Mám ji moc rád.

I like her very much.

Breakdown of Mám ji moc rád.

• já: I
• mít rád: to like
• moc: very
• ji: it

Questions & Answers about Mám ji moc rád.

What does Mám ji moc rád literally mean, and what’s the best natural translation in English?

Literally, the sentence is:

• Mám – I have
• ji – her (object pronoun)
• moc – very / a lot
• rád – glad, fond (used in the phrase mít rád = “to like”)

So word-for-word: “I have her very fond.”

Natural English translations:

• “I like her very much.”
• In a more emotional context, it can also be understood as “I really love her.”, but grammatically it’s “like”.

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Why do Czechs use rád to mean “like”? How does mít rád work?

In Czech, the verb “to like” is usually expressed as a combination:

• mít + rád = to like / to be fond of

Literally: “to have [someone/ something] gladly / fondly.”

Examples:

• Mám ji rád. – I like her.
• Mám to město rád. – I like this town.
• Mám kávu moc rád. – I like coffee very much.

So rád on its own means something like “glad / pleased / fond”, but with mít it forms a fixed expression meaning “to like.”

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What is the difference between Mám ji rád and Miluju ji?