Miasto leży na południu.

A natural word-by-word breakdown is:

• miasto = city / town
• leży = lies / is situated / is located
• na południu = in the south / in the southern part

So the whole sentence means that the city is located in the south.

Yes — literally, leży comes from leżeć, which means to lie. But in Polish, this verb is very commonly used to talk about the geographical location of places.

So:

• Miasto leży na południu = The city is located in the south
• not that the city is physically lying down

This is very normal Polish usage. In English, lies can also be used in a formal or literary way for places, as in The village lies near the river.

You might be understood, but leży is more natural when talking about where a place is geographically located.

Compare:

• Miasto leży na południu. = natural for location
• Miasto znajduje się na południu. = also very natural, a bit more formal
• Miasto jest na południu. = understandable, but less idiomatic in this context

So for maps, regions, and geography, leży is a very useful verb to learn.

Polish commonly uses na with names of broad directional areas:

• na północy = in the north
• na południu = in the south
• na wschodzie = in the east
• na zachodzie = in the west

So na południu is the normal phrase here.

By contrast, w is used with many countries, cities, buildings, and enclosed places:

• w Polsce = in Poland
• w mieście = in the city
• w domu = in the house

So this is mostly something you learn as a fixed regional expression: na południu.

Because after na in this meaning (in / on / at a location), Polish uses the locative case.

The base form is:

• południe = south / noon

In the locative, it becomes:

• na południu = in the south

So the change is caused by case:

• nominative: południe
• locative: południu

This is a very common pattern after prepositions expressing location.

Yes. Południe can mean both:

• south
• noon

Polish tells them apart through context and grammar.

For example:

• na południu = in the south
• w południe = at noon

So in your sentence, because of na and the geographical context, it clearly means the south, not noon.

Leży is:

• 3rd person singular
• present tense
• from the verb leżeć

It agrees with miasto, which is singular.

So:

• miasto leży = the city lies / is located

If the subject were plural, the verb would change:

• Miasta leżą na południu. = The cities are in the south.

Because Polish has no articles.

English distinguishes between:

• a city
• the city

Polish usually just says:

• miasto

The exact meaning depends on context. So miasto can mean:

• a city
• the city
• sometimes simply city / town in a general sense

That is completely normal in Polish.

Usually, yes — but the larger reference point is often left unstated if it is already clear from context.

So Miasto leży na południu could mean:

• in the south of the country
• in the southern part of a region
• in the south of some area already being discussed

Polish does not have to say exactly of what if the context already makes it obvious.

Yes. Polish word order is more flexible than English, though the neutral order here is:

• Miasto leży na południu.

You could also hear:

• Na południu leży miasto.

But that sounds more marked or stylistic, as if emphasizing in the south.

So for a learner, the safest default is:

• subject + verb + location
• Miasto leży na południu.

A simple approximation is:

• leży ≈ LEH-zhih
• południu ≈ poh-WOOD-nyoo

A few useful notes:

• ż sounds like the s in measure
• ł sounds like English w
• ni before another vowel often sounds like ny

So:

• Miasto leży na południu
• roughly: MYAH-stoh LEH-zhih nah poh-WOOD-nyoo

The exact pronunciation will depend on accent and speed, but that is a good starting point.