Materiál dej sem.

Dej is the imperative singular of the verb dát (to give / to put in many contexts).

In this sentence, it means something like put or give as a command:

• dát = to give / to put
• dej! = give! / put!

It is used when speaking to one person informally.

Because dát is the infinitive (to give / to put), while dej is the command form.

Compare:

• dát = to give / to put
• dej = give! / put!

This verb is a bit irregular, so the imperative is not formed in a completely predictable way from the infinitive.

It is the object, and it is in the accusative — it just happens to look the same as the nominative.

Materiál is a masculine inanimate noun, and in the singular, its nominative and accusative forms are identical:

• nominative: materiál
• accusative: materiál

So in Materiál dej sem, materiál is the direct object of dej even though its form does not change.

A useful comparison:

• student (masculine animate)
  
  • nominative: student
  • accusative: studenta

With animate masculine nouns, the difference is more visible.

Because sem usually expresses movement toward here, while tady expresses location here.

So:

• sem = to here, over here
• tady = here (location)

With a verb like dej (put), Czech often uses sem because something is being moved to the speaker’s location.

Compare:

• Dej to sem. = Put it here / Bring it here.
• To je tady. = It is here.

So sem is very natural in this sentence.

No. Sem here is an adverb, not a preposition.

That matters because it does not require any noun after it in a particular case. It simply means to here / herewards.

So in Materiál dej sem:

• materiál = the thing being moved
• dej = put
• sem = to here

Yes, learners often notice that sem can also be a colloquial spoken form of jsem (I am), but that is not what it means here.

In this sentence, sem clearly means to here, because:

• the sentence contains the imperative dej
• jsem would not make sense grammatically here

So Materiál dej sem can only mean something like Put the material here.

Because Czech often omits subject pronouns when they are obvious from the verb form.

The form dej already tells you this is a command to one person informally, so ty is unnecessary.

Czech usually prefers:

• Dej sem materiál.

rather than:

• Ty dej sem materiál.

Adding ty is possible, but it gives extra emphasis or contrast.

Yes. Dej is informal singular, used when speaking to one person you address as ty.

The polite or plural form is:

• Dejte materiál sem.

That can mean:

• speaking politely to one person
• speaking to more than one person

So:

• dej = informal, one person
• dejte = polite one person or plural

Yes, you can also say Dej sem materiál, and many learners will find that more straightforward.

Czech word order is flexible, and different orders often change emphasis rather than basic meaning.

Very roughly:

• Dej sem materiál. = more neutral
• Materiál dej sem. = puts extra focus on materiál
• Sem dej materiál. = puts extra focus on sem

So Materiál dej sem can sound a bit like:

• Put the material here.
• The material, put it here.

The exact nuance depends on context and intonation.

No. Czech has no articles like a, an, or the.

So materiál can mean:

• material
• the material
• a material

The exact meaning depends on context.

In this sentence, English would usually translate it with the if the material is already known from the situation, but Czech does not need a separate word for that.

Yes. The verb dát is broad and often covers meanings that English splits into several verbs, depending on context.

So Materiál dej sem could be understood as:

• Put the material here
• Bring the material here
• Give me the material here in some contexts, though this is less likely as a basic translation

The exact English verb depends on the situation: is the person moving something onto a table, handing it over, or bringing it across a room?

The basic pronunciation is approximately:

• materiál = mah-teh-ree-AHL
• dej = like day
• sem = like sem in semester, but shorter

A key point: Czech stress is usually on the first syllable of each word:

• MAteriál
• DEJ
• SEM

But the long vowel in -ál is still important, so materiál has first-syllable stress even though the last syllable is long.