How to Form Questions in Czech for English Speakers

Understanding Question Formation in Czech

Forming questions in Czech can be quite different from English. Unlike English, Czech often forms questions without changing the word order, relying instead on intonation or question words. This article will guide English speakers through the basics of asking questions in Czech.

Yes/No Questions in Czech

In Czech, yes/no questions are usually formed by intonation alone, without changing the word order of a statement. For example, the statement "Ty mluvíš česky." means "You speak Czech." To turn it into a question, you simply raise your intonation: "Ty mluvíš česky?" meaning "Do you speak Czech?"

Alternatively, you can add the question particle "-li" in more formal or written Czech, but this is less common in everyday speech.

Using Question Words

When you want to ask for specific information, Czech uses question words similar to English. Here are some common Czech question words:

These question words usually appear at the beginning of the sentence, just like in English. For example: Kde je knihovna? means "Where is the library?"

Question Word Order and Intonation

In Czech, the word order in questions with question words generally remains the same as in statements. The question word is placed at the beginning, but the rest of the sentence follows the normal subject-verb-object order.

For example, the statement "Ty čteš knihu." means "You are reading a book." The question "Co ty čteš?" means "What are you reading?" Notice that the question word "Co" is at the start, but the rest of the sentence order is unchanged.

Tag Questions in Czech

Tag questions like "isn't it?" or "right?" are less common in Czech but can be formed using phrases like "že?" or "ne?" at the end of a sentence.

For example: "Ty jsi unavený, že?" means "You are tired, aren't you?"

Practice Examples

• Ty mluvíš anglicky? – Do you speak English?
• Kdo je to? – Who is that?
• Kdy přijdeš domů? – When will you come home?
• Proč se směješ? – Why are you laughing?
• Jak se máš? – How are you?