Learn Hardcore Ukrainian: Поки ти їдеш ліфтом, я піднімуся сходами. - While you ride the elevator, I will go up the stairs.

An elevator counts as a means of transport in Ukrainian, so ти їдеш ліфтом is natural. If it were stairs on foot, you’d use a verb built on йти: e.g., ти йдеш сходами.

What case are ліфтом and сходами, and why are there no prepositions?

Both are in the instrumental case:

ліфтом = by elevator (means/instrument of movement)
сходами = by/along the stairs (route/means)

Ukrainian often uses the bare instrumental to express the means or route:

їхати автобусом (go by bus)
писати ручкою (write with a pen)
іти стежкою (go along the path)

Note: сходи “stairs” is plural-only, so the instrumental is plural сходами.

Can I say на ліфті or у ліфті instead of ліфтом? What about по сходах?

ліфтом is the standard way to say “by elevator” (means of transport).
у/в ліфті means “in the elevator” (location), not “by elevator” as a means.
на ліфті is heard colloquially (influenced by Russian). Many style guides prefer ліфтом.
по сходах (along the stairs) is also common and acceptable; сходами is the concise, very idiomatic choice.

Why is їдеш in the present if піднімуся is in the future? Should it be їхатимеш?

After conjunctions like поки/коли, Ukrainian often uses the present to refer to an action that is simultaneous with a future main action. So Поки ти їдеш ліфтом, я піднімуся… is fine.

If you want to make the future sense explicit in both parts, use the future imperfective:

Поки ти їхатимеш ліфтом, я піднімуся сходами.

Don’t use the perfective future here (e.g., поїдеш) with поки for “while”—that changes the meaning (see below).

Does поки ever mean “until”? How do I tell?

Yes. поки can mean either:

while (with an ongoing/imperfective action): Поки ти їдеш, я читаю.
until (often with perfective, or with “не”): Почекай тут, поки (я не) повернуся.

In the target sentence, їдеш is imperfective present, so the meaning is “while.”

Would “Поки ти поїдеш ліфтом …” work?

No for the meaning “while.” поїдеш (perfective) points to a single bounded event (“you will set off/ride once”), which clashes with поки = “while.” Use їдеш (present) or їхатимеш (future imperfective).

Why is there a comma, and can I swap the clause order?

Subordinate clauses introduced by поки are separated by a comma.

Current order: Поки ти їдеш ліфтом, я піднімуся сходами.
Reversed order (same meaning): Я піднімуся сходами, поки ти їдеш ліфтом.

Why піднімуся and not піднімаюся or буду підніматися?

Aspect and nuance:

піднімуся is perfective future: one complete ascent (I’ll go up and be done).
буду підніматися is imperfective future: focuses on the ongoing process (I’ll be in the process of going up).
піднімаюся is present imperfective: “I am going up (now).”

All are grammatical; choose the aspect to match your meaning.

What does the -ся at the end of піднімуся do?

The clitic -ся/-сь makes the verb reflexive/middle. підняти = “to raise (something),” while піднятися = “to rise/go up” (intransitive). You put -ся at the end of the verb: піднімуся, not “я ся підніму.”

Are піднімусь and підіймуся also correct?

Yes:

Short reflexive: піднімусь is a common, perfectly acceptable variant of піднімуся.
Stem variant: підіймуся (from підійнятися) is also standard. All mean “I will go up,” with minor stylistic/region preferences.

Can I drop the pronouns я and ти?

Yes. Ukrainian often omits subject pronouns when the verb ending shows the person:

Поки їдеш ліфтом, піднімуся сходами. This sounds natural and a bit snappier.

How do I make it polite when talking to a stranger?

Use the plural/formal Ви and the corresponding verb forms:

Поки Ви їдете ліфтом, я піднімуся сходами. (You can still drop the pronouns if context is clear.)

Any quick pronunciation tips for tricky letters?

ї is pronounced like “yee” (y + i): їдеш ≈ “YEE-desh.”
х is a voiceless “kh” as in German “Bach”: сходами ≈ “SKHO-damy.”
ліфт sounds very close to English “lift.”