Breakdown of Nejdřív vyplňte formulář, pak ho podepište.
ho
it
nejdřív
first
formulář
the form
vyplnit
to fill in
Questions & Answers about Nejdřív vyplňte formulář, pak ho podepište.
Why do vyplňte and podepište end in -te?
Because these are imperative forms used for:
- more than one person: Fill out the form, then sign it.
- one person addressed formally/politely: like using you politely
So vyplňte = fill out! and podepište = sign! in the plural/formal imperative.
Compare:
- informal singular: vyplň, podepiš
- plural/formal: vyplňte, podepište
In Czech, the same -te form is used both for you all and for formal you.
Why is it vyplňte, not something like vyplňujte?
This is mainly about aspect.
Czech verbs often come in pairs:
- vyplnit = to fill out, fill in completely (perfective)
- vyplňovat = to be filling out, to fill out repeatedly/habitually (imperfective)
And similarly:
- podepsat = to sign (perfective)
- podepisovat = to be signing / sign repeatedly (imperfective)
In commands like this, Czech usually prefers the perfective imperative when the speaker wants the action to be completed:
- vyplňte formulář = fill out the form
- podepište ho = sign it
So the sentence sounds natural because it tells someone to complete step 1 and then complete step 2.
What exactly does mean, and is it the same as ?