Grammar Reference

The Czech alphabet with 42 letters: háčky and čárky diacritics, the unique ř sound, digraph ch, and the special letter ě

Can recognize and pronounce all Czech letters including diacritics, ř, ch, and ě

Vowel length in loanwords: stable pairs (kultura/kultúra?), variant pairs (benzin/benzín) and traps (téma but tematický)

I can apply the vowel-length rules of loanwords including derivation shortening.

Sounding native: vocalized prepositions (se/ve/ke/ku), stress units with prepositions, and avoiding consonant pile-ups

I can vocalize prepositions correctly and carry stress on the preposition unit like a native.

Sentence stress and intonation distinguishing statements, questions and irony; melodic patterns of Czech

I can carry meaning with stress and melody: questions, contrast and irony.

Personal pronouns in Czech: já, ty, on/ona/ono, my, vy, oni/ony/ona — singular and plural forms for all three genders

Can use all Czech personal pronouns correctly and understand when to drop them in pro-drop contexts

Possessive pronouns: můj/tvůj/jeho/její/náš/váš/jejich — forms and agreement with noun gender

Can express possession using possessive pronouns with correct gender agreement

Demonstrative pronouns ten/ta/to: gender agreement and usage in everyday speech

Can use demonstrative pronouns ten/ta/to to point out people and things with correct gender agreement

Accusative forms of personal pronouns: mě/mne, tě/tebe, ho, ji, je

Can use accusative personal pronouns in both short and long forms correctly

Dative personal pronouns: short and long forms

Can use dative pronouns to say who receives something or who something is for

Instrumental personal pronouns: se mnou, s tebou, s ním, etc.

Can express company and togetherness using instrumental pronouns with s/se

Short unstressed vs long stressed pronoun forms (mě/mne, ho/jeho, mu/jemu) and the n- forms after prepositions (něj, něho, němu)

I can choose between short, long and n- pronoun forms according to position, emphasis and prepositions.

někdo/něco/nějaký/některý vs nikdo/nic/žádný and obligatory double negation (Nikdo nepřišel)

I can talk about unspecified people and things and build correct multiple-negation sentences.

The reflexive possessive svůj: it always points to the subject of the clause, replacing můj/tvůj/jeho in that role

I can use svůj correctly whenever the possessor is the subject and hear the difference from jeho.

Recognizing the bookish relative jenž/jež/jenž in written texts and converting it to který

I can read texts containing jenž forms and restate them with který.

Active command of jenž in formal writing: full declension including jehož/jejíž possessives and s nimiž forms

I can vary formal relative clauses with the full jenž paradigm and its possessives.

The verb být (to be): present tense conjugation jsem/jsi/je/jsme/jste/jsou and negation with ne-

Can conjugate být in all present tense forms, use it for identification, origin, and location, and negate it correctly

Conjugation and usage of the verb mít (to have): mám/máš/má/máme/máte/mají

Can conjugate mít in present tense and use it for possession and common expressions

Present tense conjugation of -at verbs: the dělat paradigm (type 5)

Can conjugate regular -at verbs in the present tense to describe daily actions

Present tense conjugation of -it/-et verbs: mluvit and rozumět paradigms (type 4)

Can conjugate -it and -et verbs in the present tense to express abilities and perceptions

Present tense conjugation of -ovat verbs: the pracovat paradigm with -uj- stem alternation

Can conjugate -ovat verbs to talk about work, studies, and everyday activities

Reflexive verbs with se (accusative) and si (dative): usage and clitic position rules

Can use reflexive verbs with se and si correctly, including proper clitic placement

Past tense formation: L-participle combined with the auxiliary verb být

Can form and use the past tense to talk about completed actions and past events

Past tense of být (to be): byl/byla/bylo/byli combined with jsem/jsi/jsme/jste

Can use the past tense of být to describe past states, locations, and conditions

Irregular past tense: jít→šel, moci→mohl, říci→řekl, jíst→jedl

Can use common irregular verbs in the past tense in everyday conversation

Verbal aspect basics: imperfective vs perfective pairs like dělat/udělat, psát/napsat

