-ní / -tí

Verbal Noun in -ní and -tí

Level 4

Verbal nouns (slovesná podstatná jména) allow you to talk about an action as a concept, similar to English "-ing" nouns (e.g., číst → čtení / reading). They are always neuter and decline according to the soft stavení paradigm.

How It Works

Formation Rules
A widespread myth is that you simply drop the -t from the infinitive to form the verbal noun. This is incorrect! Verbal nouns are formed by adding -í to the stem of the passive participle.

  • -ní: Used when the passive participle ends in -n (e.g., číst → čten → čtení; platit → placen → placení).
  • -tí: Used when the passive participle ends in -t (e.g., pít → pit → pití; mýt → myt → mytí).
  • -utí: Usually used for verbs ending in -nout (e.g., stisknout → stisknut → stisknutí). However, some can take -ení, sometimes with a change in meaning (e.g., tisknutí = pressing vs. tištění = printing).

Note that consonant mutations (t → c in placení) from the participle carry over, but vowel length can sometimes change (e.g., shorten: psát → psán → psaní). Intransitive verbs form verbal nouns regularly from their neuter passive participle stems used in impersonal constructions (e.g., spáno → spaní, jito → jití).

Usage and Syntax
Because they are nouns, you must use an adjective to describe them (rychlé čtení, not rychle čtení). If the original verb takes a direct object, the verbal noun takes a genitive object (čtení knihy = the reading of a book). However, indirect objects (such as those in the dative or instrumental) and prepositional phrases do not change to the genitive. They remain in their original case (e.g., pomáhání lidem = helping people, čekání na vlak = waiting for a train). Verbal nouns decline according to the neuter paradigm stavení. They can also be pluralized when referring to specific instances (e.g., dvě různá čtení = two different readings).

Aspect, Reflexives, and Negation
Verbal nouns retain the aspect of the original verb. Imperfective verbal nouns describe an ongoing process (čtení = reading), while perfective ones describe a completed act (přečtení = having read). If the original verb is reflexive, the reflexive pronoun (se or si) is retained as a separate word following the noun (e.g., učení se = learning, stěžování si = complaining). Furthermore, you can easily form a negated verbal noun by attaching the prefix ne- to create a single word (e.g., neplacení = non-payment, nedodržení = failure to comply).

Prepositions and Register
In Czech, prepositions can be followed by nominals (nouns, pronouns, etc.), but never infinitives. To say "before sleeping", you must use prepositional phrases with verbal nouns: před spaním.
While common for everyday activities (plavání, parkování), overusing verbal nouns sounds highly bureaucratic. In casual speech, native speakers prefer finite clauses (e.g., using když instead of po přečtení).

Examples (5)

  1. Čtení knihy v originále je úplně jiný zážitek.

    Reading a book in the original is a completely different experience.

    Word by Word: Reading of-book in original is completely different experience.

    Demonstrates the verbal noun taking a genitive object (knihy) instead of an accusative object.

  2. Po umytí nádobí si dáme kávu.

    After washing the dishes, we'll have a coffee.

    Word by Word: After washing of-dishes ourselves we-will-give coffee.

    Shows the -tí suffix, perfective aspect (umytí vs. mytí), and usage after a preposition.

  3. Bojím se létání.

    I am afraid of flying.

    Word by Word: I-fear myself flying.

    A common everyday use of a verbal noun functioning as the object of a verb.

  4. Rychlé placení kartou je dnes standard.

    Quick card payment is the standard today.

    Word by Word: Quick paying by-card is today standard.

    Shows that verbal nouns must be modified by adjectives (rychlé), and demonstrates the consonant mutation (platit -> placen -> placení).

  5. Učení se cizím jazykům vyžaduje čas.

    Learning foreign languages requires time.

    Word by Word: Learning oneself to-foreign languages requires time.

    Demonstrates that verbal nouns retain the reflexive pronoun 'se' from the original verb (učit se), and that indirect objects (cizím jazykům) remain in the dative case rather than changing to the genitive.

Common Mistakes

  • Using an accusative object instead of a genitive object.

    Mám rád čtení knihu.
    Mám rád čtení knihy.

    Because the verbal noun is grammatically a noun, it cannot take a direct accusative object like a verb does. It requires the genitive case (literally "the reading of a book").

  • Modifying the verbal noun with an adverb instead of an adjective.

    Rychle čtení je užitečná dovednost.
    Rychlé čtení je užitečná dovednost.

    Even though it describes an action, it is syntactically a noun. Therefore, it must be modified by an adjective (rychlé) rather than an adverb (rychle).

  • Using an infinitive after a preposition.

    Dám si sprchu před spát.
    Dám si sprchu před spaním.

    Unlike English or Spanish, Czech prepositions can never be followed by an infinitive. You must use the verbal noun in the appropriate case.

How It Connects

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-ní / -tíLevel 4Verbal Noun in -ní and -tí

Learn This First

To understand verbal nouns, you first need to know how to form the passive participle, as they share the same stem. You also need to understand neuter noun declension, as all verbal nouns are neuter, and the use of the genitive case to express the object of the action.

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-ní