Accusative of duration

Level 2

The accusative of duration answers the question jak dlouho? (how long?). It shows that an action continuously fills a specific, uninterrupted period of time.

How It Works

To build fluency in expressing time in Czech, you need to know how different words behave in the accusative of duration:

  • Masculine Inanimate & Neuter: These words look exactly like their dictionary forms (nominative). For example, celý den (the whole day) or celé léto (the whole summer) remain unchanged.
  • Feminine: Feminine nouns ending in -a change to -u (e.g., jedna hodina becomes jednu hodinu), while those ending in -e change to -i (e.g., neděle becomes neděli). For feminine nouns ending in a consonant, the noun itself stays the same, but any attached adjectives change (e.g., celá noc becomes celou noc).
  • Numbers 1 to 4: Number 1 takes the accusative singular, while 2, 3, and 4 take the accusative plural. Numbers 1 and 2 must agree with the noun's gender in the accusative (e.g., jeden rok, jednu hodinu, jedno léto; dva roky, dvě hodiny). Numbers 3 and 4 do not change for gender (e.g., tři roky, čtyři hodiny).
  • Numbers 5 and higher: Because of Czech numeral rules, the number itself is in the accusative, but it forces the following noun into the genitive plural. So, while the phrase functions as a duration, the noun is genitive (e.g., pět hodin - five hours, deset let - ten years).
  • Fractions of time: Words like půl (half) and čtvrt (quarter) behave similarly to numbers 5 and higher, forcing the following noun into the genitive singular (e.g., půl hodiny - half an hour, půl roku - half a year, čtvrt hodiny - a quarter of an hour).

Important Distinctions:
1. Verb Aspect: The bare accusative of duration (answering Jak dlouho?) pairs mostly with imperfective verbs to show an ongoing process (e.g., Četl jsem to hodinu = I read it for an hour). However, perfective verbs of staying or waiting can also take the bare accusative (e.g., Zůstal tam hodinu = He stayed there for an hour). Do not confuse this with za + akuzativ (answering Za jak dlouho?), which is used with perfective verbs to show an action was completed in a certain time (e.g., Přečetl jsem to za hodinu = I read it in an hour) or the time until a future event occurs (e.g., Přijdu za hodinu = I will arrive in an hour).
2. Intended Duration: Use na + accusative (answering Na jak dlouho?) for intended future duration or scheduled stays (e.g., Jedu do Prahy na týden = I am going to Prague for a week). Using the bare accusative here would incorrectly imply you spent a week traveling.
3. Emphasis: You can use the preposition po + accusative to emphasize that something lasted 'all [time] long' (e.g., Pršelo po celý den = It rained all day long).
4. Frequency: Expressions of frequency answering 'how often' (Jak často?) also use the bare accusative (e.g., každý den = every day, každou středu = every Wednesday).

Examples (5)

  1. Pršelo celý den.

    It rained all day.

    Word by Word: Rained whole day.

    Masculine inanimate nouns like 'den' have the same form in the accusative as in the nominative.

  2. Čekal jsem na tebe celou hodinu.

    I waited a whole hour for you.

    Word by Word: Waited am on you whole hour.

    Feminine nouns and adjectives must change their endings (celá hodina -> celou hodinu).

  3. Bydleli jsme v Brně tři roky.

    We lived in Brno for three years.

    Word by Word: Lived are in Brno three years.

    With numbers 2, 3, and 4, the noun is in the accusative plural.

  4. Ten film trval skoro tři hodiny.

    That film lasted almost three hours.

    Word by Word: That film lasted almost three hours.

    Another example with a number under 5, keeping the noun in the accusative.

  5. Studoval jsem češtinu pět let.

    I studied Czech for five years.

    Word by Word: Studied am Czech five years.

    With numbers 5 and higher, the noun 'rok' changes to its genitive plural form 'let'.

Common Mistakes

  • Using a preposition like 'pro' or 'na' to translate the English word 'for' when expressing actual duration.

    Pršelo pro celý den.
    Pršelo celý den.

    Czech uses the bare accusative to express actual duration (how long an action lasted). 'Pro' means 'for' as in 'for someone's benefit', and 'na' + accusative is used for intended future duration or scheduled stays (e.g., 'Jedu tam na rok' = I am going there for a year).

  • Forgetting to decline feminine time words and their adjectives into the accusative.

    Čekal jsem celá hodina.
    Čekal jsem celou hodinu.

    While masculine inanimate and neuter words look the same as the nominative, feminine nouns ending in a vowel (like -a) and feminine adjectives must change their endings (e.g., -a becomes -u, -á becomes -ou). Note that feminine nouns ending in a consonant (like 'noc') do not change their noun ending, but their adjectives still do (e.g., 'celou noc').

  • Putting the noun in the accusative after numbers 5 and higher.

    Spal jsem osm hodiny.
    Spal jsem osm hodin.

    With numbers 5 and higher, the noun must be in the genitive plural, even though the phrase as a whole occupies the accusative duration slot in the sentence.

How It Connects

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Accusative of durationLevel 2

Learn This First

To express how long an action lasts using the accusative of duration, you first need to know how to form the accusative case for different genders, as time units like 'hour', 'day', or 'week' will change their endings accordingly. Additionally, you need basic verb conjugation to form the sentences where these durations are applied.

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