Can distinguish between imperfective and perfective verbs and choose the correct aspect for simple past actions

Future tense: imperfective with budu + infinitive, perfective present = future

Can talk about future plans, intentions, and predictions

Modal verbs: moct, muset, chtít, smět, umět — conjugation and usage

Can express ability, obligation, permission, and wishes using modal verbs

Imperative mood: commands and requests in 2sg, 1pl, 2pl

Can give instructions, make requests, and suggest group activities

Imperfective/perfective verb pairs (dělat/udělat, psát/napsat, kupovat/koupit): process vs completed result and how to pick the right member

I can choose between the imperfective and perfective member of common verb pairs to express process or result.

Perfective present forms express the future (udělám, koupím, napíšu); budu + infinitive is only for imperfectives

I can form the future correctly for both aspects: budu + infinitive for imperfectives, present forms for perfectives.

The conditional bych/bys/by + l-participle: polite requests (chtěl bych), wishes and kdyby clauses, including the by ses contraction

I can make polite requests and express wishes and conditions using the conditional with correctly conjugated bych forms.

Determinate vs indeterminate motion: jít/jet for one direction now, chodit/jezdit for habits, plus the futures půjdu/pojedu

I can distinguish one-way and habitual motion on foot or by vehicle and form the futures půjdu and pojedu.

Spatial prefixes on motion verbs: při- (arrival), od- (leaving), vy- (out), pře- (across), v- (in) — and why prefixed forms are perfective

I can express arriving, leaving, crossing and entering with prefixed motion verbs in past and future.

Imperative for ty/my/vy from the 3rd person plural stem, negative commands with the imperfective, and aspect choice in orders

I can give instructions, invitations and prohibitions with correct imperative forms and aspect.

Which case each common verb governs: ptát se + gen., pomáhat + dat., čekat na + acc., bát se + gen.

I can use the correct case or preposition+case after the most frequent Czech verbs.

The reflexive passive: se + 3rd person for processes and general statements (pivo se vaří, mluví se česky)

I can describe processes and general practices with the reflexive passive.

The periphrastic passive: být + passive participle (most je postaven, byl jsem pozván), register and agent phrases

I can understand and form the periphrastic passive with correct agreement and agent phrases.

The past conditional byl bych udělal for unreal past situations, and how spoken Czech replaces it with the present conditional

I can express unreal past conditions and recognize both the full and the colloquial pattern.

After vidět/slyšet/cítit: the accusative + infinitive pattern (slyším ho zpívat) and the jak clause alternative

I can describe what I see and hear with both the infinitive and jak patterns.

How prefixes change meaning, not just aspect: psát → napsat/přepsat/dopsat/podepsat/vypsat

I can derive and use meaning-changing prefixed verbs with their new aspect pairs.

Forming -ný/-tý participial adjectives (vařený, otevřený, umytý) and the vařený × vařící contrast

I can form and use participial adjectives and read any Czech menu with them.

The tricky negations: nemuset (need not) vs nesmět (must not), mít as 'be supposed to', and dát se for possibility

I can express absence of obligation, prohibition, expectation and feasibility precisely.

Choosing between reflexive and periphrastic passive across tenses, agent expression and register

I can choose the appropriate passive for register, tense and agent expression.

Recognizing transgressives (-a/-ouc/-ouce, -v/-vši/-vše) in literary and older texts and rephrasing them

I can recognize transgressives while reading, restate them and use the frozen forms.

Fine aspect rules: warnings with perfective negatives (Neupadni!), single events in negation, and aspect in questions

I can apply aspect correctly in warnings, negated pasts and experience questions.

The semantic map of do-, po-, pře-, roz-, s-, vy-, za-: how one root grows a word family

I can decode and form new prefixed verbs using the stable prefix meanings.

