Learn Hardcore Russian: Я вытираю пыльной тряпкой стол и подоконник. - I wipe the table and the windowsill with a dusty rag.

“I wipe” (habitual / regular action)
- Я вытираю стол каждый день. – I wipe the table every day.
“I am wiping” (action happening right now)
- Я вытираю стол. – I’m wiping the table (right now).

So я вытираю by itself can mean either “I wipe” or “I am wiping”; context tells you which one.

What case is «пыльной тряпкой», and what does it literally mean?

Пыльной тряпкой is in the instrumental case (творительный падеж).

тряпка (nom.) → тряпкой (instr.)
пыльная (nom. fem. sg.) → пыльной (instr. fem. sg.)

The instrumental case is commonly used to express “with/by means of something”:

Я пишу ручкой. – I write with a pen.
Я режу ножом. – I cut with a knife.
Я вытираю пыльной тряпкой. – I wipe with a dusty/dusting rag.

So пыльной тряпкой literally is “with a dusty rag” and grammatically it’s the instrumental of “dusty rag,” used as a tool/instrument.

Does «пыльной тряпкой» mean the rag itself is dusty (dirty), or that it’s a cloth for dusting?

Literally, пыльной тряпкой means “a dusty rag”, i.e. a rag that has dust on it.

However, in everyday speech, people can use it in the sense of “a dusting cloth / rag used for wiping dust”. The context usually makes it clear:

If you want to be precise that it’s a rag for dusting, a bit more natural would be:
- тряпкой для пыли – a cloth for dust (for dusting).
пыльная тряпка by itself often sounds like “a rag covered in dust” (maybe not very clean).

So in your sentence, learners usually understand it as “a dusting rag”, but be aware the literal meaning is “dusty rag.”

Why is it «пыльной» and not something else? What does «пыльной» agree with?

Пыльной is an adjective in the instrumental, feminine, singular form. It agrees with тряпкой:

Noun: тряпка – feminine, singular
Instrumental of тряпка: тряпкой
Adjective: пыльный (dusty); dictionary form is masculine nominative.
Feminine nominative: пыльная
Feminine instrumental: пыльной

Adjectives in Russian must match the noun in:

gender (here: feminine),
number (singular),
case (instrumental).

So we say:

пыльная тряпка – a dusty rag (subject; nominative)
пыльной тряпкой – with a dusty rag (instrumental)

Why do «стол» and «подоконник» appear without a preposition? What case are they in?

Стол and подоконник are direct objects of the verb вытирать, so they are in the accusative case.

For inanimate masculine nouns like стол and подоконник, the accusative singular looks the same as the nominative:

Nom.: стол, Acc.: стол
Nom.: подоконник, Acc.: подоконник

No preposition is needed because Russian, unlike English, usually doesn’t use a preposition for a direct object:

Я вытираю стол. – I wipe the table.
Я вижу стол. – I see the table.

So:

Я вытираю пыльной тряпкой стол и подоконник.
– I wipe the table and the windowsill with a dusty/dusting rag.

Can I change the word order to «Я вытираю стол и подоконник пыльной тряпкой»? Is there any difference?

Yes, that word order is also correct and natural:

Я вытираю стол и подоконник пыльной тряпкой.

Both:

Я вытираю пыльной тряпкой стол и подоконник.
Я вытираю стол и подоконник пыльной тряпкой.

are fine.

Subtlety:

Putting пыльной тряпкой earlier can slightly emphasize what you are using (the tool).
Putting стол и подоконник right after the verb can emphasize what you are wiping (the objects).

In everyday speech, both orders sound normal; the difference is minor and mostly about focus and rhythm.

Could I instead say «Я вытираю пыль со стола и с подоконника»? How does that differ in meaning?

Yes, that’s another natural way to say it:

Я вытираю пыль со стола и с подоконника.
– I wipe the dust off the table and (off) the windowsill.

Difference in focus:

Я вытираю пыльной тряпкой стол и подоконник.
Focus is on the objects you’re wiping (table, windowsill) and the tool.
Я вытираю пыль со стола и с подоконника.
Focus shifts to the dust that is being removed from those surfaces.

