The -u/-eš Conjugation in Czech

In Brief

A useful group of Czech present-tense verbs follows the endings -u, -eš, -e, -eme, -ete, -ou: nesu, neseš, nese... (“I carry, you carry, he/she carries...” ). Learn each verb with its present stem, because the stem may look different from the infinitive: péct → peču, moct → můžu, and jít → jdu.

Overview

Czech verbs change form according to person (who performs the action) and number (one person or more than one). This change is called conjugation. In English, most present-tense forms look alike: “I carry,” “you carry,” and “we carry.” Czech uses a different ending for each person: nesu, neseš, neseme, and so on.

This article focuses on the present-tense pattern represented by nést (“to carry”). It also covers three very common verbs whose present forms use the same set of endings: péct (“to bake”), moct (“can; to be able to”), and jít (“to go on foot”). These verbs are essential at A1, but they are not completely predictable from their infinitives (the dictionary forms, such as nést or péct). The safest method is therefore to learn the infinitive together with the present stem—the part to which the endings are added.

Once the forms are familiar, they let you talk about everyday actions and abilities: carrying something, baking, going somewhere, or saying what someone can do. Czech often leaves out the subject pronoun because the ending already identifies the person. Thus Nesu to normally means “I’m carrying it” without já (“I”).

How It Works

The core endings

The model verb is nést. Remove the ending from a form such as nesu and the recurring present stem is nes-.

Person	Pronoun	Ending	nést (“to carry”)	English
1st person singular	já	-u	nesu	I carry / I am carrying
2nd person singular	ty	-eš	neseš	you carry / you are carrying
3rd person singular	on, ona, ono	-e	nese	he, she, or it carries
1st person plural	my	-eme	neseme	we carry / we are carrying
2nd person plural	vy	-ete	nesete	you carry / you are carrying
3rd person plural	oni, ony, ona	-ou	nesou	they carry / they are carrying

The beginner rule is straightforward:

1. Find the verb’s present stem.
2. Add -u, -eš, -e, -eme, -ete, -ou.
3. Use the ending—not an English-style auxiliary such as “do” or “be”—to show the person.

The difficulty is step 1: the present stem is not always visible in the infinitive. Compare nést with nes-, péct with peč-, and jít with jd-. For that reason, a vocabulary note such as “péct — peču, pečeš” is more useful than “péct — to bake” alone.

Four important paradigms

A paradigm is simply the complete set of a verb’s forms. The bold letters show the present stem used in the most common variants.

Person	nést	péct	moct	jít
já	nesu	peču	můžu / mohu	jdu
ty	neseš	pečeš	můžeš	jdeš
on/ona/ono	nese	peče	může	jde
my	neseme	pečeme	můžeme	jdeme
vy	nesete	pečete	můžete	jdete
oni/ony/ona	nesou	pečou	můžou / mohou	jdou

nést: a shortened vowel

The long é of the infinitive becomes short e in the present: nést → nesu, neseš. Do not carry the infinitive’s long vowel into forms such as neseš.

péct: a consonant change

The infinitive has -ct, but the present uses peč- throughout: peču, pečeš, peče, pečeme, pečete, pečou. This is a stem change, not a separate set of endings.

moct: common and formal variants

Moct means “to be able to” and normally corresponds to English “can.” The everyday forms are můžu and můžou. The alternatives mohu and mohou are also standard and are especially common in careful or formal writing. The other four forms use můž- only: můžeš, může, můžeme, můžete.

Like English “can,” moct is followed by another verb in the infinitive:

• Můžu přijít. — “I can come.”
• Může pracovat doma. — “He/She can work at home.”
• Můžeme začít? — “Can we start?”

Czech does not insert the equivalent of English “to” between the two verbs. The infinitive itself is enough: může přijít, not a word-for-word copy of “can to come.”

jít: a highly irregular stem

The infinitive jít gives little warning of the present stem jd-: jdu, jdeš, jde, jdeme, jdete, jdou. Learn these as a set. Jít usually describes going on foot or movement viewed as being in progress or directed toward a destination. Broader Czech motion-verb contrasts belong to a later stage, but the forms themselves are basic.

