Numbers and Cases

01

One

Jeden behaves like an adjective. It agrees with the noun in gender and case, and the noun stays singular.

• jeden, jedna, jedno

• Mám jednu modrou tužku.

  I have one blue pencil.

• Ještě jeden šálek čaje.

  One more cup of tea.

02

Two, Three and Four

These take an ordinary plural noun, in whatever case the sentence requires. Two has separate forms for the genders; three and four do not.

• dva for masculine, dvě for feminine and neuter
• tři, čtyři for everything

• Mám dvě děti.

  I have two children.

• Na farmě jsou dva koně a tři ovce.

  There are two horses and three sheep on the farm.

03

Five and Upwards

From five on, the number takes the genitive plural, and the whole phrase counts as neuter singular for the verb. This is the point where Czech parts company with English.

• Mám šest bratrů a sedm sester.

  I have six brothers and seven sisters.

• Stojí čtyři sta jenů.

  It costs four hundred yen.

• Je jí devadesát pět let.

  She is ninety-five.

04

The Verb Goes Singular

Because the counted phrase is treated as one quantity, the verb after a number from five up is singular and neuter, however many things are being counted.

• Přišlo pět lidí.

  Five people came.

05

When the Number Itself Declines

In the oblique cases the number takes an ending and the noun then agrees with it normally, so the genitive-plural rule applies only where the number is the subject or the object.

• Musím si vybrat mezi dvěma možnostmi.

  I have to choose between two options.

• Se třemi kamarády.

  With three friends.

06

Counting Plural-Only Nouns

Nouns that have no singular cannot be counted with jeden. Czech uses a separate set of forms for them, and jedny is the word for one pair or one set.

• Koupil jsem jedny kalhoty.

  I bought a pair of trousers.

07

Money and Measures

Prices, ages and measurements all follow the rule, which is why the genitive plural turns up so often in shops.

• V peněžence mám jen třináct dolarů.

  I only have thirteen dollars in my wallet.

• Je mi osmnáct let.

  I'm eighteen.

08

Hundreds and Thousands

Sto and tisíc are nouns with plurals of their own, so a large number counts them and then applies the same rule further down.

• Ten notebook stojí tisíc tři sta eur.

  That laptop costs one thousand three hundred euros.

09

Compound Numbers

A compound said with the ten first, such as thirty-one, takes the genitive plural like any number from five up, even though it ends in one.

• Třicet jedna dolarů.

  Thirty-one dollars.