Question Formation in Czech

Overview

Czech forms questions in two main ways: yes/no questions through intonation or word order change, and information questions using interrogative words. Unlike English, Czech does not require auxiliary verbs ("do," "does") to form questions. A statement can become a yes/no question simply by raising the intonation at the end.

At the A1 level, mastering the basic question words (co, kdo, kde, kdy, jak, proc) and learning to form simple questions opens up genuine conversational exchange. Czech question words are used at the beginning of the sentence, similar to English, making the structure relatively intuitive for English speakers.

Since Czech is a pro-drop language, questions often consist of just the verb with rising intonation: Mluvis cesky? (Do you speak Czech?) -- no pronoun needed.

How It Works

Yes/No Questions

Simply raise intonation at the end of a statement:

• Statement: Mluvis cesky. (You speak Czech.)
• Question: Mluvis cesky? (Do you speak Czech?)

Question Words

Czech	English	Example
co	what	Co to je? (What is this?)
kdo	who	Kdo to je? (Who is this?)
kde	where	Kde bydlis? (Where do you live?)
kdy	when	Kdy prijdes? (When will you come?)
jak	how	Jak se mas? (How are you?)
proc	why	Proc ne? (Why not?)
kolik	how much/many	Kolik to stoji? (How much does it cost?)
jaky	what kind of	Jaky je? (What is it like?)
ktery	which	Ktery chces? (Which do you want?)

Word Order in Questions

Question words come first, followed by the verb. The subject pronoun is usually omitted:

• Kde pracujes? (Where do you work?)
• Co delas? (What are you doing?)
• Jak se jmenujes? (What is your name?)

Examples in Context

Czech	English	Note
Mluvis cesky?	Do you speak Czech?	Intonation question
Kde bydlis?	Where do you live?	kde = where
Jak se jmenujes?	What's your name?	Literally "How do you call yourself?"
Proc?	Why?	Single-word question
Co to je?	What is this?	co = what
Kdo prijde?	Who will come?	kdo = who
Kdy se vracis?	When are you coming back?	kdy = when
Kolik to stoji?	How much does it cost?	kolik = how much
Jaka je Praha?	What is Prague like?	jaky with feminine noun
Mas cas?	Do you have time?	Simple intonation question

Common Mistakes

Adding "Do/Does" Equivalents

• Wrong: Trying to find a Czech equivalent of "Do you speak...?"
• Right: Mluvis cesky? -- just use intonation
• Why: Czech has no auxiliary "do" for question formation. The verb form alone, with rising intonation, creates the question.

Forgetting to Decline Kdo and Co

• Wrong: S kdo jdes? (With who are you going?)
• Right: S kym jdes?
• Why: Kdo and co decline through all seven cases: kdo/koho/komu/koho/--/o kom/kym and co/ceho/cemu/co/--/o cem/cim.

Using Jaky Without Gender Agreement

• Wrong: Jaky je ta kniha?
• Right: Jaka je ta kniha?
• Why: Jaky is an adjective and must agree in gender: jaky (m), jaka (f), jake (n).

Usage Notes

In informal Czech, the question word jestli (whether/if) is commonly used for yes/no questions: Jestli mas cas? This is more explicit than pure intonation and common in everyday speech. In formal contexts, the word zda serves the same function.

Practice Tips

1. Daily question practice: Start each study session by forming five questions about your surroundings using different question words.
2. Question-answer chains: Practice responding to each question, then forming a new question from the answer.
3. Memorize kdo/co declension: These pronouns appear in questions constantly, so knowing their case forms early is extremely valuable.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Conjugation (-im/-is) -- verb forms used in questions