Breakdown of Он приносит мне подарок.
он
he / it (for a masculine noun) / it (for a neuter noun)
мне
to me
подарок
gift, present
приносить
to bring
Questions & Answers about Он приносит мне подарок.
Why do we use мне here instead of меня?
The word мне is the Dative case of я (I). In Russian, the person receiving an action or object takes the Dative case, which is like saying 'He brings [to] me a present.' If you used the Accusative case меня, it would mean he is literally picking you up and carrying you!
Since a present is being brought, shouldn't подарок be in the Accusative case? Why doesn't its ending change?
It actually is in the Accusative case! The word подарок (present/gift) is a masculine inanimate noun (meaning it is not a living person or animal). For masculine inanimate nouns, the Accusative case looks exactly the same as the dictionary (Nominative) form.
Can I change the word order and say 'Он приносит подарок мне'?
Yes, you can. Russian word order is flexible. However, placing the Dative pronoun (мне) before the direct object (подарок) is the most natural, neutral way to phrase this sentence. Putting мне at the very end would place a special emphasis on it, sounding like 'He brings a present to ME' (and not to someone else).
What is the dictionary form of приносит and why does it end in -ит?
The dictionary form (infinitive) is приносить (to bring). It is a standard Type 2 (or -ить) verb. Because the subject is Он (He), we drop the -ить and add the matching 'he/she/it' ending, which is -ит.