Learn Hardcore Russian: Мой рабочий стол стоит у окна.

In Russian, describing where things “are” often uses position verbs like стоять (to stand), лежать (to lie), or висеть (to hang). Стоит is the 3rd person singular present of стоять, literally “stands.” In English we’d say “My desk is by the window,” but Russian gives the nuance of its upright position by using стоит.

Can I use находится instead of стоит, and what’s the difference?

Yes, you can say Мой рабочий стол находится у окна. Находится means “is located” and is more neutral or formal. Стоит, however, emphasizes that the desk is standing (i.e. in its usual position) and is very common in everyday speech for upright objects.

What does у окна mean, and could I say около окна instead?

У окна literally means “at the window’s [side],” implying very close proximity (right next to it).
Около окна also means “near the window” but is a bit more general (“around” or “by”).
Both are correct. Use у when you want to stress that something is immediately next to or touching the window.

Why is the noun окна in the genitive case here?

The preposition у always requires the genitive case. The base form is окно (window, nominative), and its genitive singular is окна.

Why aren’t there any words for “the” or “a” in Мой рабочий стол стоит у окна?

Russian does not have articles. Definiteness or indefiniteness is understood from context or from other words (like possessives). Here мой (“my”) already tells you which desk we mean, so no article is needed.

What exactly is рабочий стол, and how should I think of рабочий?

Рабочий is an adjective meaning “work-” or “working,” derived from работа (work).

рабочий стол = “work desk” or “desk for working.”
It’s a standard adjective + noun phrase in Russian.

Why do мой and рабочий end in -й rather than -я or -о?

Both мой and рабочий are in the masculine nominative singular to agree with стол, which is a masculine noun.

Masculine adjectives and possessives in the nominative singular typically end in -ый, -ий, or -ой (here -ий → стол).

Is the word order Мой рабочий стол стоит у окна fixed, or can I say it differently?

The neutral order is Subject – Verb – Prepositional phrase (as shown). Russian word order is relatively flexible, but changing it shifts emphasis:

У окна стоит мой рабочий стол (places more focus on у окна, “by the window”).
Стоит мой рабочий стол у окна (stresses the verb).
The original is the most straightforward.