Learn Hardcore Russian: Положи соль и перец на стол, пожалуйста. - Put the salt and pepper on the table, please.

It’s the 2nd-person singular imperative of the perfective verb положи́ть (to put/lay down). Use it when telling one person you’re on informal ты-terms with to perform a single, complete action right now.

How would I say this to a stranger or to more than one person?

Use the plural/polite imperative: Положи́те соль и перец на стол, пожа́луйста. That works both for addressing multiple people and for polite address to one person.

What’s the difference between положи and клади?

Положи comes from perfective положи́ть and asks for one completed action (put it down once).
Клади is the imperative of imperfective класть and focuses on the process or repetition (e.g., ongoing instructions or habitual action).
In everyday single requests like this, положи is the default.

Should it actually be поставь instead of положи here?

Often yes.

Положи is used when you lay something down horizontally (a book, a phone).
Поставь (imperative of поста́вить) is used when you set something upright to stand (a bottle, a jar, salt and pepper shakers).
For typical table shakers, Поста́вь соль и перец на стол, пожа́луйста sounds more natural. If you literally mean packets or sachets that will lie flat, положи fits.

Why is it на стол and not на столе?

With на, use:

Accusative for motion onto a surface: на стол (onto the table).
Prepositional for location on a surface: на столе́ (on the table). Here it’s a movement onto, so accusative стол.

What case are соль and перец in, and why didn’t they change?

They’re direct objects in the accusative. For inanimate nouns, the accusative equals the nominative:

соль (feminine, 3rd declension) stays соль.
перец (masculine) stays перец (not перца, which would be genitive).

Is соль feminine?

Yes. Соль is a feminine noun ending in a soft sign. You’d say эта соль, морска́я соль, кру́пная соль, etc.

How do I pronounce and stress the sentence?

Stresses: Положи́ со́ль и пе́рец на стол, пожа́луйста.
Approximate sounds: pah-lah-ZHEE SOL’ ee PYE-rets nah stol, pah-ZHA-loos-tah.

Can I move or omit пожа́луйста?

Yes. It can go at the end, the beginning, or after the verb, and it can be omitted in casual contexts:

Пожа́луйста, положи́…
Положи́, пожа́луйста, …
Положи́ … на стол, пожа́луйста.
Dropping it just makes the request blunter.

Why is there a comma before пожа́луйста?

When пожа́луйста functions as a parenthetical politeness marker, it’s set off by commas. At sentence end, that yields a comma before it: …, пожа́луйста.
At the start: Пожа́луйста, … In the middle: …, пожа́луйста, …

If I want to be extra polite, how could I rephrase?

Не могли́ бы вы положи́ть соль и пе́рец на стол?
Бу́дьте добры́, поста́вьте соль и пе́рец на стол.
These sound softer/formal.

What if I mean the shakers themselves—can I be explicit?

Yes: Поста́вь соло́нку и пере́чницу на стол, пожа́луйста.
(For salt shaker, both соло́нка and со́льница are used; pepper shaker is пере́чница.)

I sometimes hear ложи. Is that acceptable?

No. Ложи from a supposed verb ложи́ть is nonstandard/incorrect in contemporary standard Russian. Use клади́ (imperfective) or положи́ (perfective).

Could it be к столу́ or за стол instead of на стол?

К столу́ = toward/for the table (serve/bring for the meal), not onto its surface.
За стол = to the place at the table (people sit down), not about placing items on top.
To put items onto the tabletop, use на стол.

How would I say “Don’t put the salt and pepper on the table”?

Informal: Не клади́ соль и пе́рец на стол.
Polite/plural: Не клади́те соль и пе́рец на стол.
If they’re shakers and you mean standing: Не ста́вь/Не ста́вьте…

If I meant adding seasoning to food, what should I say instead?

Use verbs for adding/sprinkling:

Посоли́ суп и поперчи́ его.
Доба́вь соли́ и пе́рца.
Here соли́/пе́рца are genitive to express an indefinite amount.

Is the word order flexible?

Yes. Russian allows some movement for emphasis or rhythm:

Пожа́луйста, положи́ соль и пе́рец на стол.
Соль и пе́рец положи́ на стол, пожа́луйста.
The basic Положи́ соль и пе́рец на стол, пожа́луйста is neutral and clear.

How would I say “Put them on the table” if salt and pepper were already mentioned?

Use the plural pronoun: Положи́ их на стол, пожа́луйста.
If referring to a single item: Положи́ это на стол, пожа́луйста.