Naše ulice ještě nemá jméno.

Breakdown of Naše ulice ještě nemá jméno.

mít
to have
náš
our
ještě
still
ulice
the street
jméno
the name
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Questions & Answers about Naše ulice ještě nemá jméno.

Why is it naše ulice and not náš ulice?

Czech possessive pronouns agree with the gender and number of the noun, not the owner.

  • ulice is grammatically feminine.
  • The feminine singular form of náš (our) is naše.

So:

  • naše ulice = our street (feminine)
  • náš dům = our house (masculine)
  • naše město = our town (neuter)

That’s why naše ulice is correct, not náš ulice.

What case are ulice and jméno in?
  • ulice is the subject, so it is in the nominative singular: ulice.
  • jméno is the direct object of the verb mít (to have), so it is in the accusative singular.

For neuter nouns like jméno, nominative and accusative singular have the same form:

  • nominative sg.: jméno
  • accusative sg.: jméno

So the form doesn’t change, but the function in the sentence does.

Why do we use nemá and not není?
  • mít = to have
  • být = to be

The English sentence is “Our street does not have a name yet.”
So Czech uses the verb mít (to have):

  • má jméno = has a name
  • nemá jméno = does not have a name

If you said Naše ulice ještě není jméno, it would be incorrect; není needs a complement like an adjective or noun in nominative (e.g. Ulice není dlouhá = The street is not long).

A correct reformulation with být would be:

  • Naše ulice ještě není pojmenovaná. = Our street is not named yet.
What does ještě mean here, and where can it go in the sentence?

ještě means yet or still, depending on context. Here it corresponds to “yet”:

  • Naše ulice ještě nemá jméno.
    = Our street doesn’t have a name yet.

Common positions:

  • Naše ulice ještě nemá jméno. (neutral, very common)
  • Naše ulice nemá ještě jméno. (slightly more emphasis on jméno)

You can also say:

  • Naše ulice už má jméno. = Our street already has a name.
    ( is often the opposite of ještě.)
Why is ulice feminine when it ends with -e?

In Czech, word endings only often, not always, predict gender.

ulice belongs to a common feminine pattern (like růže, restaurace):

  • ulice – street (feminine)
  • restaurace – restaurant (feminine)

So even though in English street has no grammatical gender, in Czech ulice is feminine, which is why the possessive is naše, not náš.

Could I leave out naše and just say Ulice ještě nemá jméno?

Yes, that’s possible and grammatically correct:

  • Ulice ještě nemá jméno. = The street doesn’t have a name yet.

Czech often drops possessives where English would require them, especially if the owner is obvious from context.

  • Use Naše ulice… when you want to emphasize that it’s our street, or when context does not make it clear whose street you mean.
  • Use Ulice… when it’s clear from context or you’re speaking more generally.
Why is it nemá jméno and not something like žádné jméno nemá?

Both are possible, but they differ slightly in emphasis:

  • Naše ulice ještě nemá jméno.
    = Our street doesn’t have a name yet. (neutral, everyday wording)

  • Naše ulice ještě nemá žádné jméno.
    = Our street still doesn’t have any name. (more emphatic, stressing the complete lack)

Czech often uses double negatives (e.g. nikdo nic neví), but here žádné is optional.
Without žádné, the sentence is still perfectly natural.

How is jméno pronounced, especially the beginning jm-?

jméno is pronounced approximately:

  • [ˈjmɛːno] (IPA)
  • Roughly like “ym-eh-no” but with a short y/j and a long é.

Details:

  • j = like English y in yes
  • jm forms a small consonant cluster; say j (y) and m very close together: y-m
  • é is a long e sound, like in “bed” but held longer
  • Stress is on the first syllable: JMÉ-no
Is there a difference between jméno and název for “name”? Which is better for a street?

Yes, there is a nuance:

  • jméno = name (especially of people, but also streets, rivers, days)
  • název = name/title (more often for things, organizations, works, brands)

For streets, you can hear both:

  • Naše ulice ještě nemá jméno.
  • Naše ulice ještě nemá název.

Both mean the same in practice. jméno is very common and perfectly natural here; název sounds a bit more formal/technical, like in city planning documents.

What is the verb form nemá exactly?

nemá is:

  • verb: mít (to have)
  • person: 3rd person
  • number: singular
  • polarity: negative

Present tense of mít (singular) is:

  • (já) mám – I have
  • (ty) máš – you have (sg., informal)
  • (on/ona/ono) – he/she/it has

Negative:

  • nemám, nemáš, nemá…

Here, the subject is ulice (she/it), so:

  • Ulice má jméno. = The street has a name.
  • Ulice nemá jméno. = The street does not have a name.
Could the word order be Ještě naše ulice nemá jméno? Does that change the meaning?

Yes, that word order is possible:

  • Ještě naše ulice nemá jméno.

The basic meaning is the same: the street doesn’t have a name yet.

However, starting with Ještě can:

  • sound a bit more expressive or emphatic, highlighting the time/aspect: “Still, our street doesn’t have a name.”
  • be used in contrast:
    Naše sousední ulice už má jméno. Ještě naše ulice nemá jméno.
    (The neighbouring street already has a name. Our street still doesn’t have a name.)

For a neutral sentence, Naše ulice ještě nemá jméno is the most typical.

Is Naše ulice ještě nemá jméno formal or informal? Would it be used in speech?

The sentence is neutral in style and very natural in everyday speech.

You can use it:

  • in casual conversation
  • in semi-formal situations (e.g. speaking with a city official)
  • in writing, too

It’s neither slangy nor overly formal.