Verbs: Future Tense

01

Imperfective: budu and the Infinitive

An imperfective verb builds the future with the future of být in front of its infinitive. The auxiliary carries the person, the infinitive never changes, and the pair together describes an activity that will be going on.

• budu, budeš, bude, budeme, budete, budou

• Budu vařit.

  I will be cooking.

• Budeš čekat?

  Will you wait?

• Budou pracovat celý den.

  They will work all day.

02

Perfective: the Present Forms

A perfective verb has no present tense, so its present-shaped forms are free to mean the future, and that is exactly what they do. Nothing is added: the endings you would read as a present on an imperfective verb are a future here.

• Koupím chleba.

  I will buy bread.

• Napíšeš mi?

  Will you write to me?

• Přijdou v osm.

  They will come at eight.

Putting budu in front of a perfective infinitive is not an option; the two ways of building a future never mix.

03

The Future of být

Být supplies its own future and does not need a second verb after it. The same forms that serve as the auxiliary above stand on their own as will be.

• Zítra budu doma.

  I will be at home tomorrow.

• Bude zima.

  It will be cold.

04

Saying It Will Not Happen

Negation attaches to whichever word carries the tense: ne- goes on the auxiliary in the long future and on the verb itself in the short one.

• Nebudu čekat.

  I won't wait.

• Nepřijdu.

  I won't come.

05

Verbs of Motion

Jít and jet are irregular here. Instead of taking budu they attach the prefix po- to their present forms, and the result is a future.

• jít - půjdu, půjdeš, půjde (I will go)
• jet - pojedu, pojedeš, pojede (I will ride)

• Půjdu domů.

  I will go home.

• Pojedeme vlakem.

  We will go by train.

06

Future in a Subordinate Clause

English puts a present tense after when and if even though the event is plainly ahead. Czech does not: if the event is in the future, the verb is in the future, in both halves of the sentence.

• Až přijdu, zavolám ti.

  When I come, I will call you.

• Jestli budeš chtít, půjdeme.

  If you want, we will go.

07

Word Order

The auxiliary and its infinitive need not stand next to each other. Short unstressed words claim the second slot in the sentence and push the infinitive further along, which is normal and changes nothing about the meaning.

• Budeš se cítit lépe.

  You will feel better.

08

When the Present Is Enough

As in English, a present-tense imperfective verb with a time word does duty for a plan already fixed, and this is very common in speech.

• Zítra pracuji.

  I am working tomorrow.