Learn Hardcore Russian: Я учу русский язык каждый день.

учить = to learn / to study / to teach (depending on context)
я учу = I learn / I study or I teach, but here the context makes it I study / I am learning

In this sentence, я учу русский язык clearly means I study Russian (language), not I teach Russian, because the typical way to say I teach Russian is я преподаю русский (язык) or you’d specify to whom you’re teaching. Context usually removes the ambiguity.

What is the difference between учу русский язык and изучаю русский язык? Can I use изучаю instead?

Both are grammatical, but they have slightly different feels:

Я учу русский язык каждый день.
- The most common everyday way to say I study Russian every day.
- Neutral, conversational, very natural.
Я изучаю русский язык каждый день.
- Also means I study / I am studying Russian.
- Sounds a bit more formal, systematic, or academic, like you are engaged in more serious or detailed study (e.g., at university, in a research context).

In most everyday contexts, учу is the default choice. Изучаю is fine, just a bit more formal or “serious-sounding.”

Why is it русский язык and not something with a preposition, like о русском языке? What case is this?

In я учу русский язык, the phrase русский язык is the direct object of the verb учу (I study what? → Russian (language)).

Direct objects in Russian normally take the accusative case.
For inanimate masculine nouns, the accusative form is identical to the nominative.

So:

русский язык (nominative) → русский язык (accusative, inanimate object)

There is no preposition like о (about) because you’re not “reading about Russian” or “talking about Russian”; you are directly studying Russian itself, so the simple accusative is used.

Can I say just учу русский without язык? Is that correct?

Yes, учу русский is common and correct in informal speech, as long as the context makes it clear you mean the language.

Я учу русский язык каждый день. – fully explicit, neutral.
Я учу русский каждый день. – shorter, more colloquial; very natural in conversation.

If someone asks Какой язык ты учишь? (Which language are you studying?), you would typically answer: Я учу русский.

In writing, especially formal contexts (textbooks, essays, official documents), русский язык is preferred.

Why is it каждый день and not something like каждую день? How does agreement work here?

Каждый is an adjective meaning every. In Russian, adjectives must agree with the noun in:

gender
number
case

The noun день (day) is:

masculine
singular
here, in the accusative (after a time expression meaning “every X”)

For masculine inanimate nouns, nominative and accusative are the same. So:

Masculine singular: каждый день
Feminine singular: каждую неделю (every week)
Neuter singular: каждое утро (every morning)
Plural: каждые выходные (every weekend)

So каждый день is the correct form because день is masculine.

Could I change the word order and say Каждый день я учу русский язык? Does that change the meaning?

Yes, that is correct and very natural.

Я учу русский язык каждый день.
- Neutral, basic statement: I study Russian every day.
Каждый день я учу русский язык.
- Slight emphasis on каждый день (every day), as if you’re stressing the frequency: “Every single day, I study Russian.”

Russian word order is flexible. Changing it usually affects emphasis or focus, not core meaning. Both versions are good; use the one that matches what you want to highlight.

Why is there no difference between I study and I am studying in Russian? How does the present tense work here?

Russian has only one present tense form for each verb aspect. It does not distinguish between:

I study Russian. (habitual, general)
I am studying Russian. (right now / currently, ongoing)

Both are expressed with the same present tense form:

Я учу русский язык.

Context tells you whether it’s a habit (general fact) or a current ongoing activity. In this sentence, каждый день clearly shows a habitual action: I study Russian every day.

What aspect is учу (imperfective or perfective), and how would I say I will learn Russian using the perfective?

Учу is from the verb учить, which is imperfective. Imperfective describes:

repeated actions
ongoing processes
general habits

To express the result of learning (e.g., I will learn / master Russian), you use a perfective verb, such as выучить.

Я выучу русский язык.
- I will learn (master) Russian. (focus on the completed result)

So:

Я учу русский язык каждый день. – I am in the process; it’s a habitual action.
Я выучу русский язык. – I will eventually achieve the result of having learned it.

Is я necessary here, or can I drop it and just say учу русский язык каждый день?

You can drop я. The form учу already shows that the subject is I (1st person singular).

Я учу русский язык каждый день. – fully explicit.
Учу русский язык каждый день. – also correct; natural in speech and writing when context is clear.

Russian often omits subject pronouns when the verb ending makes the person obvious, especially in informal or connected speech. You might keep я for:

emphasis: Именно я учу русский язык каждый день. (It’s me who studies Russian every day.)
clarity in complex sentences.

How do you pronounce я учу русский язык каждый день? Where is the stress?

Approximate pronunciation (stressed syllables in bold):

я – ya (like ya in yacht)
учу́ – oo-CHU (stress on the second syllable)
ру́сский – ROOS-kee (stress on ру́, double с pronounced like a single s)
язы́к – ya-ZYK (stress on зы́, final к is hard; ы is a deep, central vowel, not like English i)
ка́ждый – KAZH-dyy (stress on ка́ж, жд sounds like zhd together)
день – dyen’ (soft д, close to dyen with a palatalized n’ at the end)

So spoken smoothly:

я учу́ ру́сский язы́к ка́ждый день

Why is русский язык in the same form in the subject and object position? Isn’t the object supposed to “change”?

Yes, the object normally takes the accusative case, but for inanimate masculine nouns, the nominative and accusative forms are identical.

Compare:

Nominative (subject):
- Русский язык сложный. – Russian (language) is difficult.
Accusative (object):
- Я учу русский язык. – I study Russian (language).

The forms русский язык look the same, but the function in the sentence is different. Context + position + the verb tell you which role it’s playing.

If the noun were animate masculine, the accusative would change, e.g.:

Я вижу друга. – I see (my) friend.
- nominative: друг
- accusative (animate): друга

For язык (inanimate), nominative = accusative.

Are there other common ways to say I study Russian every day in Russian?

Yes, several natural alternatives:

Я занимаюсь русским языком каждый день.
- Literally: I occupy myself with Russian (language) every day.
- Very common, slightly more “studious” in tone.
- Uses instrumental case: русским языком.
Я каждый день учу русский (язык).
- Fronting каждый день inside the sentence for emphasis.
Я ежедневно учу русский язык.
- ежедневно = daily, a bit more formal or written.

All of these express the same basic idea; your original sentence is the most straightforward and neutral.