Learn Hardcore Czech: Můj syn má raději tmavé barvy a často nosí černé boty a bílé tričko. - My son prefers dark colors and often wears black shoes and a white T-shirt.

mít rád = to like
- Můj syn má rád tmavé barvy. – My son likes dark colors.
mít raději = to like more / to prefer (comparative)
- Můj syn má raději tmavé barvy. – My son prefers dark colors (likes dark colors more than light ones).
preferovat / preferuje = to prefer (more formal, international word)
- Můj syn preferuje tmavé barvy. – My son prefers dark colors.

In everyday Czech, má raději is very common and sounds more natural than preferuje in many contexts.

Why is it Můj syn má raději tmavé barvy and not tmavé barva?

Barva (color) is normally used in the plural when you talk about colors in general:

barva = one specific color
barvy = colors (in general, or more than one)

In the sentence, he prefers dark colors in general, not one single dark color, so Czechs say:

tmavé barvy = dark colors

Also, tmavé barvy is in the accusative plural (direct object of má raději), and barvy is the accusative plural form of barva.

What case are tmavé barvy, černé boty and bílé tričko in, and why?

All three are in the accusative case, because they are direct objects:

má raději tmavé barvy – he likes (what?) dark colors
nosí černé boty – he wears (what?) black shoes
nosí bílé tričko – he wears (what?) a white T‑shirt

So:

tmavé barvy – feminine plural accusative (from ta barva)
černé boty – feminine plural accusative (from ta bota)
bílé tričko – neuter singular accusative (from to tričko, same as nominative)

Why tmavé barvy and not something like tmavá barvy? How does the adjective ending work here?

Barvy is feminine plural (accusative), so the adjective tmavý must agree in gender, number, and case:

Feminine plural (nominative & accusative) → adjective ending -é

So you get:

tmavé barvy = dark colors

A quick comparison:

tmavá barva – dark color (feminine singular, nominative)
tmavé barvy – dark colors (feminine plural, nominative or accusative)

Why is it černé boty and not černá boty or černé bota?

The noun:

bota = shoe (feminine singular)
boty = shoes (feminine plural, also used for a pair of shoes)

In the sentence he often wears shoes (plural), so we need the plural form boty.
For feminine plural (nominative and accusative), the adjective ending is -é:

černé boty = black shoes

Wrong combinations:

černá boty – adjective is singular, noun is plural → mismatch
černé bota – adjective is plural, noun is singular → mismatch

Both adjective and noun must match: feminine + plural + accusative → černé boty.

Why is it bílé tričko and not bílý tričko?

Tričko (T‑shirt) is neuter:

to tričko – the T‑shirt (neuter singular)

Neuter singular adjectives in nominative and accusative end in -é:

bílé tričko – white T‑shirt

Compare:

bílý dům – white house (masculine)
bílá košile – white shirt (feminine)
bílé tričko – white T‑shirt (neuter)

So bílý tričko is wrong because bílý is masculine, but tričko is neuter.

What is the difference between nosí and má na sobě when talking about clothes?

Both can be translated as wears, but there is a nuance:

nosit (here: nosí)
- habitual, repeated action: what someone usually wears
- Často nosí černé boty. – He often wears black shoes (that is his habit).
mít na sobě
- literally to have on oneself, used more for what someone is wearing right now
- Má na sobě černé boty. – He is wearing black shoes (at this moment).

In your sentence, často nosí is correct because it talks about his general habit, not a single moment.

Can the word order change? For example, can I say Můj syn často nosí… or Můj syn nosí často…?

Yes, Czech word order is quite flexible, especially with adverbs like často (often).

All of these are grammatically correct:

Můj syn často nosí černé boty a bílé tričko.
Můj syn nosí často černé boty a bílé tričko.
Často můj syn nosí černé boty a bílé tričko.

Most neutral and common in speech would be:

Můj syn často nosí černé boty a bílé tričko.

Moving často changes the rhythm or slight emphasis (e.g. putting často earlier can emphasize the frequency more), but the basic meaning stays the same.

Why Můj syn and not Moje syn? How do the forms of můj / moje work?

The possessive můj (my) changes form according to the gender and number of the noun:

můj – with masculine animate (e.g. můj syn – my son)
moje – with feminine and neuter in the basic form (e.g. moje dcera, moje auto)

So:

syn = masculine animate → můj syn
dcera = feminine → moje dcera
tričko = neuter → moje tričko

That’s why Moje syn is incorrect; syn needs můj.

Why is there no word like a or the in Můj syn má raději tmavé barvy…? How do articles work in Czech?

Czech has no articles (no equivalent of English a/an or the).

So:

Můj syn can mean my son, my boy, or the son of mine, depending on context.
tmavé barvy can mean dark colors, the dark colors, or some dark colors.

The exact meaning (definite vs. indefinite) is understood from context, not from a special word. That’s why you don’t see any separate word for a or the in the sentence.

How would I say My son does not like dark colors or does not often wear black shoes using this structure?

You negate the verbs with ne-:

My son does not like dark colors.
- Můj syn nemá rád tmavé barvy.
  (Literally: my son not-has gladly dark colors.)
My son does not often wear black shoes.
- Můj syn často nenosí černé boty. – He often does not wear black shoes.
- Můj syn nenosí často černé boty. – He doesn’t wear black shoes often.

Both are possible; word order slightly affects what feels emphasized, but the structure ne + verb is the key for negation.

What is the pronunciation and role of ě and ď in raději?

In raději:

ď is a soft d sound, not a plain d.
ě after d, t, n usually softens the consonant and is pronounced roughly like ye.

So dě in raději is pronounced approximately like dye (with a very soft d), and the whole word is roughly ra-dye-yi (three syllables).

Functionally, raději is the comparative form of rád (gladly), so it means more gladly / rather / prefers.