Learn Hardcore Czech: Moje maminka má ráda kávu s cukrem a velkou snídani. - My mom likes coffee with sugar and a big breakfast.

So in Moje maminka má ráda…, má is the verb “has” and ráda is an adverb/adjectival form meaning “gladly”. Together they function as one phrase: “likes.”

There is no single everyday verb that works exactly like English “to like” for all contexts, so mít rád is the standard option for general preferences (food, people, hobbies, etc.).

Why is it ráda, not rád or rádo in má ráda?

The word rád / ráda / rádo / rádi agrees with the gender and number of the person who likes something:

masculine singular: rád – On má rád kávu. – He likes coffee.
feminine singular: ráda – Ona má ráda kávu. – She likes coffee.
neuter singular: rádo – used rarely as a subject, e.g. for neuter nouns.
plural (mixed or masculine animate): rádi – Oni mají rádi kávu. – They like coffee.
feminine-only plural: rády – Ženy mají rády kávu. – Women like coffee.

Since maminka is grammatically feminine, the sentence must use ráda:
Moje maminka má ráda…

Why is it kávu instead of káva?

Káva is the basic (nominative) form “coffee.”
In the sentence, káva is the direct object of má ráda (she likes what? → coffee), so it must be in the accusative case:

nominative (subject): káva – Káva je horká. – The coffee is hot.
accusative (object): kávu – Má ráda kávu. – She likes coffee.

So má ráda kávu = “likes coffee.” The -u ending is just the regular feminine accusative ending for many -a nouns.

Why is it s cukrem and not s cukr?

The preposition s (“with”) in Czech always requires the instrumental case.

The noun cukr (sugar) has:

nominative: cukr – Cukr je sladký. – Sugar is sweet.
instrumental: cukrem – káva s cukrem – coffee with sugar.

So s cukrem literally means “with sugar” in the instrumental case.
You cannot say s cukr; that is grammatically wrong.

Why is it velkou snídani, not velká snídaně?

Again, this is about the accusative case (direct object).

The basic forms are:

velká snídaně – “a big breakfast” (nominative, used for the subject)
- Velká snídaně je důležitá. – A big breakfast is important.

In the sentence, velkou snídani is also a direct object of má ráda (she likes what? → a big breakfast). So both the adjective and the noun must be in accusative singular, feminine:

adjective: velká → velkou
noun: snídaně → snídani

Hence: má ráda … velkou snídani.

Why is there no word for “a” or “the” in the sentence?

Czech does not have articles like English “a/an” and “the.”
Nouns appear without articles, and the meaning “a” vs “the” is guessed from context.

So:

kávu can mean “coffee”, “a coffee,” “the coffee.”
velkou snídani can mean “a big breakfast” or “the big breakfast,” depending on context.

In this context, Moje maminka má ráda kávu s cukrem a velkou snídani is naturally interpreted in English as:
“My mom likes coffee with sugar and a big breakfast.”

What exactly does maminka mean? Is it “mom” or “mother”?

Maminka is a diminutive and affectionate form, roughly:

maminka ≈ “mommy,” “mumsy” – warm, childlike/affectionate
máma ≈ “mom / mum” – neutral, everyday
matka ≈ “mother” – more formal, sometimes cold or technical (e.g. legal, medical).

In normal everyday speech, adults commonly say máma or maminka to mean “mom.”
So Moje maminka usually translates best as “My mom.”

What is the difference between moje maminka and má maminka?

Both mean “my mother / my mom.”

moje maminka – full form of the possessive pronoun můj / moje / moje…
má maminka – short form of the same pronoun.

General tendencies:

Both forms are grammatically correct.
The short form (má, tvá, svá, etc.) is often a bit more formal or literary, and is more common before the noun:
- má maminka, tvá sestra.
The long form (moje, tvoje, svoje, etc.) sounds slightly more neutral/colloquial and is also common, especially in speech.

In everyday conversation, Moje maminka… is perfectly natural.

Could we say Moje máma instead of Moje maminka? Would it change the meaning?

Yes:

Moje máma má ráda kávu s cukrem a velkou snídani.

is completely correct and very natural.

Nuance:

maminka – more affectionate, softer, often used by children, but also by adults who speak warmly.
máma – neutral, everyday.

The basic meaning (“my mom”) is the same; it’s just a difference in tone.

Why is the order Moje maminka má ráda kávu s cukrem a velkou snídani and not something like Ráda má moje maminka kávu…?

Czech word order is freer than English, but there is still a neutral / most natural order:

Subject – Moje maminka
Verb – má
Complement to the verb – ráda
Objects – kávu s cukrem a velkou snídani

So Moje maminka má ráda kávu s cukrem a velkou snídani is the neutral, unmarked version.

You could move elements for emphasis or stylistic reasons:

Kávu s cukrem má moje maminka ráda. – Emphasis on coffee with sugar.
Moje maminka kávu s cukrem moc ráda má. – Very marked, poetic/expressive.

But for a learner, the original order is the best to copy.

Does má ráda kávu s cukrem a velkou snídani mean she likes them together (in one meal) or just likes both things in general?

The Czech structure is the same kind of ambiguity as in English:

My mom likes coffee with sugar and a big breakfast.

It can mean:

She likes coffee with sugar, and she also likes a big breakfast.
She likes “coffee with sugar and (also) a big breakfast” as one combined morning experience.

Usually, listeners will assume she likes both things, normally as part of her morning routine. If you needed to be explicit that these are two separate likes, you could split the sentence:

Moje maminka má ráda kávu s cukrem. Taky má ráda velkou snídani.

Why is there no progressive form like “is liking” in Czech?

Czech does not have a separate progressive/continuous tense like English “is liking / is drinking.”

The present tense in Czech covers both:

habitual / general truth:
- Moje maminka má ráda kávu. – My mom likes coffee.
right now (for action verbs):
- Pije kávu. – She is drinking coffee / She drinks coffee.

For stative verbs like “like” (mít rád), you almost always talk about general preference anyway, so má ráda simply means “likes.”

Could we say Moje maminka ráda pije kávu s cukrem instead of má ráda kávu s cukrem? What is the difference?

Yes, both are correct, but they focus on slightly different things:

Moje maminka má ráda kávu s cukrem.
- Focus on the thing she likes: coffee with sugar.
- Means: She likes coffee with sugar in general.
Moje maminka ráda pije kávu s cukrem.
- ráda modifies the verb pije (“drinks gladly”).
- Focus on the activity: She enjoys drinking coffee with sugar.
- Closer to English: “My mom likes to drink coffee with sugar.”

Both are natural; the original sentence chooses the more typical “mít rád + noun” pattern.