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
Mira estos ejemplos. ¿Puedes identificar el patrón gramatical?
Pracuji v kanceláři.
I work in an office.
Mluvíme o knize.
We are talking about a book.
Bydlíme v Evropě.
We live in Europe.
Presta atención a las partes resaltadas. ¿Qué tienen en común?
Feminine nouns after v, na and o follow their usual three groups. The biggest group, the one in -a, is also the one with the surprises.
| Group | Ending | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| in -a (žena) | -e / -ě | škola → ve škole, kavárna → v kavárně, Ostrava → v Ostravě, voda → ve vodě |
| in -e/-ě (růže) | -i | ulice → v ulici, kuchyně → v kuchyni, práce → v práci |
| in a consonant (píseň, kost) | -i | tramvaj → v tramvaji, kancelář → v kanceláři, noc → v noci, Plzeň → v Plzni |
Plzeň also drops its e: v Plzni. Olomouc, despite looking masculine, is feminine: v Olomouci.
For the -a group the spelling depends on the consonant before the ending. After d, t, n and after b, p, v, m, f you write -ě: ve vodě, v kavárně, v Evropě, na Moravě, na Šumavě. After d, t, n the ě also softens the consonant (vodě sounds like "vo-dyeh"), and after the lip sounds it adds a "y": v Evropě is "ev-ro-pyeh". Elsewhere it is plain -e: ve škole.
Before that -e, a few consonants shift, and they shift in some of the most frequent words you will say:
| Change | Examples |
|---|---|
| h → z | Praha → v Praze, kniha → v knize |
| k → c | banka → v bance, Amerika → v Americe, ruka → v ruce |
| ch → š | střecha → na střeše |
| r → ř | sestra → o sestře, hora → na hoře |
English has nothing like this, so *v Praha and *v Prahe are both common in the first weeks. V Praze is worth learning as a single word before any rule: you will need it daily.
English "at" and "in" do not predict the Czech preposition, so learn each place with its own: v práci (at work), ve škole, v kavárně, v Praze; but na poště (at the post office), na univerzitě, na zahradě, na chalupě. Some regions take na (na Moravě, na Šumavě, na Vysočině), while most mountain ranges take v (v Krkonoších, v Beskydech): learn each with its preposition.
A feminine adjective takes -é here: Bydlím v České republice. Mluvíme o paní Novákové. Surnames in -ová are adjectives, so they follow the same pattern.
Aplica esta gramática en los ejercicios del curso A1
Ejercicios de prácticaPracuji v kanceláři.
I work in an office.
Kancelář (píseň-type): locative takes -i. No consonant alternation with soft-stem nouns.
Mluvíme o knize.
We are talking about a book.
Kniha (žena-type): h→z alternation before -e. Kniha → knize (not *knihe).
Bydlíme v Evropě.
We live in Europe.
Evropa: after labials (p), the ending is -ě (not -e): v Evropě. This is a spelling rule for b, p, m, v, f.
Practicar en el curso
Aplica esta gramática en los ejercicios del curso A1