Mapping conditional functions: politeness, present hypothesis, past unreality, and reproach with měl bys

I can deploy the conditional for politeness, hypothesis, unreality and advice, including měl bys/měl jsi.

High-frequency idiomatic verb patterns: jde o + acc, záleží na + loc, stát za + acc, dojít k + dat, jednat se o

I can use the core idiomatic verb patterns that native discourse is built on.

Forming both transgressives correctly for formal prose: stems, agreement, aspect choice and stylistic dosing

I can form and stylistically dose both transgressives in formal writing.

The -ávat/-ívat iteratives as a third aspect layer: nostalgic habituality (chodíval, říkávala) and formation

I can use iteratives for habitual and nostalgic past meaning and form them productively.

The full transgressive paradigm including rare past forms, fixed expressions, and stylistic mastery

I command the complete transgressive system receptively and can deploy it for deliberate stylistic effect.

Negation in Czech using the ne- prefix on verbs, and the requirement for double (multiple) negation

Can negate verbs with ne- and correctly use double negation with negative pronouns and adverbs

Forming questions in Czech: yes/no questions by intonation, question words kdo/co/kde/kdy/jak/proč/kolik

Can form yes/no questions using intonation and information questions using kdo, co, kde, kdy, jak, proč, kolik

Basic Czech word order: SVO as default, clitic second position rule, and flexible word order for emphasis

Can construct basic Czech sentences with correct SVO order and place clitics in second position

Coordinating and subordinating conjunctions for building complex sentences

Can connect ideas and clauses using coordinating and subordinating conjunctions

Relative clauses with který: agreement in gender and number with the antecedent, case by clause role, obligatory commas

I can describe people, places and things with relative clauses, choosing the correct form of který.

The second-position rule: clitics (jsem, bych, se, si, mi, ho) cluster after the first phrase in a fixed order

I can place auxiliary and pronoun clitics in second position in the correct internal order.

Subjectless sentences: weather (prší, sněží), states with the dative (je mi zima), and bolí mě constructions

I can describe weather, physical states and pains with subjectless constructions.

Core subordinate conjunctions with the comma rule; aby conjugates like the conditional (abych, abys, aby)

I can build complex sentences expressing content, cause, time, purpose and indirect questions.

aby clauses in full: purpose, wishes and requests after chtít/prosit/říkat, and the aby vs že contrast

I can express purpose, wishes and instructions with correctly conjugated aby clauses.

Conditional clauses with kdyby in both tenses, the jestli/pokud/kdyby distinction, and kdyby for polite wishes

I can distinguish real and unreal conditions and choose between jestli, pokud, když and kdyby.

Reporting speech with že/aby/jestli: tense stays as in the original (no backshift), questions and commands reported

I can report statements, questions and commands without artificial tense shifts.

Linking ideas in longer texts: proto, přesto, zatímco, navíc, naopak, tedy and their comma behaviour

I can write connected paragraphs using consequence, contrast and addition connectors.

Mastering long clitic chains: bych + se/si + dative + accusative + adverbial clitics (Já bych se mu ho bál dát)

I can build clauses with three or more clitics in the canonical order, in main and subordinate clauses.

Word order as information structure: known first, new last (téma → réma), and how moving words changes the message

I can order sentences so the new information lands at the end, answering the actual question.

Advanced reported speech: relative tense interpretation, reporting verbs, and shifting deixis (dnes→ten den)

I can report speech with correct relative tense, shifted deixis and varied reporting verbs.

Commenting on a whole clause: což (which), přičemž (whereby), z čehož plyne and their case forms

I can comment on whole statements with což/přičemž and their case forms in formal writing.

Punctuating multi-clause sentences: nested clauses, infinitive phrases, vsuvky, colons and semicolons

I can punctuate long multi-clause sentences reliably, including semicolons and colons.

