# Going to ...



## aedude94

Ahoj! Ok, so I was thinking about this last night when I was typing "I'm going to go to bed" / "I'm going to sleep now" in an email, how do you say that in Czech? Is that even possible? Can you use "jit" plus another verb to mean going to do something, like in English, Spain, French, and numerous other languages? I have a feeling you cannot, though I am still curious!! Is there anyway to convey that meaning? Thanks!!!


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## Jana337

You can say:
Jdu spát. - I am going to sleep.
Jdu do postele. - I am going to bed.

Yes, "jít" and another verb is correct and common.

Jdu si přečíst noviny. - I am going to read the newspaper.
Jdu se ho zeptat. - I am going to ask him.
Jdu se projít. - I am going to take a walk.

Finally something that works the like in English, right?


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## aedude94

Wow! Cool! I'm very glad that works! Thank you very much! But is there any restrictions to this, like you have to use a perfective / imperfective verb after the conjugated form of "jit"? Or will any verb work? haha! This might sound weird, but I just want to make sure!


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## cajzl

It is not so simple. Very often it does not work.

For example:
John Smith *is going to be* the next President. 

John Smith *jde být* příštím presidentem. 
John Smith *bude* příštím presidentem.


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## cajzl

> I am going to ask him.


Zajímalo by mě, co to přesně znamená.

a) Zeptám se ho. Mám v plánu se ho zeptat. (budoucí čas)

b) Jdu se ho zeptat. (opravdu někam jdu. abych se ho zeptal)


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## cajzl

> But is there any restrictions to this, like you have to use a perfective / imperfective verb after the conjugated form of "jit"?


There is no such restriction:

Jdu se ho zeptat. Jdu se ho ptát.
Jdu si číst noviny. Jdu si přečíst noviny.

I think it is not the real future tense like in English (French, ...). You must really go to some place on foot.

Or you can go by car/bus/... :

Jedu se ho zeptat.
Jedu si číst noviny.


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## Jana337

> It is not so simple. Very often it does not work.
> 
> For example:
> John Smith *is going to be* the next President.
> 
> John Smith *jde být* příštím presidentem.
> John Smith *bude* příštím presidentem.


For course. I was talking about "to go" - jít, not about "to be going to do sth" - future tense. I realize it was not entirely obvious, sorry.


> a) Zeptám se ho. Mám v plánu se ho zeptat. (budoucí čas)
> 
> b) Jdu se ho zeptat. (opravdu někam jdu. abych se ho zeptal)


Well, it can mean both. 
Promises, forecasts and vague intentions - I will ...
Scheduled activities - I am -ing
Firm resolutions - I am going to ...



> Wow! Cool! I'm very glad that works! Thank you very much! But is there any restrictions to this, like you have to use a perfective / imperfective verb after the conjugated form of "jit"? Or will any verb work? haha! This might sound weird, but I just want to make sure!


So again, let me stress that it means that you are actually about to start the activity (and not the above example with "going to be the next president").

Perfective/imperfective - does not matter:
Jdu dělat snídani (emphasis on the process). - I am going to prepare the breakfest.
Jdu udělat snídani (emphasis on the result). - I am going to prepare the breakfest.


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## aedude94

cajzl said:


> It is not so simple. Very often it does not work.
> 
> For example:
> John Smith *is going to be* the next President.
> 
> John Smith *jde být* příštím presidentem.
> John Smith *bude* příštím presidentem.


 


So, to translate "going to be" you simply say "will be" (ex: Budu, Budes, Bude...). "Going to be" and "Will be" are synomimous in Czech? Also, how do you say "becoming" / "getting" as in "I am getting better at Czech"? Is it also just "být" or something? I would assume not, but perhaps it is! Thanks!


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## Jana337

aedude94 said:


> So, to translate "going to be" you simply say "will be" (ex: Budu, Budes, Bude...). "Going to be" and "Will be" are synomimous in Czech?


Yes. You can use adverbs and other words to differentiate between contrasting situations.





> Also, how do you say "becoming" / "getting" as in "I am getting better at Czech"? Is it also just "být" or something? I would assume not, but perhaps it is! Thanks!


To get better - zlepšovat se (lepší - better). We typically have a single word for "to get/become + adjective".


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## werrr

Jana337 said:


> aedude94 said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> So, to translate "going to be" you simply say "will be" (ex: Budu, Budeš, Bude...). "Going to be" and "Will be" are synonymous in Czech?
> 
> 
> 
> Yes. You can use adverbs and other words to differentiate between contrasting situations.
Click to expand...

We mostly ignore this nuance, but we can express it using verb “chystat se” (= be preparing), for example. Another way is using of present tense instead of future tense - it’s often confusing and I don’t recommend it to non-natives, but it works quite fine with exact time determination (e.g. “zítra jedu na hory” instead of “zítra pojedu na hory”). 



			
				Jana337 said:
			
		

> aedude94 said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Also, how do you say "becoming" / "getting" as in "I am getting better at Czech"? Is it also just "být" or something? I would assume not, but perhaps it is! Thanks!
> 
> 
> 
> To get better - zlepšovat se (lepší - better). We typically have a single word for "to get/become + adjective".
Click to expand...

Jana is right we can mostly express it with one single verb.

You can derive a verb meaning “make + _adjective_” from the adjective (or its comparative form) using prefix “z(e)-” and some verbal suffix instead of the adjective suffix (sometimes we can use also another prefixes to express sligthly different meaning - e.g. “polepšit” besides Jana’s “zlepšit”). Knowing the adjective you can often check the correct verb in dictionary. 

Using the reflexive pronoun “se”, you can modify this verb’s meaning to “become + _adjective_” (lit. “make itself + _adjective_”).

As an universal solution you can use the verb “stát se + _adjective_ (in instrumental)”. As for the style, it’s a worse variant for one-word adjectives, but it’s also correct.


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