Moje dcera není nemocná, ale je unavená.

My daughter is not ill, but she is tired.

Breakdown of Moje dcera není nemocná, ale je unavená.

• být: to be
• můj: my
• ale: but
• nemocný: ill
• dcera: the daughter
• unavený: tired

Questions & Answers about Moje dcera není nemocná, ale je unavená.

Why is it moje dcera and not můj dcera?

Czech possessive pronouns agree with the gender of the noun they modify.

• dcera (daughter) is feminine singular
• The feminine singular form of můj (my) is moje (or má)

So:

• můj syn – my son (syn = masculine)
• moje dcera – my daughter (dcera = feminine)
• moje auto – my car (auto = neuter)

Using můj dcera is grammatically wrong because můj is masculine, but dcera is feminine.

Can I say Má dcera není nemocná, ale je unavená instead of Moje dcera…? Is there any difference?

Yes, you can say Má dcera…; it is correct.

Difference:

• moje dcera – neutral, the most common in modern spoken Czech.
• má dcera – a bit more formal, stylistically elevated, or literary; you’ll see it more in writing.

In everyday speech, moje dcera is more typical, but both are grammatically fine and mean the same thing.

Why do nemocná and unavená both end in -á?

Both nemocná (ill) and unavená (tired) are adjectives describing dcera, which is feminine singular.

Czech adjectives agree in:

• gender (here: feminine),
• number (singular),
• case (here: nominative, because they describe the subject).

The basic adjective endings:

• masculine: -ý (nemocný, unavený)
• feminine: -á (nemocná, unavená)
• neuter: -é (nemocné, unavené)

So, because dcera is feminine, we need nemocná, unavená.

Why is it není nemocná and not something like je ne nemocná?

Czech negates the verb být (to be) by attaching “ne-” directly to it:

• je (is) → není (is not)
• jsem (I am) → nejsem (I am not)
• jsou (they are) → nejsou (they are not)

You do not say je ne nemocná.

Correct patterns:

• Moje dcera je nemocná. – My daughter is ill.
• Moje dcera není nemocná. – My daughter is not ill.

Is the verb je in the second part necessary? Could I say Moje dcera není nemocná, ale unavená?

Both are possible, with a slight difference in style:

1. Moje dcera není nemocná, ale je unavená.
   – Fully explicit, neutral, good for learners and for writing.

2. Moje dcera není nemocná, ale unavená.
   – The second je is omitted but understood from context.
   This is natural in Czech; the verb can be dropped in the second clause when it is the same as in the first part.

Meaning is the same. Version 1 feels a bit clearer and “schoolbook”; version 2 is more compact and very common.

Could I leave out je in the first part too and say Moje dcera ne nemocná, ale unavená?

No, that is not standard Czech and sounds wrong.

You can sometimes omit je in simple short statements (mainly colloquial speech), e.g.:

• Dcera nemocná. (very informal, like a note)

But in a full sentence contrasting two states (not ill / but tired), you should keep není and normally also je (or at least have není):

• ✅ Moje dcera není nemocná, ale (je) unavená.
• ❌ Moje dcera ne nemocná, ale unavená.

Why is there a comma before ale?

In Czech, ale (but) is a coordinating conjunction connecting two clauses that contrast with each other. A comma is required before it in this usage.

So:

• Moje dcera není nemocná, ale je unavená.

This follows the general rule: place a comma before ale when it joins two clauses or longer parts of a sentence.

What case is dcera in here, and why?

Dcera is in the nominative singular.

Reasons:

• It is the subject of the sentence: Who is (not) ill and tired? → Moje dcera.
• Nominative is the dictionary (basic) form and is used for subjects.

A few other forms for comparison:

• nominative: dcera – (subject) Moje dcera spí. (My daughter sleeps.)
• accusative: dceru – (direct object) Vidím dceru. (I see my daughter.)
• genitive: dcery – (of) Nemám dcery. (I don’t have a daughter.)

In this sentence we need nominative because dcera is doing the “being/not being” (the subject).

Could I say Moje dcera není nemocná, ale unavená je? Does that change the meaning?

You can say that, but the word order changes the emphasis:

• Moje dcera není nemocná, ale je unavená. – neutral.
• Moje dcera není nemocná, ale unavená je. – puts contrastive stress on “unavená” (tired) and/or on je; it sounds more emphatic or slightly dramatic, like:
  • “She isn’t ill, but tired she is.”

This kind of word order is used to stress what comes before je. For everyday neutral speech, the original order is more common.

What is the difference between nemocná and words like špatně or zle that also relate to feeling bad?

• nemocná – literally ill / sick, i.e. she has an illness.

  • Moje dcera není nemocná. – My daughter is not ill.

• špatně – an adverb, often “bad(ly)”, used for how someone feels:

  • Je mi špatně. – I feel sick / I feel bad.

• zle – also “bad(ly), badly”, somewhat more expressive or regional.

So in this sentence, nemocná is correct because we are talking about being ill (adjective), not just feeling bad in general.

Why unavená and not unavený or unaveno?

Again, it’s gender agreement with dcera (feminine):

Adjective unavený (tired):

• masculine: unavený – Ten muž je unavený. (That man is tired.)
• feminine: unavená – Moje dcera je unavená. (My daughter is tired.)
• neuter: unavené – Dítě je unavené. (The child is tired.)

Since dcera is feminine, the only correct form here is unavená.