The Passive and Impersonal 'se' — Czech Grammar

Besides marking a reflexive verb, does a second job: it takes the doer out of the sentence. The action stays, the actor disappears, and what was the object becomes the subject. English reaches for the passive or for a vague you, they or one in the same situations.

Dveře se musí tlačit.
The door has to be pushed.
Kniha se dobře čte.
The book reads well.

How to Tell It From a Reflexive

The test is whether the subject could be doing the thing to itself. A door cannot push itself, so there is not reflexive; a person can wash himself, so there it is. The two constructions look identical and only sense separates them.

Myje se.
He is washing himself.
Auto se myje snadno.
The car washes easily.

No Subject at All

With the verb in the third person singular and nothing to be the subject, the sentence describes what is done in general - by anyone, by people, by nobody in particular. This is the ordinary way to give directions, state a rule or ask how something is done.

Jak se to řekne česky?
How do you say that in Czech?
Kudy se jde do centra?
Which way is it to the centre?
Tady se nekouří.
There's no smoking here.

On Signs and in Shops

The construction is everywhere in public language, where the point is the rule rather than the person enforcing it.

Zboží se vyprodá.
The goods will sell out.
Tady se platí kartou.
You pay by card here.

Ordinary Verbs Made Impersonal

Even a verb with a perfectly good subject can be emptied out this way, and the result is the nearest Czech comes to English one. It is neutral, not formal, and turns up in the middle of ordinary conversation.

Doma se mluví česky.
Czech is spoken at home.
Jak se to dělá?
How is that done?

What Happened to the Doer

The doer cannot be named. If you want to say who did it, this construction is not available and you must put the actor back in as a subject with an ordinary active verb.

Dveře se otevírají.
The doors are opening.
Otevírá dveře.
She is opening the doors.

Modals Join In

A modal verb takes the construction over without difficulty. The modal is what agrees with the subject, and keeps its place in the second slot rather than following the infinitive it belongs to.

Dveře se nesmí zamykat.
The door must not be locked.
To se nedá dělat.
That can't be done.

Events With No Cause

The same turns a verb into one that simply happens, with nothing and no one bringing it about. Czech uses it constantly for changes of state.

Maso se spálí.
The meat will burn.
Těžko se otevírá.
It's difficult to open.

A few verbs are used this way so often that has become part of them, and they are learned as verbs of their own, like , to happen.

Co se stalo?
What happened?

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