Learn Hardcore Czech: Když je venku zima, beru si kabát, ale když je horko, kabát nechci. - When it is cold outside, I put on a coat, but when it is hot, I don't want a coat.

Když je venku zima, beru si kabát, ale když je horko, kabát nechci.

When it is cold outside, I put on a coat, but when it is hot, I don't want a coat.

Breakdown of Když je venku zima, beru si kabát, ale když je horko, kabát nechci.

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Questions & Answers about Když je venku zima, beru si kabát, ale když je horko, kabát nechci.

Why is když used here, and how is it different from až or jestli?

Když means “when / whenever” in a general, neutral way. It introduces a condition or time that can happen many times or regularly.

Když je venku zima, beru si kabát
= When(ever) it’s cold outside, I take a coat.

If you used:

až – this is more like “when (once, in the future)” / “as soon as”, usually for a one‑time or future event.
- Až bude venku zima, vezmu si kabát.
  = When it gets cold outside (at that time), I’ll take a coat.
jestli / pokud – these are more like “if”:
- Jestli bude venku zima, vezmu si kabát.
  = If it’s cold outside, I’ll take a coat. (condition, not a regular pattern)

In your sentence, we’re talking about a general, repeated situation → když is the natural choice.

Why is the word order když je venku zima and not když je zima venku?

Both když je venku zima and když je zima venku are grammatically correct, but:

když je venku zima is the most neutral and natural order:
- venku (“outside”) comes right after the verb je (“is”), forming a standard pattern: je + place + what it’s like.
- literally: when it is outside cold → when it is cold outside.
když je zima venku puts a little more emphasis on zima (the cold) first, and venku sounds a bit like an afterthought:
- more like when it is cold, outside.

In everyday speech, když je venku zima is what you’ll hear most.

What exactly does je venku zima mean? Why is zima not in another case like zimu?

Je venku zima literally is: “(it) is outside cold”.

je = “is”
venku = “outside” (adverb, not declined)
zima = “cold / cold weather / winter” (here: a state, not a concrete object)

Grammatically, zima here is in the nominative singular, acting as a predicative complement (what something is). Czech often uses a noun in the nominative to describe states, weather, or feelings:

Je zima. – It’s cold.
Je teplo. – It’s warm.
Je horko. – It’s hot.
Je mi zima. – I am cold. (literally: It is cold to me.)

You would not use zimu here; zimu (accusative) is for objects of verbs (e.g. mám rád zimu – I like winter). After je (is), you use nominative: je zima.

Why does the sentence use zima for “cold” but horko for “hot”? Why not horká or something similar?

Czech uses two slightly different patterns here:

zima – a noun meaning “cold / coldness / winter”.
horko – originally a neuter form of an adjective used like a noun/adverb meaning “heat / it is hot”.

In weather/temperature expressions, Czech has a set of “fixed” nouns or nominal forms:

Je zima. – It’s cold.
Je chladno. – It’s chilly.
Je teplo. – It’s warm.
Je horko. – It’s hot.
Je vedro. – It’s very hot / a scorcher.

You would not say Je horká for the general weather; that sounds like you’re describing a feminine noun (e.g. polévka je horká – the soup is hot).

So the pair in your sentence is natural:

je venku zima – it’s (cold) outside
je horko – it’s (hot)

Why is there no word for “it” in když je venku zima? Why not když je to venku zima?

Czech usually does not use an explicit “it” in impersonal weather expressions.

Je zima. – It is cold.
Je horko. – It is hot.
Prší. – It’s raining.
Sněží. – It’s snowing.

The subject “it” in English has no direct equivalent here; the verb is simply used impersonally.

You can sometimes use to (it/that) in other kinds of sentences:

To je zima! – That’s cold! (expressing surprise or emphasis)

But in the neutral descriptive sentence když je venku zima, adding to (když je to venku zima) sounds wrong or at least very unnatural. Native speakers don’t say it that way.

What’s the difference between beru si kabát and just beru kabát?

Beru si kabát and beru kabát are both grammatically correct, but they’re used a bit differently.

brát si + accusative usually means “to take something for oneself, to put on clothes”:
- Beru si kabát. – I take a coat (for myself) / I’m putting on a coat.
- Vezmu si kabát. – I’ll take / put on a coat.
brát + accusative without si is more general “take, pick up, carry, accept,” etc.:
- Beru kabát a deštník. – I’m taking my coat and umbrella (with me).
- Beru léky každý den. – I take medicine every day.

In the sentence:

Když je venku zima, beru si kabát…

the idea is “I put on a coat” or “I take a coat for myself,” so beru si is the natural reflexive form.

What is the difference between beru si kabát and vezmu si kabát?

This is the imperfective vs. perfective aspect pair:

brát si (imperfective) – beru si = “I take / I am taking”
- used for habits, ongoing actions, repeated actions.
vzít si (perfective) – vezmu si = “I will take (once)”
- used for one-time, completed actions, especially in the future.

