DĚLAT: The Czech Verb That Does Everything
Dělat is not just any verb, it’s one of the top 10 most used verbs in Czech, right next to být and mít. You will hear it in conversations every single day.
And here’s the problem:
Czechs use dělat for things where English uses do, make, work, prepare, and about five other verbs. So if you don’t understand how dělat works, you won’t just miss vocabulary, you’ll miss entire conversations. Let’s fix that.
What does dělat actually mean?
Short answer:
to do
to make
Long answer:
basically… everything
The most basic use
Let’s start simple:
Co děláš?
“What are you doing?”
Dělám úkol.
“I’m doing homework.”
Dělám večeři.
“I’m making dinner.”
Czech vs. English: do vs. make
English carefully separates:
do = activity
make = create
Czech looks at this and says: No.
Dělám chybu.
“I make a mistake.”
Dělám kávu.
“I make coffee.”
Dělám práci.
“I do work.”
The result? You don’t have to think. You just use dělat.
The “emergency verb” strategy
When you don’t know a verb, try dělat.
Dělám večeři.
“I’m preparing dinner.”
Dělám v Praze.
“I work in Prague.”
Dělám na tom.
“I’m working on it.” (maybe)
Warning
This works… until it doesn’t. Sometimes you’ll sound natural. Sometimes you’ll sound like someone who knows exactly one verb — and is using it for everything.
Very Czech usage
Czech loves dělat in places where English wouldn’t use “do” or “make” at all:
Dělám v kanceláři.
“I work in an office.”
On dělá řidiče.
“He works as a driver.”
Děláš si srandu?
“Are you kidding?”
Negation (super useful)
Just add ne-:
Nedělám nic.
“I’m not doing anything.”
Nedělám to.
“I’m not doing it.”
Yes, double negatives are normal.
The aspect problem (dělat vs. udělat)
Now we get to the part that makes students question their life choices.
dělat = imperfective (process, ongoing)
Used when:
the action is happening
the action is repeated
the result is not important
Dělám večeři.
“I’m making dinner.”
Dělám to každý den.
“I do it every day.”
udělat = perfective (completed action)
Used when:
the action is finished
the result matters
Udělal jsem večeři.
“I made dinner.” (it’s done)
Udělám to.
“I’ll do it.” (and finish it)
One situation, two meanings
Dělám večeři.
“I’m making dinner.” (still cooking)
Udělal jsem večeři.
“I’ve made dinner.” (you can eat now)
Same verb. Completely different focus.
Tip: Confused? Read more about perfective vs. imperfective verbs.
Get a clear, friendly guide to Czech verb aspect—perfective vs. imperfective—packed into a printable worksheet. You’ll learn when to talk about process vs. result, how prefixes change meaning, why perfective has no real present, and the golden rule “never use budu + perfective.”
Includes short explanations, examples in English & Czech, quick tips, mini-dialogues, a handy prefix table (shown on jít), and “try it yourself” tasks.
Perfect for: A1–B2 learners, self-study, and classroom handouts
Format: PDF (printable / tablet-friendly)
Use it to: build instinct for aspect, avoid common mistakes, and speak more naturally
Past tense (minulý čas)
Good news: past tense in Czech is easier than it looks.
You take the root děla- and add endings:
-l (masculine)
-la (feminine)
-lo (neuter)
-li / -ly / -la (plural masculine animate / masculine inatimate and feminine / neuter)
Dělal jsem to.
“I was doing it / I did it.” (male speaker)
Dělala jsem to.
“I was doing it / I did it.” (female speaker)
Dělali jsme to.
“We did it.”
Important detail
Czech past tense agrees with the subject, not just the verb. So yes, your gender suddenly matters.
With perfective (udělat)
Udělal jsem to.
“I did it.” (finished)
Udělala to.
“She did it.”
Difference:
dělal jsem = process
udělal jsem = result
Future tense (budoucí čas)
Future of dělat (imperfective)
Use být:
Budu dělat.
“I will be doing.”
Budeš dělat.
“You will be doing.”
Budeme dělat.
“We will be doing.”
Budu dělat večeři.
“I’ll be making dinner.”
Future of udělat (perfective)
No být. Just conjugate:
Udělám.
“I will do / I will finish it.”
Uděláš.
“You will do it.”
Udělají.
“They will do it.”
Udělám večeři.
“I’ll make dinner (and finish it).”
One situation, three meanings
Dělám večeři.
“I’m making dinner.”
Budu dělat večeři.
“I’ll be making dinner.”
Udělám večeři.
“I’ll make dinner (done).”
Same idea. Different time. Different perspective.
Real-life Czech sentences
Co tady děláš?
“What are you doing here?”
Dělám, co můžu.
“I’m doing what I can.”
To nedělám.
“I don’t do that.”
Dělej!
“Do it!” / “Hurry up!”
If you remember one thing:
dělat = process
udělat = result
And:
past = dělal / udělal
future = budu dělat vs. udělám
If you master dělat, you unlock:
basic conversations
survival Czech
the ability to sound less lost
One last tip
When in doubt: Just say dělat.
Worst case — it’s wrong. Best case — you sound like a Czech.
The ultimate Czech Verbs Survival Kit – everything you need to master Czech verbs in one place. Learn how verbs work, how to form negatives, understand word order, master past and future tenses, verbs of motion, irregular and modal verbs, and reflexives. Clear explanations, patterns, and practical examples make Czech verbs finally click.
