Learn Hardcore Czech: Ten malíř je náš učitel.

Ten is a demonstrative pronoun/adjective. Literally it means something like “that (one)” or “this (one)”, depending on context and intonation.

Because Czech has no articles (a, the), ten is often used where English would naturally use “that” or sometimes “the” to point to a specific person or thing.

So:

Ten malíř ≈ that painter / that (particular) painter
In some contexts it can feel close to “the painter (we’ve been talking about)”, but it still has a pointing/identifying flavor, not a neutral article.

Why is it ten malíř and not ten malíř vs. tenhle malíř or tamten malíř? What’s the difference?

Czech has several “that/this” words, with slightly different nuances:

ten malíř – neutral “that painter”, “the painter (that we mean)”. Most common, stylistically neutral, often used just to specify which one.
tenhle malíř – more like “this painter (here / we’ve just mentioned)”. Slightly more conversational, emphasizes closeness (physically or in the conversation).
tamten malíř – more like “that painter over there / that other painter”. Emphasizes distance or contrast (e.g. not this one, but that one).

In your sentence, Ten malíř je náš učitel, the speaker is just identifying a specific painter, so simple ten is natural and enough.

Why are both malíř and učitel in the same form? Shouldn’t one of them be in a different case?

Both malíř and učitel are in the nominative singular (dictionary form).

In Czech, with the verb být (“to be”) in a sentence of the type X is Y where Y is a role/identity (job, nationality, etc.), it’s normal for both nouns to be in the nominative:

Ten malíř (subject, nominative)
je (3rd person singular of být)
náš učitel (predicate noun, also nominative)

So, structurally:
> [Ten malíř] (That painter) [je] (is) [náš učitel] (our teacher).

This is called nominative predicate (or “predicate nominative” in English grammar terms).

I’ve seen sentences like Je učitelem. Can I say Ten malíř je naším učitelem instead? What’s the difference?

Yes, you can, and it’s correct. This uses the instrumental case:

náš učitel – nominative (our teacher)
naším učitelem – instrumental (as/being our teacher)

Meaning difference:

Ten malíř je náš učitel.
– Very direct identification: That painter is our teacher (he is the one who is our teacher).
– Both sides are like “labels” in nominative.
Ten malíř je naším učitelem.
– Slightly more about his role/function: That painter serves as / works as our teacher.
– Instrumental with být often emphasizes a role, capacity, or function.

In everyday speech, both are common. The nuance is subtle; in many contexts they’re interchangeable.

Why is the verb je used at all? I thought in Czech the present tense of “to be” is often dropped (e.g. “On učitel”)?

Czech can drop the present tense of být (“to be”) in certain patterns, but not in all:

Very typical omission:
- On je učitel. → colloquially On učitel.
- To je pravda. → To pravda.
But when you have a clear, full sentence with a demonstrative and a subject like Ten malíř, especially in standard / neutral style, you normally keep the verb:
- Ten malíř je náš učitel.
- Dropping je here (Ten malíř náš učitel) would sound incomplete or poetic, not like neutral everyday speech.

So: omission is common, but restricted and more typical with short “X (is) Y” sentences where the meaning is still perfectly clear without je.

Why is there no word for “the” or “a” before malíř or učitel?

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

Definiteness and specificity are expressed in other ways, for example:

By demonstratives: ten malíř = “that/the painter (we mean)”
By context and word order
By possessives: náš učitel = “our teacher” (definite because of “our”)

So malíř by itself could mean “a painter” or “the painter”, depending on context. Here we explicitly add ten to specify that (particular) painter.

Why is it náš učitel and not učitel náš? Does the order matter?

The normal, neutral order in Czech is:

possessive pronoun + noun
náš učitel, moje kniha, jejich auto

So náš učitel is the default, unmarked way to say our teacher.

Učitel náš is possible, but it sounds:

poetic or emphatic, or
like a special stylistic choice (e.g. “učitel náš drahý” – “our dear teacher” in a very stylized tone).

In everyday speech, always put náš before učitel.

Why is it náš and not naše or naší? How does náš change?

Náš (“our”) declines for gender, number and case, just like adjectives and possessives.

In the sentence, učitel is:

masculine
singular
nominative

The matching form of náš for masculine singular nominative is náš.

Examples of other forms:

naše auto – neuter singular nominative (our car)
naše kniha – feminine singular nominative (our book)
naší učitelce – feminine dative (to our teacher – female)
naši učitelé – masculine plural nominative (our teachers – men/mixed)

So náš učitel is just the correct agreement with the masculine noun učitel in that case and number.

Why are malíř and učitel not capitalized? In English, “Teacher” is sometimes capitalized as a title.

In Czech, job titles and common nouns are not capitalized:

malíř – painter
učitel – teacher
doktor, inženýr, ředitel – all lowercase

You only capitalize:

The first word of a sentence
Proper names (e.g. Petr, Praha, Česká republika)
Official names of institutions, holidays, etc. (with specific rules)

So even if you’re talking respectfully about your teacher, you still write učitel with a lowercase u.

Is the word order fixed? Can I say Náš učitel je ten malíř instead?

You can say Náš učitel je ten malíř, and it’s grammatically correct.

Czech word order is relatively flexible, but it changes the focus:

Ten malíř je náš učitel.
– Focus on identifying the painter: That painter is our teacher.
– Assumes we already know we have a teacher; new info is who he is.
Náš učitel je ten malíř.
– Focus on identifying the teacher: Our teacher is that painter.
– Assumes we know there’s “our teacher”; new info is that he’s that painter.

Both are fine; which one to use depends on what you want to emphasize as new information.

Why is it ten malíř, not tamten malíř, if I want to say “that painter over there”?

You can use tamten malíř if you strongly want to emphasize “that one over there, not this one”:

Tamten malíř je náš učitel. – That painter (over there) is our teacher.

In practice, ten already often covers what English expresses with “that”, especially if you point with your hand, look in the right direction, or the context is clear.

So:

Neutral pointing/identifying: Ten malíř je náš učitel.
Extra emphasis on distance/contrast: Tamten malíř je náš učitel.

Could I drop ten and just say Malíř je náš učitel? Would that still be correct?

Yes, Malíř je náš učitel is grammatically correct, but it feels slightly different:

Ten malíř je náš učitel.
– We are clearly pointing to or specifying a particular painter.
– Like “That (specific) painter is our teacher.”
Malíř je náš učitel.
– More general, like “The painter is our teacher” as a statement about the painter in this context (for example, the painter we’re just talking about or the one in the story).
– No extra “pointing” emphasis.

In many contexts both are possible; ten just adds explicit identification.

Any tips on pronouncing malíř, náš, učitel, and je correctly?

Key points:

Stress: Always on the first syllable in Czech.
- MÁ-líř, NÁŠ, Ú-čitel, JE (one syllable).
malíř:
- á – long “a” (like in “father” but longer).
- í – long “ee” sound.
- ř – a special Czech sound: a rolled r plus a zh/sh quality.
  - Start with a rolled r and add a slight buzzing, like a soft zh (as in measure) while still vibrating the tongue.
náš:
- á – long “a” again.
- š – like English sh in ship.
učitel:
- u – like “oo” in book (short).
- č – like English ch in church.
- e – like “e” in pet.
- l – clear l at the end.
je:
- Pronounced “yeh” (like ye in yes).

Putting it together smoothly:
> TEN MÁ-líř je NÁŠ Ú-čitel.