Ta pani czyta gazetę w poczekalni.

Because pani is a feminine noun, and ta is the feminine singular nominative form of this/that.

Polish demonstratives change for gender:

• ten = masculine
• ta = feminine
• to = neuter

So:

• ta pani = this lady / that lady

In this sentence, pani means lady, woman, or sometimes madam, depending on context.

It is also a very important Polish word because Pani can be used:

• as a noun: a lady / a woman
• as a polite form of address: Mrs / Ms / ma’am
• as a polite pronoun: you when speaking respectfully to a woman

Here, it is simply a noun in the phrase ta pani = this lady.

Because Polish has no articles. There is no direct equivalent of English a or the.

So:

• pani can mean a lady or the lady
• gazeta can mean a newspaper or the newspaper

Context tells you which is meant. In this sentence, ta pani already makes the noun specific, so it feels like this lady.

Because gazetę is in the accusative case, which is used for the direct object of the verb.

The woman is reading the newspaper, so newspaper is the thing being read. That makes it the direct object.

The dictionary form is:

• gazeta = newspaper

But in the accusative singular:

• gazetę

This is a very common pattern for feminine nouns ending in -a:

• nominative: gazeta
• accusative: gazetę

Because after w meaning in, when it shows a location, Polish usually uses the locative case.

The base form is:

• poczekalnia = waiting room

After w for location:

• w poczekalni = in the waiting room

So:

• poczekalnia = nominative form
• w poczekalni = locative form

Czyta is 3rd person singular present tense of czytać.

So it means:

• he reads
• she reads
• it reads
• and, depending on context, also is reading

In this sentence:

• Ta pani czyta gazetę = This lady reads / is reading a newspaper

Polish present tense often covers both English simple present and present continuous.

It can mean either, depending on context.

Polish does not usually make the same distinction that English does between:

• reads
• is reading

So czyta gazetę could mean:

• reads a newspaper
• is reading a newspaper

In a sentence like this, most learners would naturally understand it as is reading a newspaper, because it describes what is happening in the waiting room.

Because Polish verbs usually already show the person and number, so subject pronouns are often omitted unless needed for emphasis.

Czyta tells you it is:

• 3rd person singular

That could mean:

• he
• she
• it

Then ta pani makes it clear that the subject is feminine in meaning: this lady.

So Polish does not need a separate word like ona here.

No, Polish word order is fairly flexible.

The neutral, straightforward order here is:

• Ta pani czyta gazetę w poczekalni.

But other orders are possible, for example:

• W poczekalni ta pani czyta gazetę.
• Gazetę ta pani czyta w poczekalni.

These alternatives change the focus or emphasis, not the basic meaning.

So the given sentence is a normal, neutral way to say it.

Adding ta makes the noun more specific.

• pani czyta gazetę = a lady / the lady is reading a newspaper
• ta pani czyta gazetę = this lady / that lady is reading a newspaper

So ta points to a particular woman. It often suggests that the speaker has a specific person in mind.

Most often, learners are taught ta as this in a sentence like this:

• ta pani = this lady

But in real use, Polish ten / ta / to can sometimes overlap with English that, depending on context and intonation.

So the safest beginner understanding here is:

• ta pani = this lady

The infinitive is czytać, which means to read.

A few present-tense forms are:

• czytam = I read / am reading
• czytasz = you read / are reading
• czyta = he/she/it reads / is reading
• czytamy = we read / are reading
• czytacie = you all read / are reading
• czytają = they read / are reading

So czyta comes from czytać.

Czytać is imperfective.

That matters because Polish aspect is very important:

• imperfective verbs describe ongoing, repeated, or general actions
• perfective verbs describe completed actions

Since this sentence says the woman is reading, not that she finished reading, the imperfective czytać is the natural choice.

A related perfective verb is often:

• przeczytać = to read through / to finish reading

So:

• czyta gazetę = she is reading a newspaper
• przeczyta gazetę would suggest she will read it completely

You know it from the noun and the context.

The dictionary form is:

• poczekalnia = waiting room

The form poczekalni here is the singular locative after w.

The plural would be based on:

• poczekalnie = waiting rooms

So w poczekalni means in the waiting room, not in the waiting rooms.

It would become:

• Pani czyta gazetę w poczekalni.

That is still grammatical, but it changes the feel a little.

It could mean:

• The lady is reading a newspaper in the waiting room
• A lady is reading a newspaper in the waiting room

Adding ta makes it more clearly about a specific woman:

• This lady is reading a newspaper in the waiting room

Not always.

With w, the case depends on the meaning:

• location: usually locative
• motion into something: usually accusative

Examples:

• w poczekalni = in the waiting room → location → locative
• wchodzi w tłum = he goes into the crowd → movement into → accusative

In your sentence, the woman is located in the waiting room, so locative is used.

A rough English-style guide would be:

• czyta ≈ CHIH-ta
• gazetę ≈ ga-ZE-ten or ga-ZE-teng very roughly

A few helpful pronunciation notes:

• cz sounds like English ch in chocolate
• y is a Polish vowel that does not match English exactly; it is not the same as English ee
• ę is a nasal vowel, and its actual pronunciation can vary a bit depending on what follows

A more careful learner should listen to native audio, but this rough guide can help you get started.