"To decide" is the reflexive aspect pair rozhodovat se / rozhodnout se. Both halves carry an obligatory se. The imperfective rozhodovat se describes deciding as a process — weighing things up, being in the middle of making up your mind ("I'm still deciding," "we were deciding for ages"); the perfective rozhodnout se packages the moment the choice clicks into place ("I've decided," "she decided to leave"). This is one of the most useful pairs in the language because it lets you separate the agonizing from the settling. The two halves run on different conjugation classes, which is the main thing to get straight.
The two halves, side by side
The imperfective rozhodovat se is a Class III (-ovat) verb: like kupovat, it builds its present on a -uj- stem (with a literary -uji variant). The perfective rozhodnout se belongs to the -ne- present class: its present-tense forms grow an -n- onto the stem (rozhodn-) and take the -u / -eš / -e endings.
| Person | rozhodovat se (impf.) — present | rozhodnout se (pf.) — future meaning |
|---|---|---|
| já | rozhoduju se (lit. rozhoduji se) | rozhodnu se |
| ty | rozhoduješ se | rozhodneš se |
| on / ona / ono | rozhoduje se | rozhodne se |
| my | rozhodujeme se | rozhodneme se |
| vy | rozhodujete se | rozhodnete se |
| oni | rozhodujou se (lit. rozhodují se) | rozhodnou se |
What it governs: pro + accusative, an infinitive, or a clause
There are three standard ways to say what you decide, and each is worth a separate look.
1. pro + accusative — to decide in favour of / on an option:
Nakonec jsme se rozhodli pro tu dražší variantu.
In the end we decided on the more expensive option.
Here pro tu dražší variantu is pro + accusative ("for / on that option"). This frame is the one to use when you're choosing between concrete alternatives.
2. an infinitive — to decide to do something:
Rozhodl jsem se odejít z práce a založit si vlastní firmu.
I've decided to quit my job and start my own company (male speaker).
Rozhodla se zůstat v Praze ještě jeden rok.
She decided to stay in Prague for one more year.
3. a že-clause — to decide that:
Rozhodli jsme se, že letos pojedeme k moři.
We've decided that this year we'll go to the seaside.
Note the comma before že — Czech always sets off a subordinate clause with a comma.
The past tense
Both halves build the past from the l-participle, agreeing in gender and number, with se in the clitic cluster after the auxiliary jsem / jsi / jsme / jste.
| Subject | rozhodovat se | rozhodnout se |
|---|---|---|
| masc. sg. | rozhodoval jsem se | rozhodl jsem se |
| fem. sg. | rozhodovala jsem se | rozhodla jsem se |
| masc. anim. pl. | rozhodovali jsme se | rozhodli jsme se |
| fem. pl. | rozhodovaly jsme se | rozhodly jsme se |
Notice the perfective past drops the -nou-: it is rozhodl se (not rozhodnul se) for the masculine. The -l- participle of -nout verbs typically loses the -nu-, though the colloquial rozhodnul se is also heard. The standard written form is rozhodl se.
Aspect carries real meaning in the past. Dlouho jsem se rozhodoval ("I was deciding for a long time") foregrounds the agonizing; rozhodl jsem se ("I decided / I've made up my mind") reports the settled result. English needs extra words ("kept deciding," "took a while to decide") to get the contrast that Czech bakes into the verb.
Dlouho se rozhodovala mezi medicínou a právy, nakonec se rozhodla pro práva.
She was torn for a long time between medicine and law, and in the end she chose law.
This one sentence shows the whole pair at work: the imperfective rozhodovala se for the long wavering, the perfective rozhodla se for the final click.
The clitic se and second position
The se is obligatory and clings to second position in the clause, after a past auxiliary. Don't try to keep it next to the verb.
Ještě jsem se nerozhodl, dej mi den na rozmyšlenou.
I haven't decided yet, give me a day to think it over (male speaker).
Order: jsem se — auxiliary, then reflexive — with the participle at the end. This is the standard clitic behaviour described for reflexive se and si.
The imperative and future
Imperatives keep se: imperfective rozhoduj se / rozhodujte se, perfective rozhodni se / rozhodněte se. The perfective rozhodni se! ("make up your mind!") is the everyday push for a decision now. The imperfective future is the analytic budu se rozhodovat; the perfective rozhodnu se already points to the future.
Tak se konečně rozhodni, zavírají za chvíli!
Come on, make up your mind, they're closing soon!
Common mistakes
❌ Rozhodl jsem se na tu možnost.
Incorrect preposition — deciding on an option uses pro + accusative, not na.
✅ Rozhodl jsem se pro tu možnost.
I decided on that option (male speaker).
To decide on / in favour of something is rozhodnout se pro + accusative. The preposition na is a transfer error here.
❌ Včera jsem rozhodl se odejít.
Wrong clitic position — se belongs in second position, after the auxiliary.
✅ Včera jsem se rozhodl odejít.
Yesterday I decided to leave (male speaker).
The se has to sit in second position (jsem se), not trail after the participle.
❌ Pořád se rozhodnu, co si vezmu.
Aspect mismatch — an ongoing 'still deciding' needs the imperfective.
✅ Pořád se rozhoduju, co si vezmu.
I'm still deciding what to wear.
Pořád ("still / constantly") signals an in-progress process, which demands the imperfective rozhoduju se. The perfective marks the settled moment, not the wavering.
❌ Musíš rozhodnout se rychle.
Wrong order — after a modal, the clitic se moves to second position in the clause.
✅ Musíš se rozhodnout rychle.
You have to decide quickly.
Even with a modal, se climbs to second position (Musíš se rozhodnout), not next to the infinitive.
Key takeaways
- rozhodovat se = imperfective (deciding as a process, wavering); rozhodnout se = perfective (the decision settled). Both always keep se.
- Present: rozhoduju se / rozhoduješ se… (lit. rozhoduji se) vs rozhodnu se / rozhodneš se / rozhodnou se.
- Government: pro
- accusative (decide on X), an infinitive (decide to do X), or a že-clause (decide that…).
- Perfective past is rozhodl se (the -nu- drops out), not the standard-written rozhodnul se.
- The clitic se sits in second position, even after a modal: Musíš se rozhodnout.
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