, but these details are worth noticing because ę, ą, and ó are very common in Polish.