Зимой мы вешаем кормушку у окна, чтобы птицам было легче найти еду.

In Russian, some time expressions use the instrumental case without a preposition. Зимой means in winter / during the winter.

This is a very common pattern with seasons:

• зимой — in winter
• весной — in spring
• летом — in summer
• осенью — in autumn

So Зимой мы вешаем кормушку... means In winter, we hang a bird feeder...

You can also say в зимнее время or similar phrases, but зимой is the normal, natural way.

Вешаем is the imperfective present tense of вешать. In this sentence, it describes a habitual or repeated action: something we do in winter.

So the idea is:

• Зимой мы вешаем кормушку... = In winter, we hang / put up a bird feeder...
  meaning this is our usual practice.

Compare:

• вешаем — we hang, we are hanging, we usually hang
• повесим — we will hang / we’ll put up once, as a completed action in the future

As for повешаем, that form is generally not what you want here. The normal perfective partner of вешать in this meaning is повесить.

Because it is the direct object of вешаем.

We are hanging what?
→ кормушку

The dictionary form is кормушка. Since it is a feminine noun ending in -а, its accusative singular changes to -у:

• nominative: кормушка
• accusative: кормушку

So:

• Мы вешаем кормушку = We hang a bird feeder

Кормушка means a feeder, especially something used to give food to animals or birds. In this sentence it means a bird feeder.

It comes from корм meaning feed / food for animals.

Depending on context, кормушка can also refer to feeders for other animals, but with птицам later in the sentence, it is clearly a bird feeder here.

У usually means by, near, next to, at, and it requires the genitive case.

The noun окно is neuter:

• nominative: окно
• genitive: окна

So:

• у окна = by the window / near the window

This does not mean on the window. If you wanted on the window, Russian would use a different preposition, depending on the exact meaning.

Because the sentence uses a structure meaning for the birds.

Птицам is the dative plural of птицы:

• nominative plural: птицы — birds
• dative plural: птицам — to/for the birds

In чтобы птицам было легче найти еду, the idea is:

• so that it would be easier for the birds to find food

Russian often uses the dative for the person or animal experiencing a state:

• Мне холодно — I am cold / It is cold to me
• Ему трудно — It is difficult for him
• Птицам легче — It is easier for the birds

This is a very common Russian impersonal construction.

Было легче literally means something like it was easier. The verb быть appears in neuter singular past form было because there is no normal subject like he, she, or they. It is an impersonal statement.

So:

• птицам было легче = it was easier for the birds

After чтобы, Russian very often uses a past-tense form, even when English uses something like so that ... can / could / would.

That is why:

• чтобы птицам было легче найти еду
  = so that it would be easier for the birds to find food

Don’t try to translate the tense too mechanically here. This is just how the Russian structure works.

Легче is the comparative form of легко.

• легко — easy, easily
• легче — easier, more easily

So:

• птицам было легче найти еду = it was easier for the birds to find food

If you said легко, that would mean it was easy, not easier.

The comparative is natural here because hanging the feeder near the window improves the birds’ chances of finding food.

Because after легче here, Russian uses the infinitive найти to mean to find, with focus on the successful result.

Compare the aspects:

• находить — imperfective, finding / locating in a general or repeated sense
• найти — perfective, to find successfully, to locate

In this sentence, the point is that the birds can actually succeed in finding food more easily, so найти is the natural choice.

Чтобы introduces a clause of purpose. It often means:

• so that
• in order that
• sometimes simply to, depending on the structure

Here:

• Зимой мы вешаем кормушку у окна, чтобы птицам было легче найти еду.
• In winter we hang a bird feeder by the window so that it is easier for birds to find food.

This is a very useful word in Russian. It often introduces goals, intentions, or desired results.

Examples:

• Я пришёл, чтобы помочь. — I came to help.
• Открой окно, чтобы было прохладнее. — Open the window so that it will be cooler.

Yes. Russian word order is flexible, though the original sentence sounds natural and neutral.

The original:

• Зимой мы вешаем кормушку у окна, чтобы птицам было легче найти еду.

Possible variations include:

• Мы зимой вешаем кормушку у окна...
• Кормушку мы зимой вешаем у окна...

These can slightly change emphasis, but not the core meaning.

The original order is good because it presents the sentence clearly:

1. time — Зимой
2. subject — мы
3. action — вешаем
4. object/place — кормушку у окна
5. purpose — чтобы...

Not specifically. У окна only means by the window / near the window. It gives a general location.

If you wanted to be more specific, Russian would choose a more exact phrase:

• на окне — on the window / on the windowsill area, depending on context
• на подоконнике — on the windowsill
• за окном — outside the window

So у окна is intentionally general: the feeder is placed near the window.

Russian has no articles like a or the. The meaning comes from context.

So кормушку could mean:

• a bird feeder
• the bird feeder

In this sentence, English would most naturally say a bird feeder unless the context has already mentioned a specific one.

Russian speakers rely on context, word order, and situation rather than articles. This is one of the biggest differences for English speakers learning Russian.