Bolí mě hlava, ale i tak musím jít do práce.

Czech usually expresses this idea with the verb bolet = to hurt.

So Bolí mě hlava is structured more like:

• hlava = head
• bolí = hurts
• mě = me

So the literal pattern is My head hurts me, even though the natural English meaning is I have a headache.

A more literal Czech equivalent of I have a headache would be something like Mám bolest hlavy, but that sounds less natural in everyday speech.

Here mě is accusative singular of já = I.

The verb bolet normally uses:

• the thing that hurts as the subject
• the person affected as the accusative object

So:

• Hlava = subject
• mě = object

That is why you get Bolí mě hlava.

The forms mi and mně are mainly dative forms, so they are not the normal choice with bolet in this structure.

A useful quick comparison:

• mě / mne = accusative
• mi / mně = dative

With body parts, Czech often does not use a possessive adjective if the owner is already clear.

In Bolí mě hlava, the word mě already tells you whose head it is. So hlava naturally means my head in context.

Using moje hlava is possible, but it sounds emphasized, contrastive, or unusual in a neutral sentence.

So:

• Bolí mě hlava = normal
• Bolí mě moje hlava = marked, unusual, or emphatic

Yes, Czech word order is flexible.

The neutral, very common version is:

• Bolí mě hlava

But you can also say:

• Hlava mě bolí

That version puts more emphasis on hlava, as if you are contrasting it with something else.

You may also hear:

• Mě bolí hlava

especially in speech. But if you want a safe, neutral model, Bolí mě hlava is a great choice.

So the basic meaning stays the same, but the emphasis changes.

Ale i tak means something like:

• but even so
• but still
• nevertheless

The parts are:

• ale = but
• i tak = even so / still / anyway despite that

So the sentence says that there is a problem, but the speaker must go to work anyway.

This combination is very natural in Czech for expressing contrast.

Usually i tak is better here.

The word i adds the sense of even or still despite that. Without it, tak alone would usually not express the same clear concessive meaning.

So:

• ale i tak = natural, idiomatic
• ale tak = usually different in meaning, often unnatural here

If you want the meaning but still / but even so, keep i tak.

Because muset is a modal verb.

In Czech, modal verbs are followed by an infinitive, just like in English:

• musím jít = I must go
• musím pracovat = I must work
• musím spát = I must sleep

So:

• musím = I must / I have to
• jít = to go

You do not use another fully conjugated verb after musím in this pattern.

Because do práce expresses movement toward a destination.

• jít do práce = to go to work
• být v práci = to be at work

So:

• do = movement into / to
• v = location in / at

In this sentence, the speaker is talking about going somewhere, so do práce is the correct choice.

After do, Czech uses the genitive.

So in do práce, the noun is in the genitive singular.

It just happens that for práce, the nominative singular and genitive singular have the same form:

• nominative: práce
• genitive: práce

This is very common in Czech: some case forms look identical, and you recognize the case from the preposition and the sentence structure.

Yes. That is also very natural.

Czech often leaves out the motion verb when the destination already makes the meaning clear.

So both are fine:

• musím jít do práce = I have to go to work
• musím do práce = I have to go to work

The version with jít is a little fuller and more explicit. The shorter version is very common in everyday speech.

Because ale connects two separate clauses:

• Bolí mě hlava
• i tak musím jít do práce

In Czech, a comma is normally written before ale when it joins clauses like this.

So the comma here is standard and expected.

A simple pronunciation guide is:

• Bolí ≈ BO-lee
• mě ≈ something close to myeh
• hlava ≈ HLA-va

A few helpful points:

• Czech stress is usually on the first syllable of the word.
• The í in bolí is long.
• The hl cluster in hlava may feel unusual for English speakers, but it is normal in Czech.

So the rhythm is roughly:

BO-lee myeh HLA-va