Expressive fronting, exclamations (To je ale...!, Ten umí...!) and the dative of interest (Ona ti je chytrá!)

I can recognize and use expressive word order and the emotive dative in lively speech.

Reading and producing academic noun-heavy Czech, and converting between nominal and verbal style

I can switch between nominal and verbal style and tame genitive chains in academic Czech.

Understanding fast colloquial syntax: dropped verbs (Já nic!), echo answers, parceled afterthoughts and false starts

I can follow elliptical colloquial speech and answer yes/no questions the Czech way.

Reading poetry and older prose: postponed adjectives (lásko má), genitive before noun, and archaic verb-final order

I can read poetic and terminological postposition correctly and use inversion for deliberate effect.

The Czech T-V distinction: informal ty (tykání) vs formal vy (vykání), social rules and verb agreement

Can choose appropriately between ty and vy forms based on social context and relationship

Polite request patterns: Mohl byste...?, Chtěl bych..., Nešlo by...?, Prosím vás and softening with negative questions

I can make polite requests in shops, offices and restaurants and soften questions naturally.

Recognizing everyday spoken Czech: ej for ý (dobrej), vo- for o- (vokno), -ý for -é (dobrý pivo) and when to use which register

I can understand everyday spoken Czech and keep my own production in the standard register where required.

The full parallel system: endings, prothetic v-, é→ý/í shifts across paradigms, and code-switching norms

I can map standard forms to their colloquial counterparts and switch register by situation.

Reading older and solemn Czech: jest, -ť, aniž, an, byv, kterak and their modern equivalents

I can read solemn and older texts and use aniž correctly in formal writing.

The untranslatable glue: přece, vždyť, copak, ovšem, prý, snad, holt and their pragmatic force

I can deploy Czech discourse particles to sound natural and convey stance.

Dialect awareness: hanácké, moravskoslovenské and Silesian features vs obecná čeština, and what to expect where

I can recognize the main dialect areas and adjust expectations when travelling or listening.

Decoding legal/administrative Czech: tímto, níže uvedený, v souladu s, dle, je povinen and writing a formal letter

I can read contracts and official letters and produce a formally correct request.

Living usage disputes: by jste/byste, mě/mně hypercorrection, abychom vs abysme, standard's moving edge and IJP

I know which disputed forms are codified, tolerated or stigmatized, and where to verify.

Focus tools: je to právě X, který; zrovna, dokonce, jenom, až, teprve and their scope

I can focus information precisely with právě, dokonce, jen, až and teprve.

How Czech codification works: ÚJČ, IJP, progressive vs conservative norms, and arguing about language like a native

I can navigate Czech codification sources and argue usage questions with evidence.

Switching seamlessly between five registers: official, neutral written, neutral spoken, colloquial, intimate

I can hit the appropriate register on demand and break it deliberately for effect.

What Czechs themselves get wrong (mně/mě, by jste, standartní, abysme) — and why C2 learners may know better

I recognize the canonical native-speaker errors and keep my own usage codified.

Numbers from 0 to 20: cardinal numerals and their pronunciation

Can count from 0 to 20 and use basic numbers in everyday situations like age and prices

Parts of the day, telling time on the clock, and common time expressions

Can tell the time, describe parts of the day, and schedule daily activities

Numbers from 20 to 1000: tens, hundreds, compound numbers

Can use numbers up to 1000 for prices, quantities, and addresses

Ordinal numbers: první, druhý, třetí and their gender agreement

Can use ordinal numbers for dates, floors, and ordering

Saying and writing dates: Kolikátého je dnes?, genitive date forms (prvního května), and v roce + year

I can ask for and give dates, birthdays and years correctly, including holiday dates.

The number-case system in full: 1 agrees, 2-4 nominative plural, 5+ genitive plural, and what happens in oblique cases

I can count things in all three zones and keep verb agreement right after large numbers.

