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
Подивіться на ці приклади. Чи можете ви помітити граматичну закономірність?
Bydlím na Smíchově a pracuju v Karlíně.
I live in Smíchov and work in Karlín.
Mluvíme o víkendu při obědě.
We talk about the weekend during lunch.
Po práci jdu na procházku po parku.
After work I go for a walk through the park.
Зверніть увагу на виділені частини. Що у них спільного?
The 6th case, the locative, never appears on its own: it always follows a preposition. Five prepositions use it, and between them they cover a good share of everyday Czech - where you are, what you talk about, what happens after what.
| Preposition | Meaning | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| v / ve | in, inside; in a month or season | v Brně, ve škole, v lednu, v létě |
| na | on, at | na stole, na poště, na koncertě, na Moravě |
| o | about; at (holidays, weekends) | o filmu, o Praze, o víkendu, o Vánocích |
| po | after; around, all over | po obědě, po práci, po Starém Městě |
| při | during, while doing | při jídle, při práci |
Two of these surprise English speakers. O means "about", but it also marks time: o víkendu (at the weekend), o prázdninách (in the summer holidays), o Vánocích (over Christmas). And po in space means moving around a surface, not "after": procházka po Starém Městě (a walk around the Old Town), plavba po Vltavě (a boat trip on the Vltava).
Ve is v with a vowel added so the words can be said. Use it before v and f (ve vlaku, ve Vídni) and before many clusters beginning with s, z, š, ž (ve škole, ve Zlíně). You will also meet it early in a handful of fixed cases: ve dvě, ve tři, ve čtvrtek, ve městě. Elsewhere usually plain v: v Brně, v Plzni, v autě.
English sorts places with in, on and at; Czech sorts them with v and na, and the borders do not match:
| English | Czech |
|---|---|
| at the post office, at the station, at the airport | na poště, na nádraží, na letišti |
| at university, at a concert | na univerzitě, na koncertě |
| at work, at school, at the hotel | v práci, ve škole, v hotelu |
| on the bus, on the train | v autobusu, ve vlaku |
| on TV / on the internet | v televizi / na internetu |
The bus is the one that catches everyone: English stands on a bus, Czech sits in it. Regions and districts are pure habit: v Čechách but na Moravě and na Slovensku; in Prague na Smíchově and na Vinohradech but v Karlíně. There is no rule worth learning here. Learn each place together with its preposition, as one chunk.
One warning for later: days of the week also take v/ve, but in the 4th case, not the 6th: ve středu (on Wednesday), not *ve středě.
Застосуйте цю граматику у вправах курсу A1
Вправи для практикиBydlím na Smíchově a pracuju v Karlíně.
I live in Smíchov and work in Karlín.
Two Prague districts, two prepositions: na Smíchově, v Karlíně. Nothing about the places decides it; it is pure habit, so learn each with its preposition. Both nouns are in the locative.
Mluvíme o víkendu při obědě.
We talk about the weekend during lunch.
o víkendu (about a topic) + při obědě (during an activity) — both take locative.
Po práci jdu na procházku po parku.
After work I go for a walk through the park.
po práci (after work, temporal) + po parku (through the park, spatial) — same preposition, two meanings.
Практикувати в курсі
Застосуйте цю граматику у вправах курсу A1