Learn Hardcore Russian: Над кроватью висит небольшая лампа.

Над means “above” or “over.” It indicates that something is positioned at a higher level relative to another object. Here it tells us the lamp is hanging over the bed, not on it.

Why is кроватью in the instrumental case?

The preposition над always governs the instrumental case when expressing location. The noun кровать (bed) is feminine and ends with a soft sign, so its instrumental singular form is кроватью.

Which word is the subject, and why is лампа in the nominative case?

The verb висит (“hangs”) is intransitive and describes what the lamp is doing. Since лампа (“lamp”) is the doer of the action, it appears in the nominative singular as the grammatical subject.

What part of speech is небольшая, and why does it have that ending?

Небольшая is an adjective meaning “small” or “not large.” It modifies лампа, and in Russian adjectives must agree with the noun they describe in gender (feminine), number (singular), and case (nominative), hence the ending -ая.

Could I say Небольшая лампа висит над кроватью instead? Would the meaning change?

Yes, you can. Russian word order is relatively flexible. Placing небольшая лампа at the front feels more neutral or topic-focused on the lamp itself. Leading with над кроватью emphasizes the location first. The overall meaning remains the same.

Why isn’t there an article like “a” or “the” in the Russian sentence?

Russian does not have definite or indefinite articles. Context, word order, and sometimes demonstrative pronouns (e.g., эта лампа) convey definiteness or indefiniteness instead.

What’s the difference between над кроватью and на кровати?

Над кроватью (над + instrumental) means “above the bed,” suggesting the lamp is suspended over it. На кровати (на + prepositional) means “on the bed,” indicating something rests atop the bed’s surface.