CzechClass101.com Blog

Congratulations! You've reached the intermediate level in Czech and are now ready to learn some intermediate Czech vocabulary. I bet you feel great about this accomplishment.  Let me tell you, this is way bigger than it looks. Not a lot of people actually stick with it and keep their motivation high. That means you should give yourself a pat on the back—you're above average, super committed, and on your way up to fluency. We have an expression in Czech (it's actually a compound noun): Věčný začátečník / "The perpetual beginner." Since you're reading this article, it's plain as day that you're far beyond those murky waters and sticky mud. According to the Foreign Service Institute, Czech is a Level III language, which means it... Show more

Raise your hand if you like animals! Zvířata (“animals”) are awesome and necessary for so many reasons.  You'll soon find out that if you want to speak Czech, you're going to need to learn Czech animal names—even if you're not a fur/feather/fish lover, you don't intend to marry a Czech farmer, or you don't want to talk about your mom's private minizoo.  Why?  Let's see: There is a mouse in my room! I am allergic to dogs. I hate fish; I only eat chicken. No, I can't have that; there's cow’s milk in it. One of the first things Czech babies learn is animal sounds. Jak dělá kráva? Bů! (“What does a cow say? Moo!”). And since you should approach learning a new language just like that—as if you didn't know any other language—let's... Show more

Since we live in this awesome era of technological miracles, we get to enjoy all sorts of smart, advanced, and helpful marvels on a daily basis. Which device do you use the most? I'm guessing it would be your phone. While most people prefer texting or video calls, knowing how to make a proper phone call is a crucial skill. You probably won't text your doc to make an appointment, the police probably won't be up for a Zoom session, and sometimes you don't have time to wait for your buddy's reply—you need to speak to them pronto. Learning Czech phone call phrases, then, is a logical next step in your language learning journey.  But…taking or making a phone call in a foreign language might be a little stressful.  At the beginning... Show more

You know, people often underestimate the power of choosing the right words.  In Czech, there’s a cute little word—slovíčkaření—which is the combination of slovíčka ("little words") and -ření (indicating an action or activity). This word could be loosely translated as "unnecessary playing with words.'' However, playing with words is actually quite necessary, especially when learning a new language. Once you've engaged in such a rewarding and exciting process, you’ll want to make sure you're as efficient as possible, right? Hence, you’ll want to learn the right Czech beginner words (a.k.a words that are actually helpful and can be used in real-life conversations). Also, did you know that you only need to learn 1000 of a language’s... Show more

Filler words. The elusive umbrella term for all sorts of mysterious sounds, phrases, and individual words that no textbook in the world could prepare you for. It feels like politicians all over the world love to indulge in this kind of endeavor, but regular mortals do so with equal vigor…and less class. Nevertheless, you should get familiar with Czech filler words even if your personal goal doesn’t involve diving into the pool of Czech politics. Regular peeps love them as well, and you might sometimes feel that they're a part of every single Czech sentence. Or that you’re in the famous show The Office (I've never heard so many "okays" in such a short span of time). My personal motto is: Instead of using this verbal "cotton fluff,"... Show more

Falling in love is always good news, whether it's with a person, a language, a new activity, or a car. I recently started learning a new language and I was very surprised when I finished a lesson called The Most Important Norwegian Phrases, yet still didn't know how to say "Hey, handsome," or "Your place or mine?" That's one of the reasons I'm excited to be writing this article. Love is awesome in any language, plus you'll likely meet interesting people while traveling or moving to another country. It’s a good idea to cover all the bases! Things like flirting or saying "I love you," in Czech might be tricky for you as a foreigner, but I’m here to help! Expressing love is just as delightful as feeling it, so I’ll be sure to clue you... Show more

Saying NO is important in many situations: No, I don't eat mussels. No, I can't help you. No, I won't marry you. It’s equally important in Czech, of course. Czech grammar is quite simple and straightforward, and negatives are no exception. If Czech negation were a guy/girl, you'd get slightly bored of them in the middle of your first date, and later you would describe them to your friend as simple, predictable, linear, and straightforward. It will take you 15 seconds to master this topic, so go ahead and make plans for tonight. I'm not going to keep you for long. Let's learn about negation in the Czech language! Just…no. Table of Contents How to Make a Statement Negative in Czech Giving a Negative Answer ... Show more

Let me ask you a question: When and why did you first think about learning Czech?  Are you planning to move here, do you want to get a job in Czechia, did you fall in love with a Czech (fun fact: I bet you know at least one Czech beauty—Czech women are considered very pretty, and Czech guys...well, they’re nice!), or are you trying to decide which Slavic language would be the most fun to learn? Even if none of the above is your case, we’re going to discuss why you should learn Czech (at least the basics) if you want to spend more than a day here. Not everyone in Czechia speaks English, and locals highly appreciate friendly foreigners with cute accents. Besides, it would be nice to be able to order a beer after a long day of exploring... Show more

Everybody gets a little tense when it comes to tenses. However, I have GREAT news for you. If you're a native English speaker (or a native speaker of any Germanic language), you'll find Czech tenses super-easy to learn and understand. The (otherwise complicated) Czech language uses only three tenses: past, present, and future. That's it. You still have to be aware of grammatical gender, declension, and conjugation of course, but applying the tenses correctly is actually a breeze. This is going to be short and sweet. Let's learn about Czech verb tenses! Table of Contents The Present Tense in Czech The Past Tense in Czech The Future Tense in Czech Verb Conjugation and Auxiliary Verbs How CzechClass101.com Helps... Show more

Learning a new language is kind of like losing or gaining weight: we want to see results ASAP. Even better—we want to see results now. Yesterday was too late. That, my dear friend, won't happen. Not even if you pull three all-nighters in a row in an attempt to learn 1000 new words in three days. Not even if you refuse to speak other languages and expose yourself to an ungodly amount of Czech TV and YouTube videos. So how long does it take to learn Czech? Let me put it this way: It depends on what your goal is. Duh, obvi, right? Do you want to be able to order the right food on the menu or ask about specific ingredients? (Very important if you have food allergies or an intolerance...or if you really, REALLY can't stand... Show more