Declining numbers: dva/dvě, oba/obě, tři, čtyři and pět+ across cases (se dvěma, o třech, před pěti lety)

I can decline numbers in time and quantity phrases like před pěti lety and se dvěma přáteli.

dvoje/troje/čtvery for sets and pluralia tantum (dvoje dveře, troje ponožky) plus fractions (polovina, třetina, půl)

I can count sets, plural-only nouns and use fractions with the genitive.

Grammatical gender of Czech nouns: masculine (animate/inanimate), feminine, neuter recognition patterns

Can identify the grammatical gender of common Czech nouns and understand the animate/inanimate distinction

Nominative plural of nouns across all genders

Can form and use nominative plural of common nouns

Nominative case of nouns: subject function, kdo?/co? questions, basic declension patterns

Can identify and use the nominative case for subjects and after 'to je' in basic sentences

Accusative case for masculine nouns: animate adds -a, inanimate equals nominative

Can use masculine nouns in the accusative case as direct objects of common verbs

Accusative case for feminine and neuter nouns: feminine changes endings, neuter equals nominative

Can use feminine and neuter nouns correctly in the accusative case for everyday sentences

Locative case of masculine and neuter nouns: endings -u/-e, consonant alternations h→z, k→c

Can form the locative case of masculine and neuter nouns to talk about locations and topics

Locative case of feminine nouns: -a→-e/-ě, -e→-i, consonant→-i

Can form the locative case of feminine nouns to describe locations, topics, and situations

Dative case (3rd case) noun endings across all genders and declension patterns

Can use dative case to express giving, helping, and communicating with someone

Instrumental case (7th case) noun endings: expressing 'with' and means

Can express means of transport, tools, company, and professions using instrumental case

Genitive case basics: possession, origin, quantities, and key noun endings

Can express possession, origin, and quantities using genitive case

Vocative case: direct address forms for names, titles, and common nouns

Can address people correctly using vocative forms of names and titles

The complete genitive singular: endings for all genders, the bez/do/od/u/z preposition set, and possession or origin meanings

I can express origin, possession and use bez/do/od/u/z prepositions with correct genitive singular forms.

Genitive plural: -ů for masculines, zero ending with fleeting -e- for feminines and neuters, and its use after numbers 5+ and quantity words

I can use correct genitive plural forms after numbers five and higher and after quantity expressions.

Accusative plural: identical to nominative plural except masculine animates, which take -y/-e (vidím pány, muže)

I can use plural direct objects correctly, including the special accusative forms of masculine animate nouns.

Locative plural endings -ech/-ích/-ách by stem type, with the k/h/ch/g rule and frequent place expressions

I can talk about locations in the plural using the correct -ech/-ích/-ách ending for each stem type.

Dative plural endings -ům/-ám/-ím and the irregular lidem/dětem, for giving, helping and saying to groups

I can address, give to and help groups of people using correct dative plural forms.

Instrumental plural -y/-i/-ami/-emi and irregular lidmi/dětmi; the colloquial -ama register note

I can express accompaniment and means in the plural and recognize the colloquial -ama register.

The full vocative: -e/-i/-o endings, consonant changes (Petře!, Marku!), and everyday use in greetings and emails

I can address people correctly in speech and writing using the vocative.

Masculine animate nominative plural: -i with softening (kluk→kluci, Čech→Češi), -ové for prestige and family, -é for -tel nouns

I can use correct nominative plural forms of masculine animate nouns with the right alternations.

The genitive of negation in set phrases (není divu, nemám tušení) and existential negatives (nebylo nikoho)

I can use genitive-of-negation set phrases while keeping normal objects in the accusative.

Where genitive and accusative compete: partitive (dát vody/vodu), verbs like užít si, dosáhnout, and stylistic value

I can choose between genitive and accusative by register and verb, keeping the fixed genitive verbs.