Subject pronouns are often omitted

Czech subject pronouns include já (“I”), ty (“you”), on/ona/ono (“he/she/it”), my (“we”), vy (“you,” plural or formal), and oni/ony/ona (“they,” with forms depending on gender). Because -u, -eš, and the other endings already show the grammatical person, Czech commonly says:

• Peču koláč. rather than Já peču koláč.
• Jdete domů? rather than Vy jdete domů?

A pronoun is natural when it adds emphasis or contrast: Já nesu tašku, ty neseš krabici (“I’m carrying the bag; you’re carrying the box”). With a third-person form such as nese, context or an expressed subject tells you whether the meaning is “he,” “she,” or “it.”

Questions and negation

Czech does not use an equivalent of English auxiliary “do” to form a present-tense question. A spoken yes/no question can use the same word order with question intonation:

• Pečeš koláč? — “Are you baking a cake?”
• Může přijít? — “Can he/she come?”

Negation is normally formed by attaching ne- directly to the verb:

• nenesu — “I am not carrying”
• nepečeš — “you are not baking”
• nemůže — “he/she cannot”
• nejdou — “they are not going”

The negative forms of moct may also use the formal variant: nemohu, nemohou.

Examples in Context

Czech	English	Note
Nesu to.	I’m carrying it.	nesu: 1st person singular
Neseš těžkou tašku.	You’re carrying a heavy bag.	informal singular “you”
Petr nese kávu.	Petr is carrying the coffee.	the noun supplies the subject
Neseme jídlo na stůl.	We’re carrying the food to the table.	-eme: 1st person plural
Pečeš koláč?	Are you baking a cake?	no equivalent of English “do” or “be” is added
Dnes pečeme chleba.	We’re baking bread today.	present action in context
Babička peče výborné buchty.	Grandma bakes excellent sweet buns.	peče: 3rd person singular
Můžu otevřít okno?	Can I open the window?	a common request for permission
Může přijít.	He/She can come.	context identifies the subject
Můžete mi pomoct?	Can you help me?	plural or polite vy form
Dnes nemůžeme zůstat dlouho.	We can’t stay long today.	ne- attaches to můžeme
Jdu domů.	I’m going home.	jít has the present stem jd-
Kam jdeš?	Where are you going?	informal singular question
Jdeme pěšky do centra.	We’re walking to the city center.	movement on foot
Jdou domů.	They’re going home.	jdou: 3rd person plural

English often distinguishes “I carry” from “I am carrying.” Czech does not build this distinction with a separate progressive form. Depending on context, nesu can be translated as either “I carry” or “I am carrying.” Words such as teď (“now”), každý den (“every day”), and the wider situation clarify the intended meaning.

Common Mistakes

1. Adding endings directly to the infinitive

• Wrong: néstu, péctu, jítu
• Right: nesu, peču, jdu
• Why: These verbs use present stems that differ from their infinitives. Learn at least the já and ty forms with each new verb.

2. Keeping the wrong consonant in péct

• Wrong: Pecu koláč.
• Right: Peču koláč.
• Why: The present stem is peč-, with č. Czech accents and háčeks are part of the spelling, not optional decorations.

3. Copying English “can” without conjugating it

• Wrong: Já může přijít.
• Right: Já můžu přijít. / Můžu přijít.
• Why: English “can” does not change in “I can” and “they can,” but Czech moct does: můžu, můžeš, může, můžeme, můžete, můžou.

4. Using -ou for “we”

• Wrong: My nesou jídlo.
• Right: My neseme jídlo.
• Why: -eme marks “we”; -ou marks “they”: my neseme, but oni nesou.

