Breakdown of На прилавке лежит старьё.
лежать
to lie
на
on/for
прилавок
the sales counter
старьё
old stuff (colloquial)
Questions & Answers about На прилавке лежит старьё.
Why is на прилавке in the prepositional case?
Because на is being used to show location here: on the counter / on the stall / on the shop counter.
When на means on, at in a static sense, it normally takes the prepositional case:
- на столе = on the table
- на полке = on the shelf
- на прилавке = on the counter
So:
- dictionary form: прилавок
- prepositional singular: на прилавке
If there were movement onto the counter, Russian would use a different case:
- положить на прилавок = to put onto the counter
So the contrast is:
- на прилавке = on the counter, located there
- на прилавок = onto the counter, motion toward it
What exactly does прилавок mean?
Прилавок usually means a shop counter, sales counter, or a market stall counter/display surface.
It is more specific than just table:
- стол = table
- прилавок = counter where goods are displayed or sold
So this sentence gives a small shop/market kind of image: some old junk is lying on a sales counter or stall.