Choosing mít rád, líbit se, or chutnat | Czech Grammar

English has one overworked verb, to like, for liking your job, liking a painting you just saw, and liking the soup on your plate. Czech splits that one verb into three, and each comes with its own grammar. mít rád + accusative is lasting fondness — for a person, a place, a thing you care about. líbit se + dative is the pleasure of how something looks or strikes you — a painting, a film, a face. chutnat + dative is reserved for one thing only: the taste of food and drink. Pick the wrong one and you don't just sound off — you can change the meaning, because líbí se mi a person means you find them attractive, while mám rád that person means you are fond of them.

The quick answer

Question	Verb	Example
Is it the taste of food/drink?	chutnat + DAT	Chutná mi guláš.
Is it looks / a first impression — a film, a song, an idea, a face?	líbit se + DAT	Líbí se mi ten obraz.
Is it lasting fondness for a person, place, or thing?	mít rád + ACC	Mám rád svou práci.

Work down that list in order and the choice almost always makes itself: taste → chutnat; appearance or impression → líbit se; settled affection → mít rád.

mít rád + accusative — lasting fondness

mít rád literally means "to have [someone/something] dear." Use it for a stable, long-term attitude: the people you love, the city you'd move back to, the coffee you drink every day as a matter of taste-in-life rather than the cup in front of you. The thing you like is a plain accusative object.

The trap inside mít rád is that rád is an adjective that agrees with the liker, not with the thing liked. A man says mám rád, a woman mám ráda, a group máme rádi (or rády for an all-female group).

Mám moc rád svou práci, nikdy bych ji nevyměnil.

I really like my job, I'd never trade it. (male speaker)

Mám ráda Prahu na podzim, je úplně jiná.

I love Prague in the autumn, it's completely different. (female speaker)

Naše děti mají moc rády babičku.

Our children are very fond of their grandma.

To say you like doing something, Czech uses rád + verb rather than mít rád: Rád vařím ("I like cooking," literally "gladly I-cook"). That construction lives on the likes and dislikes page.

Rád chodím v sobotu na dlouhé procházky.

I like going for long walks on Saturdays. (male speaker)

líbit se + dative — looks and first impressions

líbit se turns the grammar inside out. The thing you like becomes the subject (nominative), and you — the one doing the liking — become a dative experiencer: Líbí se mi ten obraz is literally "that painting appeals to me." Use it for how something looks, sounds, or strikes you on first acquaintance: art, films, music, clothes, design, a place's atmosphere, an idea.

Líbí se mi ten obraz nad krbem.

I like that painting above the fireplace.

Líbil se ti ten film, nebo byl nuda?

Did you like the film, or was it boring?

Because the liked thing is the subject, the verb agrees with it — including in the past tense. Watch the participle change to match what is liked, not who likes it:

Líbila se mi tvoje nová písnička, pustíš mi ji znovu?

I liked your new song, will you play it for me again?

Líbily se mi ty boty ve výloze, ale byly moc drahé.

I liked those shoes in the window, but they were too expensive.

💡

In líbí se mi you are never the subject — the thing you like is. So the verb agrees with the thing: Líbil se mi film (masc.), Líbila se mi kniha (fem.), Líbily se mi boty (fem. pl.). The mi ("to me") just rides along in the dative.

chutnat + dative — the taste of food

chutnat has the same inverted, dative-experiencer grammar as líbit se, but its job is narrow: it is about taste. The food or drink is the subject; you are in the dative. This is the verb you use at the table.

Chutná mi guláš víc než svíčková.

I like goulash more than svíčková (in taste).

Chutná ti? Mám přidat sůl?

Is it good? Should I add salt?

Tohle víno mi vůbec nechutná, je moc kyselé.

I don't like this wine at all, it's too sour.

Dětem nechutná špenát, ať děláme, co děláme.

The kids don't like spinach, no matter what we do.

Again the verb agrees with the food, not the eater: Chutnal mi oběd (masc.), Chutnala mi polévka (fem.), Chutnaly mi koláče (masc. inan. pl.).

The same "I like it," three different ways

Here is the heart of the page. English "I like it" can become any of the three, and the choice tells your listener what kind of liking you mean.

Mám to rád.

I like it. (a lasting favourite — a hobby, a place, the thing in general; male speaker)

Líbí se mi to.

I like it. (it appeals to me — its look, a film, a design, a first impression)

Chutná mi to.

I like it. (it tastes good — food or drink)

The people trap

With a person, the two affection verbs split sharply, and getting it wrong can be awkward. líbit se about a human means you find them physically attractive; mít rád means you are fond of them, you care about them.

Líbí se mi ta nová kolegyně, ale netroufnu si ji oslovit.

I fancy the new colleague, but I don't dare approach her. (attraction)

Mám rád svého dědu, je to nejmoudřejší člověk, co znám.

I love my grandpa, he's the wisest person I know. (affection; male speaker)

Say líbí se mi about your grandfather and you've said something very strange. Reserve líbí se + person for looks and attraction.

The food overlap: mít rád vs chutnat

Food is the one area where two verbs compete, and the difference is subtle but real. mít rád a dish means you are a fan of it as a dish, in general; chutnat means it tastes good — which can be general or about the specific portion in front of you.

Mám rád guláš, je to moje nejoblíbenější jídlo.

I like goulash, it's my favourite dish. (general preference; male speaker)

Tenhle guláš mi fakt chutná, dáš mi recept?

I'm really enjoying this goulash, will you give me the recipe? (the taste of this one)

At the dinner table you ask Chutná ti? — never Máš to rád?, which would be asking about a lifelong preference at the worst possible moment.

Common mistakes

❌ Líbím ten obraz.

Incorrect — there is no plain transitive 'I like'; líbit se needs the dative experiencer.

✅ Líbí se mi ten obraz.

I like that painting. (the painting is the subject, mi is the dative)

❌ Mám rád ten film, právě jsem ho viděl.

Incorrect for a first impression of a film you've just seen — that's líbit se.

✅ Líbil se mi ten film, právě jsem ho viděl.

I liked that film, I've just seen it. (male speaker)

❌ Mám rád tuhle polévku, je výborná.

Off — for the taste at the table, Czech uses chutnat.

✅ Tahle polévka mi moc chutná, je výborná.

I really like this soup, it's excellent.

❌ Líbí se mi guláš, je výborný.

Wrong verb for taste — líbit se is for looks, not flavour.

✅ Chutná mi guláš, je výborný.

I like the goulash, it's excellent.

❌ Líbí mi ta písnička.

Incorrect — the reflexive se is obligatory: líbit SE.

✅ Líbí se mi ta písnička.

I like that song.

Key takeaways

mít rád + accusative = lasting fondness; rád agrees with the liker (mám rád / mám ráda).
líbit se + dative = looks, first impressions, films, songs, ideas, attraction; the liked thing is the subject and the verb agrees with it.
chutnat + dative = the taste of food and drink; same inverted grammar as líbit se.
With people: líbí se mi = attraction, mám rád = affection — don't mix them up.
The reflexive se in líbit se is obligatory, and the experiencer is always dative, never the subject.

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