Po obědě nám číšník dal účet.

after

Breakdown of Po obědě nám číšník dal účet.

• oběd: the lunch
• nám: us
• číšník: the waiter

Questions & Answers about Po obědě nám číšník dal účet.

Why is it po obědě instead of po oběd or some other form?

In Czech the preposition po meaning “after” takes the locative case when it refers to time. The base noun is oběd (lunch), so you use its locative singular obědě (oběd → obědě). You will see the same pattern in po práci (“after work”), po hodině (“after an hour”), etc.

What role does nám play in this sentence?

nám is the dative pronoun “to us.” The verb dát (“to give”) is ditransitive: it requires a direct object (what is given) in the accusative and an indirect object (to whom something is given) in the dative. Here účet is the thing given (accusative) and nám is the recipient (dative).

Why is nám placed before the verb dal rather than after číšník?

Czech has a rule for clitic pronouns (mi, ti, mu, nám, vám, etc.): they must occupy the second position in the clause after the first accentual element. In Po obědě (“After lunch”) the whole phrase is the first element, so the clitic nám immediately follows it, then comes číšník, then dal účet.

What case is účet in, and why?