Both describe roughly the same situation, but the second one makes the dust explicit and uses со стола / с подоконника = “from the table / from the windowsill.”

Is there a reflexive form «вытираться»? How is it different from «вытирать»?

Yes, there is a reflexive verb вытираться.

вытирать (что?) – to wipe (something)
- Я вытираю стол. – I wipe the table.
вытираться (чем? / как?) – to wipe oneself, to dry oneself off
- Я вытираюсь полотенцем. – I’m drying myself with a towel.

So:

In your sentence вытираю is transitive (takes direct objects: стол, подоконник).
Вытираться is mostly about the subject itself getting wiped/dried (often after a shower, washing hands, etc.).

What is the perfective partner of «вытирать», and when would I use it instead?

The imperfective verb вытирать pairs with the perfective verb вытереть.

вытирать – to be wiping / to wipe (process, repeated, habitual, not focusing on result)
вытереть – to wipe (once, to complete the action, result-oriented)

Examples:

Я вытираю стол. – I’m wiping the table / I wipe the table (in general).
Я вытер стол. – I wiped the table (and now it’s done / clean).

In your original sentence, Я вытираю пыльной тряпкой стол и подоконник, we’re looking at the process (either happening now or habitual), so imperfective is appropriate.

If you wanted to emphasize that it’s finished, you could say:

Я вытер стол и подоконник пыльной тряпкой. – I (have) wiped the table and the windowsill with a rag (it’s done).

Can I omit «я» and just say «Вытираю пыльной тряпкой стол и подоконник»?

Yes, omitting я is possible in the right context.

Russian often drops the subject pronoun when it’s clear from context and from the verb ending:

(Я) вытираю пыльной тряпкой стол и подоконник.

The ending -ю in вытираю already tells us the subject is я (1st person singular).

Common situations where я is dropped:

Quick notes or messages to yourself:
- Вытираю стол, потом иду в магазин.
When answering a question:
- Что ты делаешь? – Вытираю стол.

In neutral, full-sentence narrative, including я is very normal and slightly more explicit/natural for beginners.

How do you pronounce «вытираю», «пыльной», «тряпкой», and «подоконник»? Where is the stress?

Stress (marked with bold on the stressed syllable):

вытира́ю – vy-tee-RA-yu
- вы-ти-ра́-ю
пы́льной – PYL’-noy
- пы́ль-ной
тря́пкой – TRYAP-koy
- тря́п-кой
подоко́нник – pa-da-KON-neek (double нн)
- по-до-ко́н-ник

All of these are commonly used words, so practicing their pronunciation is useful.

How do I know whether to use “the table” or “a table” in English, since Russian has no articles in «Я вытираю пыльной тряпкой стол и подоконник»?

Russian doesn’t have articles, so стол can correspond to:

“the table”
“a table”

You choose “the” or “a” in English based on context, not on anything in the Russian grammar.

Typical logic:

“the table” if both speaker and listener know which specific table is meant, e.g. in a room with one obvious table:
- Я вытираю стол. → I’m wiping the table.
“a table” if it’s just any table, not previously mentioned or not uniquely identified:
- Я вытираю стол в другом кабинете. → I’m wiping a table in another office.

In your sentence, in a normal home context, English would almost always use “the table and the windowsill” because it sounds like you’re talking about familiar surfaces in the room.

Could I say «чистить» or «мыть» instead of «вытирать» here?

You can, but the meaning changes slightly:

вытирать – to wipe (with a cloth, removing dust, moisture, etc.)
- Я вытираю стол. – I’m wiping the table (usually with a cloth).
мыть – to wash (with water / liquid)
- Я мою стол. – I’m washing the table (with water, maybe soap).
чистить – to clean (removing dirt, dust, stains; often more thorough or with tools/products)
- Я чищу стол. – I’m cleaning the table (possibly scrubbing).

In the context of dusting with a rag, вытирать is the most precise, especially with пыльной тряпкой.
Мыть suggests water; чистить suggests general cleaning, not specifically wiping dust.