Ah, the delightful complexities of the Russian language! We all know it’s a linguistic labyrinth, especially when it comes to verbs. Today, we’re diving headfirst into Russian verbs of placement. This article is the second part of my Russian Verbs of Position & Placement series. In my previous article, “Russian Verbs Of Position: Сидеть Лежать Стоять Висеть” we learned all about what positions objects take and which verbs to use to describe their static positions. But if the question popped up in your head . . . “But how did they get there?” then this article will explain that! 

Get ready to unravel the tangled web of класть/положи́ть, ста́вить/поста́вить, ве́шать/пове́сить, and сажа́ть/посади́ть. These verb pairs allow you to describe the lying down of, putting, placing, hanging, planting and sitting down of objects in Russian!

We use the verb лежа́ть if an object “lies” (i.e. is located in a horizontal position and does not have a base or a foundation holding it up). In order to describe the action that puts that object in its lying position, we use the Russian verb of placement класть/положи́ть.

We use the verb стоя́ть if an object “stands” (i.e. is in an upright, standing position or has a base or a foundation). In order to describe the action that puts that object in its standing position, we use the Russian verb of placement ста́вить/поста́вить.

We use the verb висе́ть if an object “hangs” (i.e. is in a hanging position off the ground). In order to describe the action that puts that object in its hanging position, we use the Russian verb of placement ве́шать/пове́сить.

We use the verb сиде́ть if an object “sits” (i.e. is in an upright, sitting position on a surface). In order to describe the action that puts that object in its sitting position, we use the Russian verb of placement сажа́ть/посади́ть.