Learn Hardcore Czech: Na dovolené jsme často jedli teplý oběd v malé restauraci. - On vacation we often ate a warm lunch in a small restaurant.

Because the preposition na (meaning “on” or “during”) when indicating a location or time period requires the locative. The noun dovolená (“holiday, vacation”) is feminine, and its locative singular ending is –é, giving dovolené.

How is the past tense formed in jsme jedli?

Czech past tense is built with the present tense of být (“to be”) plus the past participle of the main verb. Here jsme is the 1st-person plural present of být, and jedli is the past participle of jíst (“to eat”), so jsme jedli literally means “we were eating,” i.e. “we ate.”

Why use the imperfective jedli instead of a perfective like snědli?

The imperfective jíst describes ongoing or repeated actions, which fits často (“often”). The perfective sněst/snědli implies a single, completed event (“we finished eating”). Since the sentence speaks about a habitual action on holiday, the imperfective is correct.

Why is často placed between jsme and jedli?

In Czech, adverbs of frequency commonly sit between the auxiliary and the main verb: jsme často jedli. This placement clearly marks the habitual nature of the action.

What case is teplý oběd in, and why does it look like the nominative?

teplý oběd is in the accusative, because it’s the direct object (“ate a warm lunch”). Masculine inanimate nouns like oběd have identical singular forms in nominative and accusative. The adjective teplý simply matches in gender, number and case, so it stays the same.

Why do we say v malé restauraci, and what case is that?

To express location “in a small restaurant,” we use v (“in”), which requires the locative case. The noun restaurace changes to restauraci (locative singular), and the adjective malá becomes malé to agree.

Can we replace na dovolené with během dovolené?

Yes. během takes the genitive, so během dovolené also means “during the vacation.” Nuance: na dovolené emphasizes being “away on holiday,” while během dovolené focuses more on the time span.

Is the word order in this sentence fixed?

Czech word order is flexible, but the neutral pattern here is: circumstantial info (Na dovolené) – auxiliary (jsme) – frequency adverb (často) – main verb (jedli) – object (teplý oběd) – place (v malé restauraci). You can move elements for emphasis, but this order is clear and standard.