In your sentence:

Když je venku zima, beru si kabát
→ habit / general rule: Whenever it’s cold outside, I take a coat.

If you said:

Když bude venku zima, vezmu si kabát.
→ When it’s cold outside (that time), I’ll take a coat. (one particular situation, more like a plan for the future)

Why is si used with beru but not with nechci? Could it be kabát nechci si?

si here is a reflexive dative used with certain verbs to mean “for myself” or to express a typical phrase.

brát si / vzít si – standard reflexive pair: “to take (for oneself), to put on”
- Beru si kabát.
- Vezmu si kabát.

The verb chtít (to want) normally does not take reflexive si in this sense:

Nechci kabát. – I don’t want a coat.
Kabát nechci. – I don’t want a coat. (with focus on coat)

Nechci si kabát is only possible if the rest explains a second verb, e.g.:

Nechci si brát kabát. – I don’t want to take a coat (for myself).
Here si belongs to brát si, not to chtít.

But kabát nechci si is simply incorrect in Czech.

Why is the word order kabát nechci and not nechci kabát?

Both kabát nechci and nechci kabát are grammatically correct. The difference is emphasis:

Nechci kabát.
– neutral: I don’t want a coat. (simple statement)
Kabát nechci.
– fronting kabát adds focus to “coat”:
- A coat I don’t want.
- implying contrast: maybe you’d accept something else (a sweater, T‑shirt), but not a coat.

In your original sentence:

…ale když je horko, kabát nechci.

The word order underlines the contrast with the first clause (where you take a coat). It feels like: When it’s hot, a coat is exactly what I don’t want.

What case is kabát here, and why doesn’t it change form?

Kabát is in the accusative singular, because it’s the direct object of the verbs:

beru si kabát – I take (what?) a coat.
kabát nechci – I don’t want (what?) a coat.

For masculine inanimate nouns like kabát, the nominative singular and accusative singular have the same form:

Nominative: kabát – Ten kabát je nový. – That coat is new.
Accusative: kabát – Beru si kabát. – I’m taking a coat.

So it stays kabát in both roles; only the function in the sentence (subject vs object) is different.

Could I say když je zima, beru si kabát without venku? What’s the difference?

Yes, když je zima, beru si kabát is perfectly correct.

Difference in nuance:

když je zima, …
– when it is cold (in general; maybe inside, maybe outside; context decides)
když je venku zima, …
– when it is cold outside (explicitly specifying outside)

So venku just makes it clear that you’re talking about the outdoor temperature.

Could I say když je venku zima, nosím kabát instead of beru si kabát?

You can say it, but the meaning shifts a bit, because nosit is different from brát si:

nosit (imperfective) = “to wear” or “to carry regularly”
- Nosím kabát. – I wear a coat. / I usually go with a coat.
brát si = “to take (for oneself), to put on (each time)”
- Beru si kabát. – I (habitually) take a coat / put on a coat (when leaving, etc.).

So:

Když je venku zima, beru si kabát.
– Each time it’s cold, I take / put on a coat.
Když je venku zima, nosím kabát.
– When it’s cold outside, I go around wearing a coat.
(more about your general style/clothing over the whole period of cold weather)

Both are fine; beru si highlights the act of taking/putting it on, nosím highlights the state of wearing it.

Why is the present tense used (beru si, nechci) instead of a future form? Does it still sound like a general rule?

Yes, the Czech present tense is commonly used for general truths, habits, and repeated actions, just like English:

Když je venku zima, beru si kabát.
– Whenever it’s cold outside, I take a coat. (habit)

No future tense is needed here. Compare:

Když jsem unavený, jdu spát. – When I’m tired, I go to sleep.
Když mám hlad, najím se. – When I’m hungry, I eat.

If you want to talk about a specific, one‑time future situation, you’d use a perfective future:

Až bude venku zima, vezmu si kabát. – When it gets cold outside (that time), I’ll take a coat.

Why is there a comma before ale in …, ale když je horko, kabát nechci?

In Czech punctuation, ale (“but”) is a coordinating conjunction that usually requires a comma before it when it connects two clauses or main parts of a sentence.

Your sentence has two main clauses:

Když je venku zima, beru si kabát
(ale) když je horko, kabát nechci

They are connected by ale, so you write:

Když je venku zima, beru si kabát, ale když je horko, kabát nechci.

The comma before ale is standard and expected in written Czech.

Could I say když je horko, nechci kabát instead of když je horko, kabát nechci?

Yes, když je horko, nechci kabát is perfectly correct and natural. The difference:

nechci kabát – neutral, no special focus.
kabát nechci – emphasizes “coat” more strongly, contrasting it with what you might want (e.g. T‑shirt, shorts).

In your original contrast:

Když je venku zima, beru si kabát, ale když je horko, kabát nechci.

the fronted kabát in the second part helps highlight the contrast with the first part (where you do take the coat). But grammatically and semantically, nechci kabát works just as well.