"To begin" is the aspect pair začínat (imperfective) / začít (perfective). It is worth a careful look for two reasons. First, the two halves sit in different conjugation classes and their stems pull apart — začí- versus zač-/zača- — so they barely look related. Second, "begin" is a phase verb, and Czech phase verbs impose a rule English speakers regularly break: the verb that follows must be in the imperfective. Get both points and this everyday pair becomes reliable.
The two halves, conjugated side by side
The imperfective začínat is a regular Class V (-á-) verb, patterning like dělat. The perfective začít belongs to the -ne- class (Class II): its present-future stem is začn-, with the -u/-eš/-e endings.
| Person | začínat (imperfective) | začít (perfective) |
|---|---|---|
| já | začínám | začnu |
| ty | začínáš | začneš |
| on / ona / ono | začíná | začne |
| my | začínáme | začneme |
| vy | začínáte | začnete |
| oni / ony | začínají | začnou |
Present meaning versus future meaning
As with every aspect pair, the imperfective present is a true present (something beginning now, or habitually) while the perfective "present" začnu points to the future.
Začínám chápat, o co tady jde.
I'm beginning to understand what's going on here.
Film začíná v osm, ať nepřijdeme pozdě.
The film starts at eight, let's not be late.
Zítra začnu chodit do práce na kole.
Tomorrow I'll start cycling to work.
The first two are imperfective (a process underway, a scheduled regularity); the third is perfective — a single starting point set in the future. Začnu can never mean "I'm beginning right now."
Government 1: the accusative object
Both verbs can take a direct accusative object — the thing you begin.
Příští týden začínáme nový kurz češtiny.
Next week we're starting a new Czech course.
Začni ten dopis a zbytek napíšeš zítra.
Start the letter and you'll write the rest tomorrow.
Government 2: s + instrumental
To say you "get started on / begin with" something, Czech uses s + the instrumental case. This often feels more like rolling up your sleeves and tackling a task.
Začnu s tím hned ráno.
I'll get started on it first thing in the morning.
Začali jsme se stavbou už na jaře.
We began construction back in the spring.
Here to → s tím and stavba → se stavbou are instrumental (and note s vocalises to se before the st- cluster).
Government 3: the dependent infinitive — and why it must be imperfective
Most often "begin" is followed by another verb in the infinitive: "begin to work, begin to rain." This is where Czech imposes a firm rule. As a phase verb (begin / continue / stop), začít and začínat demand that the following infinitive be imperfective. The phase verb already marks the boundary; the action it frames must be presented as an unbounded process.
Začnu pracovat hned po obědě.
I'll start working right after lunch.
Najednou začalo pršet, vezmi si deštník.
It suddenly started to rain, take an umbrella.
Před rokem jsem se začal učit česky.
A year ago I started learning Czech. (male speaker)
In each case the dependent verb — pracovat, pršet, učit se — is imperfective. You cannot say začnu udělat or začnu napsat: pairing a perfective with a phase verb is ungrammatical. This is one of the most useful aspect rules at A2, because it removes all guesswork — after začít/začínat, reach for the imperfective every time.
The past tense
Both build the past from the l-participle plus the auxiliary. Mind the perfective past stem zača-.
| Subject | začínat | začít |
|---|---|---|
| masc. sg. | začínal jsem | začal jsem |
| fem. sg. | začínala jsem | začala jsem |
| masc. anim. pl. | začínali jsme | začali jsme |
| fem. pl. | začínaly jsme | začaly jsme |
Děti začaly zpívat a všem se rozjasnila nálada.
The children started to sing and everyone's mood lifted.
The future and the imperative
Future and imperative split by aspect:
- Imperfective future: budu začínat… — used when the beginning itself is repeated or habitual ("I'll be starting work at seven from now on").
- Perfective future: just začnu — never budu začít.
- Imperative: perfective začni / začněte for a single push to get going; imperfective začínej / začínejte for habits.
| začínat | začít | |
|---|---|---|
| ty | začínej | začni |
| my | začínejme | začněme |
| vy | začínejte | začněte |
Začněme od začátku, ať nikdo není ztracený.
Let's start from the beginning so nobody's lost.
The opposite: končit / skončit
Learn "begin" together with its antonym, končit / skončit ("to end / finish"). It is the other great phase pair and obeys the same imperfective-infinitive rule: Přestal kouřit and Skončil jsem v šest frame beginnings and endings the same way.
Schůze začíná v devět a končí v jedenáct.
The meeting starts at nine and ends at eleven.
Common mistakes
❌ Začnu udělat domácí úkol.
Incorrect — after a phase verb the infinitive must be imperfective.
✅ Začnu dělat domácí úkol.
I'll start doing my homework.
❌ Teď začnu chápat.
Incorrect if you mean now — začnu is future; the present is začínám.
✅ Teď začínám chápat.
Now I'm beginning to understand.
❌ Zítra budu začít.
Incorrect — a perfective never combines with budu.
✅ Zítra začnu.
I'll start tomorrow.
❌ Začnu s práci.
Incorrect — s takes the instrumental (prací), not another case.
✅ Začnu s prací.
I'll get started on the work.
❌ Včera jsem začnul.
Incorrect — the past stem is zača-, not začn-: it's začal.
✅ Včera jsem začal.
I started yesterday. (male speaker)
Key takeaways
- začínat = imperfective (beginning now, habitually); začít = perfective (one starting point).
- Three stems: imperfective začí- (začínám), perfective present začn- (začnu), perfective past zača- (začal).
- Objects: a plain accusative (začnu kurz) or s + instrumental (začnu s prací).
- A dependent infinitive after this phase verb must be imperfective: začnu pracovat, never začnu udělat.
- Perfective "present" začnu = "I will start"; imperfective future is budu začínat. Pair it with končit / skončit.
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Start learning Czech→Related Topics
- končit / skončit — to finish, to endA2 — The aspect pair končit (imperfective) and skončit (perfective): conjugation, the s + instrumental government, and transitive vs. intransitive uses.
- Aspect Pairs: The Core SystemA2 — How most Czech verbs come as a two-member aspect pair — one imperfective, one perfective — and how to learn, look up, and choose between them.
- Phase Verbs Require the ImperfectiveB2 — Why začít, přestat and similar verbs take only imperfective infinitives.
- Class II: -ne- Verbs (tisknout, minout)A2 — The -ne- conjugation, built mostly from -nout infinitives — predictable in the present, but full of perfectives whose 'present' actually means the future.
- Verbs Governing the InstrumentalB2 — Verbs whose complement stands in the instrumental — becoming and remaining a role (stát se lékařem), occupying oneself with something (zabývat se), and moving, waving, boasting, despising, and suffering.