Breakdown of Moje sestra chce psát v novinách o svobodě.
Questions & Answers about Moje sestra chce psát v novinách o svobodě.
Both moje sestra and má sestra are correct and mean the same thing: my sister.
- moje is the full form of the possessive pronoun.
- má is a shorter, slightly more formal or stylistic variant.
For feminine singular nouns in the nominative (like sestra), you can generally use either:
- moje sestra
- má sestra
In everyday speech, moje sestra is more common and neutral. má sestra can sound a bit more literary or emphatic, but it's not wrong.
Czech does not use a separate word like English to before infinitive verbs.
The structure is simply:
- chtít (to want) + infinitive
So:
- chce psát = wants to write
(chce = she wants, psát = to write)
You never add anything between chce and psát. A construction like chce to psát would be wrong in this sense.
Czech verbs come in aspect pairs: imperfective (ongoing, repeated, general) and perfective (single, completed event).
- psát = imperfective, "to write" as an activity, habit, or process.
- napsat = perfective, "to write (and finish writing) something."
In this sentence, chce psát expresses a general desire to do writing (as an activity), for example as a journalist or columnist.
If you said chce napsat článek, it would mean she wants to write (and complete) an article – one specific finished piece.
You can say it, but it changes the meaning and sounds a bit odd without an object.
- chce napsat v novinách o svobodě suggests:
- she wants to write (complete) some specific text in the newspapers about freedom.
More natural perfective versions would usually specify what she wants to write:
- Moje sestra chce napsat článek v novinách o svobodě.
My sister wants to write an article in the newspapers about freedom.
For the general idea “she wants to be writing in newspapers about freedom” (as an ongoing activity), chce psát is more appropriate.
The preposition v (in) normally takes the locative case when it means location (“in, inside”).
- The noun noviny (newspaper(s)) is plural.
- Its locative plural form is novinách.
So:
- Nominative plural: noviny (newspapers)
- Locative plural: v novinách (in newspapers)
v noviny would be incorrect because noviny is not in the locative case.
The ending -ách is a common ending for the locative plural of many feminine (and some other) nouns.
For noviny (plural only):
- Nominative plural: noviny
- Genitive plural: novin
- Dative plural: novinám
- Accusative plural: noviny
- Locative plural: novinách
- Instrumental plural: novinami
So novinách is simply the locative plural form required after v (in) when you express location.
Both phrases are used with noviny, but they express different ideas:
- v novinách = in the newspapers (location, where something is)
- psát v novinách – to write in newspapers (you have articles that appear there)
- do novin = into the newspapers / for a newspaper (direction, target)
- psát do novin – to write for a newspaper (as a contributor/journalist)
For the idea “to work as a journalist / to write for newspapers”, Czech more commonly uses:
- psát do novin o svobodě
The original sentence psát v novinách o svobodě is understandable and not wrong, but psát do novin is often more idiomatic in this context.
When o means about (talk/write/think about something), it takes the locative case.
The noun svoboda (freedom) is feminine singular, and its locative singular is svobodě.
Declension of svoboda (singular):
- Nominative: svoboda
- Genitive: svobody
- Dative: svobodě
- Accusative: svobodu
- Vocative: svobodo (rare)
- Locative: svobodě
- Instrumental: svobodou
So after o (about), you must use the locative: o svobodě = about freedom.
o svobodu would be accusative and wrong here; o svoboda is just nominative and ungrammatical after o in this meaning.
Yes, you can change the word order, and the basic meaning stays the same. Czech has relatively flexible word order.
Possible versions:
- Moje sestra chce psát v novinách o svobodě.
- Moje sestra chce psát o svobodě v novinách.
Both mean that her writing in newspapers is about freedom. The difference is mostly in rhythm and slight emphasis:
- v novinách o svobodě – a bit more neutral order, grouping “in newspapers” first.
- o svobodě v novinách – slightly stronger focus on the topic “about freedom” first, then specifying where.
But in everyday speech, both are completely fine and natural.
Czech does not have articles at all – there is no direct equivalent of English a/an or the.
- sestra can mean a sister or the sister depending on context.
- v novinách can mean in newspapers, in a newspaper, or in the newspapers.
- o svobodě can mean about freedom or about the freedom.
Definiteness and indefiniteness are understood from the context, not from a specific word like a or the.
Yes, Czech possessive pronouns agree with the gender, number, and case of the noun they modify.
For my (possessing person = I), the basic nominative forms are:
Singular:
- Masculine animate: můj (můj bratr – my brother)
- Masculine inanimate: můj (můj dům – my house)
- Feminine: moje (moje sestra – my sister)
- Neuter: moje (moje auto – my car)
Plural:
- Masculine animate: moji (moji bratři – my brothers)
- Non‑masculine animate (feminine + neuter together): moje (moje sestry – my sisters; moje auta – my cars)
In other cases, the form changes just like adjectives do. For example:
- Genitive feminine singular: mojí sestry
- Locative feminine singular: o mojí sestře (also o mé sestře in shorter form)
So moje in moje sestra is the nominative feminine singular form.
Here is the case breakdown:
- Moje sestra – nominative singular (subject)
- sestra = sister, nominative singular feminine
- moje agrees with sestra (nominative feminine singular)
- chce psát – verb phrase (finite verb + infinitive)
- chce = 3rd person singular present of chtít
- psát = infinitive
- v novinách – locative plural after v (in)
- novinách = locative plural of noviny
- o svobodě – locative singular after o (about)
- svobodě = locative singular of svoboda
So the sentence uses nominative (subject) and locative (after the prepositions v and o). No other cases appear here.