Діти граються на подвір’ї.

Діти is the standard plural form of дитина (child). It is an irregular plural, so it does not follow the most basic noun-plural patterns learners may expect.

• дитина = child
• діти = children

This is similar to English child → children, where the plural is also irregular.

Граються means are playing / play.

It comes from the verb гратися, which means to play in the sense of children playing, having fun, playing around.

The ending -ся is a very common Ukrainian verb ending. In many verbs it has a reflexive or middle-like function, but you should not always translate it directly as oneself. Here, гратися is simply the normal verb for to play when talking about children playing.

So:

• грати = to play (for example, play an instrument, play a game in some contexts)
• гратися = to play, have fun, play around

And:

• діти граються = the children are playing

Because the subject діти (children) is plural, the verb must also be in the 3rd person plural form.

Compare:

• дитина грається = the child is playing
• діти граються = the children are playing

This is just normal subject-verb agreement.

The dictionary form is подвір’я (yard, courtyard). In the sentence, it appears as подвір’ї because it is in the locative case.

The preposition на often requires the locative when it means on / in / at a place.

So:

• подвір’я = nominative, dictionary form
• на подвір’ї = in the yard / in the courtyard

This is a very common pattern in Ukrainian:

• у школі = at school
• у кімнаті = in the room
• на подвір’ї = in the yard

In Ukrainian, location is not always expressed the same way as in English. With some places, Ukrainian idiomatically uses на where English uses in or at.

So на подвір’ї is the normal way to say in the yard / in the courtyard.

This is something you often just need to learn as part of the phrase:

• на вулиці = in the street / outside
• на подвір’ї = in the yard
• на роботі = at work

So even though English says in the yard, Ukrainian naturally says на подвір’ї.

The apostrophe in подвір’ї is a normal spelling feature in Ukrainian. It shows that the preceding consonant is not softened, and that the following я, ю, є, ї keeps a y-like sound.

In подвір’я / подвір’ї, the apostrophe separates the consonant from the iotated vowel.

For a learner, the most practical thing is:

• memorize the word with the apostrophe as part of its spelling
• pronounce the ending clearly, without merging it into a softened consonant

It is not like an English possessive apostrophe.

It can often mean both, depending on context.

Ukrainian present tense can correspond to:

• The children are playing in the yard
• The children play in the yard

If there is no extra context, English may choose either a progressive or a simple present translation. In many situations, though, this sentence will naturally be understood as The children are playing in the yard.

Yes. Ukrainian word order is fairly flexible, though the basic version here is very natural:

• Діти граються на подвір’ї.

You could also say:

• На подвір’ї граються діти.

That version puts more focus on where the action is happening, or can sound a bit more descriptive.

So the original sentence is the most neutral, but other orders are possible for emphasis.

A rough pronunciation guide is:

• граються ≈ HRA-yut-sya

A few useful notes:

• г in Ukrainian is usually like a soft h sound, not a hard English g
• я after a consonant often adds a ya quality
• -ться / -ються endings can feel tricky at first, so it helps to listen and repeat them as chunks

So try saying it as one unit:

• граються → HRA-yut-sya

It can mean several related things depending on context:

• yard
• courtyard
• sometimes the area around a house/building

So на подвір’ї can be translated as:

• in the yard
• in the courtyard
• sometimes outside in the yard

The exact English choice depends on the situation, but the Ukrainian word is very common and broadly refers to the outdoor enclosed or semi-enclosed area by a home or building.