Parkovné je drahé.

Parkovné means parking fee / parking charge, not the act of parking.

So:

• parkování = parking, the activity
• parkovné = the money you pay for parking

This is a very common Czech pattern:

• jízdné = fare
• vstupné = admission fee
• školné = tuition fee
• parkovné = parking fee

So in this sentence, the topic is the cost charged for parking.

Because parkovné is treated as a neuter singular noun, and adjectives in Czech must agree with the noun in gender, number, and case.

The adjective drahý changes like this in the singular nominative:

• drahý = masculine
• drahá = feminine
• drahé = neuter

Since parkovné is neuter, the correct form is drahé.

Je is the 3rd person singular form of být (to be), so it means is.

So the structure is:

• Parkovné = subject
• je = is
• drahé = expensive

Very literally: Parking fee is expensive.

In this sentence, parkovné behaves as a noun.

Historically and structurally, words like vstupné, jízdné, parkovné are related to adjective forms, but in modern Czech they are commonly used as substantivized forms—in other words, forms that function as nouns.

For a learner, the most useful thing is:

• treat parkovné as a neuter noun
• it means a fee/charge for parking

Because Czech does not use articles like English a/an/the.

So Parkovné je drahé could be understood in English as:

• Parking is expensive
• The parking fee is expensive
• Parking fees are expensive (depending on context, though the Czech here is singular)

Context tells you which English article sounds most natural.

Yes. Parkovné is in the nominative singular because it is the subject of the sentence.

Also, drahé is in the nominative too, because predicate adjectives after být agree with the subject.

So:

• parkovné = nominative singular neuter
• drahé = nominative singular neuter

A simple learner-friendly guide:

• Parkovné: stress the first syllable → PAR-kov-né
• je: roughly ye
• drahé: stress the first syllable → DRA-hé

A few useful pronunciation points:

• Czech stress is usually on the first syllable
• é is a long vowel
• h in Czech is pronounced, unlike in some English words

So the long vowels in -né and -hé should be clearly longer than short vowels.

Normally, in standard Czech, no—you keep je in a sentence like this.

So the normal sentence is:

• Parkovné je drahé.

Leaving out je would sound incomplete in ordinary standard Czech.

In headlines, notes, or very informal shortened styles, Czech sometimes drops forms of to be, but as a learner you should use je here.

Yes, but it means something slightly different.

• Parkovné je drahé. = The parking fee is expensive.
• Parkování je drahé. = Parking is expensive.

The second sentence is broader and can refer to the whole experience/cost of parking in general, while parkovné points specifically to the fee charged.

Yes, Czech word order is flexible, but Parkovné je drahé is the most neutral, natural order.

Possible alternatives:

• Parkovné je drahé. = neutral
• Drahé je parkovné. = marked, emphasizing expensive
• To parkovné je drahé. = That parking fee is expensive / The parking fee is expensive

So word order changes emphasis more than basic meaning.

No. Drahý can mean both:

• expensive
• dear / beloved

For example:

• To auto je drahé. = That car is expensive.
• Můj drahý příteli = My dear friend

In Parkovné je drahé, the meaning is clearly expensive.

Yes. In Czech, vowel length can matter, and it is part of correct pronunciation.

Here both final vowels are long:

• parkovné
• drahé

If you shorten them, people will probably still understand you, but it will sound less correct. So it is good to notice and practice the long é.

Usually it is treated like an uncountable charge/fee in everyday use, similar to English parking or parking fee as a general concept.

If you want to talk about several specific parking charges, Czech often uses other wording, for example:

• parkovací poplatky = parking fees
• poplatek za parkování = parking fee

So parkovné is very natural when speaking generally about the charge for parking.