Verbs and Tenses: Past

In this lesson, we will learn how to build and apply the past tense in simple situations in the Czech language. The past tense is used to talk about actions or events that have already happened.

1. Regular Past Tense Verbs: Regular past tense verbs in Czech are formed by adding a specific suffix to the base form of the verb. The suffix used depends on the gender and number of the subject.

   • For masculine singular subjects, the suffix is -l or -l(a).
   • For feminine singular subjects, the suffix is -la.
   • For neuter and plural subjects, the suffix is -lo or -li.

   Example: Hrál jsem fotbal. (I played football.)

   • In this example, the verb hrál (play) is in the masculine singular form to agree with the first-person singular pronoun jsem (I).

2. Irregular Past Tense Verbs: Some verbs in the past tense have irregular conjugations. Here are a few common ones along with their past tense forms:

   • Být (to be):

     • Singular: byl, byla, bylo
     • Plural: byli, byly

   • Mít (to have):

     • Singular: měl, měla, mělo
     • Plural: měli, měly

   • Jít (to go):

     • Singular: šel, šla, šlo
     • Plural: šli, šly

3. Negative Past Tense: To form the negative past tense, use the auxiliary verb nebýt (not to be) in the present tense and add the past tense form of the main verb.

   Example: Nehráli jsme fotbal. (We did not play football.)

   • In this example, nebýt (not to be) is conjugated in the present tense as jsme (we are) and the past tense form of hrát (play) is added.

4. Past Tense Time Expressions: To indicate when an action happened in the past, you can use time expressions such as:

   • Včera (yesterday)
   • Před týdnem (a week ago)
   • Minulý rok (last year)
   • Dneska ráno (this morning)

   Example: Včera jsem navštívil svého přítele. (Yesterday, I visited my friend.)

   • In this example, the verb navštívil (visited) is in the past tense, and the time expression včera (yesterday) indicates when the action happened.

Remember to:

• Pay attention to the gender and number of the subject in order to choose the correct past tense verb suffix.
• Practice using regular and irregular past tense verbs in various contexts.
• Expand your vocabulary by learning more past tense verbs and time expressions.

Now that you have learned how to build and apply past tense verbs in the Czech language, you can confidently talk about past actions or events. Happy practicing!