5. Building questions with an English-style auxiliary

• Wrong: Děláš pečeš koláč? (attempting to reproduce “Do you bake...?”)
• Right: Pečeš koláč?
• Why: The conjugated verb and question intonation are enough. Czech does not add a separate present-tense “do.”

6. Always stating the subject pronoun

• Less natural without emphasis: Já jdu domů. Já nesu tašku.
• Neutral: Jdu domů. Nesu tašku.
• Why: Czech usually omits an unstressed subject pronoun when the verb ending and context make the subject clear. Keep já when you mean “I, as opposed to someone else.”

Usage Notes

Informal, plural, and polite “you”

Use the ty form with one person you address informally: neseš, pečeš, můžeš, jdeš. Use the vy form with more than one person: nesete, pečete, můžete, jdete. The same vy forms are also used to address one person politely. Written Czech may capitalize polite Vy and its related forms in letters or messages, but the verb form remains the same: Můžete mi pomoct?

Spoken and formal choices with moct

Můžu and můžou are normal in conversation and common in neutral modern usage. Mohu and mohou sound more formal or careful, especially in official information and written prose. Both sets are correct. As a beginner, use one set consistently while learning to recognize the other.

Present meaning and English translation

There is no one-to-one match between these Czech forms and English simple or progressive forms. Peču chleba can mean “I’m baking bread,” while a suitable context can give a habitual reading. Translate the situation, not the ending in isolation.

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

You do not need to master the following points at A1, but they explain forms you will meet later.

The infinitive does not define one perfectly predictable class

The label “-u/-eš conjugation” is useful because it describes the visible present endings. It does not mean that every infinitive with a particular ending behaves this way. Other common verbs also show this pattern with less obvious stems, including brát → beru, bereš (“to take”) and psát → píšu, píšeš (“to write”). Their vowel or consonant changes must be learned with the verb.

A strong dictionary habit is to record three pieces of information: infinitive + first-person singular + second-person singular. For example:

• nést — nesu, neseš
• péct — peču, pečeš
• moct — můžu, můžeš
• jít — jdu, jdeš

Those two present forms usually reveal both the stem and the set of endings more clearly than the infinitive alone.

Aspect changes how “present” forms refer to time

Czech verbs have aspect—a distinction between an activity viewed as ongoing/repeated and one viewed as a completed whole. The four core verbs here are introduced through ordinary present use. Later, you will meet related perfective verbs whose present-looking endings refer to a completed future event. For example, peču koláč means “I am baking a cake,” while upeču koláč commonly means “I will bake the cake / I’ll get the cake baked.” The endings still show person, but aspect changes the time interpretation.

Motion verbs develop a larger system

Jít is only one part of Czech motion vocabulary. At later levels you will contrast jít with forms such as chodit and with verbs for travel by vehicle. You will also encounter the irregular future půjdu (“I will go”). Do not form that future by simply treating jít like an English verb; learn it as a separate paradigm when you study motion verbs and future time.

Related command forms

Some command forms reveal the same changed stems: nes! (“carry!”), peč! (“bake!”), and irregular jdi! (“go!”). These belong to the imperative (the verb form used for commands), but recognizing the stem connection can make them easier to remember later.

Practice Tips

1. Use a six-slot drill. Say one verb through all six persons in rhythm: nesu, neseš, nese, neseme, nesete, nesou. Then repeat with peč-, můž-, and jd-. Change both the stem and the ending consciously.
2. Make two-form vocabulary cards. Instead of writing only péct — to bake, write péct — peču, pečeš — to bake. Highlight the changing part: péct/peč-, jít/jd-.
3. Build short question-and-answer pairs. Ask Kam jdeš?, Co pečeš?, or Můžeš přijít? and answer without a pronoun: Jdu domů. Peču chleba. Ano, můžu. This practices conjugation, natural pronoun omission, and real conversational use together.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Personal Pronouns — review já, ty, on/ona/ono, my, vy, and the Czech forms for “they” before matching them to verb endings.