Odbiju badmintonový míček forhendem.

I return the shuttlecock with a forehand.

Breakdown of Odbiju badmintonový míček forhendem.

• badmintonový míček: the shuttlecock
• forhend: the forehand
• odbít: to strike; return (the shuttlecock)

Questions & Answers about Odbiju badmintonový míček forhendem.

What exactly does odbiju mean in this sentence?

Here odbiju means I will return / hit back the shuttlecock. It comes from the verb odbít, which in sports often has the sense of sending the ball or shuttlecock away or back to the other side.

The prefix od- often adds the idea of away, off, or back.

Why does odbiju mean the future, even though there is no separate future word?

Because odbít is a perfective verb.

In Czech, the present-tense forms of perfective verbs usually refer to the future. So:

• odbiju = I will return / hit back
• not I am returning

If you wanted an ongoing or habitual present meaning, you would use the imperfective verb instead, for example odbíjím.

So the contrast is roughly:

• odbiju = one completed return in the future
• odbíjím = I am returning / I return

Why is there no já in the sentence?

Czech often leaves out subject pronouns when they are clear from the verb ending.

The ending -u in odbiju already tells you the subject is I. So já is unnecessary unless you want extra emphasis or contrast.

For example:

• Odbiju badmintonový míček forhendem. = neutral
• Já odbiju badmintonový míček forhendem. = I will return it with a forehand, maybe contrasting with someone else