Moje dcera má ráda květiny a v lese se na ně často dívá.

My daughter likes flowers and in the forest she often looks at them.

Breakdown of Moje dcera má ráda květiny a v lese se na ně často dívá.

• můj: my
• a: and
• v: in
• se: oneself
• často: often
• mít rád: to like
• dcera: the daughter
• na: at
• dívat se: to look
• les: the forest
• květina: the flower
• ně: them

Questions & Answers about Moje dcera má ráda květiny a v lese se na ně často dívá.

Why do we say má ráda here? Could we just say Moje dcera ráda květiny?

In Czech, liking something is most commonly expressed with mít rád / mít ráda (to like, to be fond of).

• Moje dcera má ráda květiny.
  = My daughter likes flowers.

This structure literally means “My daughter has flowers liked”, but it’s the normal idiomatic way to say “likes”.

You cannot say ✗ Moje dcera ráda květiny.
If you drop mít, you must change the structure:

• Moje dcera ráda čte. – My daughter likes reading. (verb)
• Moje dcera má ráda květiny. – My daughter likes flowers. (noun)

So:

• With a verb (activity): ráda + verb
• With a noun (thing): mít rád / mít ráda + noun

What is the difference between moje dcera and má dcera?

Both moje dcera and má dcera mean “my daughter.”

• moje – full form
• má – shorter, more formal / bookish form

In modern spoken Czech, moje dcera is more common and neutral.
Má dcera sounds a bit more formal or literary, but it’s correct.

You can use either here:

• Moje dcera má ráda květiny.
• Má dcera má ráda květiny.

Why is květiny in this form and not květina or květinu?

Květiny is:

• number: plural
• gender: feminine
• case: accusative (direct object of má ráda)

Pattern:

• singular nominative: květina (a flower)
• singular accusative: květinu (likes a flower)
• plural nominative: květiny (flowers)
• plural accusative: květiny (likes flowers – same form as nominative plural)

In the sentence:

• má ráda co? – likes what? → květiny (accusative plural)

So we say má ráda květiny, not květina or květinu, because we’re talking about flowers in general (plural) as the object.

What does v lese mean exactly, and why is it lese and not les?

V lese means “in the forest.”

• v – preposition “in”
• les – forest (basic form, nominative singular)
• v + les → requires locative case → v lese

So the declension is:

• nominative: les – the forest (subject)
• locative: v lese – in the forest

Prepositions like v (in), na (on, at), o (about) very often require the locative case when indicating location.

Why do we need se in v lese se na ně často dívá?

The verb is dívat se = to look (at), to watch.
It is reflexive and always used with se:

• dívat on its own is not used in standard Czech with this meaning.
• The “dictionary form” is dívat se na něco/někoho – to look at something/someone.

So:

• dívá se – he/she is looking / watches
• ✗ dívá (without se) – wrong in this meaning

In your sentence:

• (ona) se dívá – she looks / she is looking
• v lese se na ně často dívá. – in the forest she often looks at them.

Why do we say dívat se na and not just dívat or dívat něco?

In Czech:

• dívat se na něco – to look at something / to watch something
  
  • dívat se na film – to watch a movie
  • dívat se na květiny – to look at the flowers

You must:

1. Use the reflexive se: dívat se
2. Use the preposition na for the object you’re looking at.

You cannot say:

• ✗ dívá květiny
• ✗ dívá se květiny

Both are wrong. It must be:

• dívá se na květiny – she looks at the flowers.

Why is the pronoun ně used in na ně? Why not na je?

Na ně here means “at them” and refers to květiny.

For 3rd person plural animate/inanimate, in the accusative after prepositions, Czech usually uses ně instead of je:

• without preposition (direct object):
  
  • Vidím je. – I see them.
• with preposition (e.g. na, o, k, u):
  
  • Dívám se na ně. – I look at them.
  • Mluvím o nich. – I talk about them.

So after na, the form is na ně, not ✗ na je.

Why is the word order v lese se na ně často dívá? Could it be different?

Yes, Czech word order is quite flexible. Your sentence is perfectly natural, and several variants are possible.

Current version:

• v lese se na ně často dívá
  Literally: in the forest she at them often looks

The important things:

• se normally stays close to the verb: se dívá, but other words like často, na ně, v lese can move around.
• Neutral alternatives:
  • V lese se často dívá na ně.
  • V lese se často na ně dívá.
  • Často se v lese na ně dívá.

The choice affects emphasis (what’s highlighted as new/important information), but all of these can be correct. The given order is natural and emphasizes “in the forest” as the setting.

Why do we use často and not some other form like častě or častý?

Často is an adverb meaning “often.”

• častý – adjective: “frequent”
  
  • častý problém – a frequent problem
• často – adverb: “often”
  
  • často se dívá – she often looks

In the sentence we are describing how often she looks, so we need the adverb:

• dívá se jak často? – how often does she look? → často

Why is it má ráda (feminine) and not má rád?

The phrase mít rád agrees in gender with the person who likes something.

• masculine: mít rád
  
  • Můj syn má rád květiny. – My son likes flowers.
• feminine: mít ráda
  
  • Moje dcera má ráda květiny. – My daughter likes flowers.

Because dcera (daughter) is feminine, we must say má ráda, not ✗ má rád.

What is the difference between dívá se and podívá se?

Both come from the verb pair dívat se / podívat se and differ in aspect:

• dívat se – imperfective: ongoing, repeated, or habitual action
  
  • Často se dívá na květiny. – She often looks at flowers.
• podívat se – perfective: single, completed action, usually once or with a focus on completion
  
  • Podívá se na květiny a jde dál. – She (will) look at the flowers and then goes on.

In your sentence we talk about a habit (“often”), so the imperfective dívat se (dívá se) is correct:

• v lese se na ně často dívá – in the forest she often looks at them.