Breakdown of Мій стілець стоїть поруч з столом.
мій
my
стілець
the chair
стояти
to stand
стіл
the table
поруч з
next to
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Questions & Answers about Мій стілець стоїть поруч з столом.
Why is мій used instead of моя or моє?
In Ukrainian, possessive adjectives must agree with the gender, number and case of the noun they modify. Стілець is a masculine noun in the nominative singular, so you use мій (masculine nominative singular) rather than моя (feminine) or моє (neuter).
Why is стоїть used instead of the copula є?
In the present tense, Ukrainian normally omits the copula є (“is”). Here стоїть is the verb “to stand,” which describes the chair’s physical position. If you used є, it would literally mean “my chair exists next to the table,” which sounds odd in Ukrainian.
What is поруч and why is it followed by з столом?
Поруч is an adverb meaning “next to” or “beside.” To indicate what you’re beside, you add the preposition з (“with”) plus the instrumental case. The word столом is the instrumental singular of стіл (“table”), so поруч з столом literally means “beside (with) the table.”
What case is столом, and how do I form it?
Столом is the instrumental singular of стіл. For most masculine nouns ending in a consonant, you form the instrumental by adding -ом (hard stem) or -ем (soft stem). Here стіл → стол + -ом = столом.
Can I use біля instead of поруч з?
Yes. Біля also means “near” or “by,” but it takes the genitive case. You’d say Мій стілець стоїть біля стола, with стол in genitive singular (стола). The nuance is small—біля sometimes feels a bit more general, whereas поруч can suggest a closer, more immediate adjacency.
When should I use з versus із before a noun?
The basic preposition “with” is з, and you can freely use із for euphony before vowels or tricky consonant clusters (e.g. із дому, із друзями). With поруч, both поруч з столом and поруч із столом are possible, but поруч з столом is most common.
Does word order matter? Could I say Поруч з столом стоїть мій стілець?
Yes—you can reorder the sentence for emphasis without changing its core meaning. Starting with Поруч з столом emphasizes the location first, while Мій стілець at the end highlights “my chair.” Ukrainian syntax is quite flexible.
Why стоїть and not лежить or висять?
In Ukrainian, choice of verb often depends on how an object is oriented. A chair стоїть (“stands”) on its legs. You’d use лежить (“lies”) for flat objects (e.g. a book on a table) and висить (“hangs”) for things on a wall. So Мій стілець стоїть поруч з столом is correct because the chair is upright.