Adjective-noun agreement in nominative: hard endings -ý/-á/-é, soft ending -í

Can correctly use adjective endings to agree with noun gender in nominative case

Accusative case of adjectives: masculine animate -ého, feminine -ou/-í, and other gender forms

Can use adjectives correctly in the accusative case across all genders

Locative case of adjectives: masculine/neuter -ém/-ím, feminine -é/-í

Can use adjectives correctly in the locative case to describe locations, topics, and qualities

Comparative and superlative forms of adjectives

Can compare people, places, and things using comparative and superlative adjectives

Soft adjectives of the jarní type: one -í form across genders in the nominative and their full declension

I can decline soft adjectives correctly in all genders and cases.

Possessive adjectives from names: -ův/-ova/-ovo and -in/-ina/-ino, their formation and basic declension

I can express possession with -ův/-in adjectives and recognize them in place names.

The surviving short adjectives rád, zdráv, schopen, jist, spokojen: where they are required or stylistically marked

I can use the short predicative adjectives correctly, above all every form of rád.

Active -ící/-oucí vs passive -aný/-ený adjectives and the purpose adjectives in -cí (psací, šicí)

I can choose between active, passive and purpose verbal adjectives, including the vowel-length pairs.

Prepositions governing the accusative case: na, pro, přes, za + Acc

Can use common prepositions with the accusative case for direction, purpose, and exchange

Prepositions governing the locative case: v/ve, na (location), o, po, při

Can use prepositions v, na, o, po, při correctly with the locative case to describe locations, topics, and timing

Directional prepositions: do+Gen, z/ze+Gen, k/ke+Dat, od+Gen for movement

Can express movement to and from places using directional prepositions with correct cases

Prepositions governing the dative case: k/ke, díky, kvůli, naproti

Can express direction toward, cause, and spatial relationships using dative prepositions

Prepositions governing instrumental: s/se, za, před, mezi, nad, pod

Can describe locations using spatial prepositions with instrumental case

Time prepositions and their cases: v pátek, o víkendu, za hodinu, před rokem, od–do, po obědě, během dne

I can place events in time with the correct preposition and case.

Direction vs location pairs: do+gen/v+loc, na+acc/na+loc, k+dat/u+gen, and which nouns take na

I can choose the right direction/location preposition pair including the na-group and person rules.

Adverbs of place: tady/zde, tam, nahoře, dole, vlevo, vpravo

Can use place adverbs to describe locations and give simple directions

Past time expressions: včera, minulý týden, loni, před rokem

Can use common time expressions to situate events in the past

Adverb comparison with -eji/-ěji and nej-, the irregular set lépe/hůř/víc/míň, and comparisons with než

I can compare actions and habits using adverb comparison and než.

Verbal nouns in -ní/-tí (vaření, čtení, pití): formation from both aspects and their neuter declension

I can form and use verbal nouns from both aspects, including official sign language.

Diminutives with -ek/-ík/-ka/-ko and double diminutives, their warmth in everyday Czech (chlebíček, pivečko, Kafíčko?)

I can understand and use diminutives with their emotional rather than literal meaning.

Productive suffixes for abstracts, domains, agents and materials; reading novel coinages

I can decode and form derived vocabulary with the productive suffix system.

Yers, palatalizations and ablaut as the key to modern irregularities: pes/psa, den/dne, kniha/knize

I can explain and predict fleeting-e and consonant alternations from their historical sources.

Near-synonym mastery at idiom level: vědět/znát/umět, použít/využít/zneužít, myslet si/myslet na

I can choose the right member of near-synonym pairs at idiomatic level.

Declining nonce words and brands, diminutive irony, prefix jokes and morphological humour

I can play with Czech morphology: decline new words, catch ironic diminutives, coin verbs.

The hard 10% of Czech orthography: institutional capitals, hyphen vs dash, abbreviation declension (v ČR, na FF UK)

I can handle institutional capitals, hyphen/dash distinction and abbreviation behaviour reliably.