být

Etymology

From Proto-Slavic *byti, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰuH- (“to become”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biːt/

• audio

  (file)

• Homophone: bít

Verb

být impf

1. to be

   Ten kabát je vlhký ― The coat is wet.

2. to be (to exist)
3. (auxiliary) Present forms are used in combination with past participles to form past tense.

   Jel jsem do Prahy. ― I went to Prague.

4. (auxiliary) Future forms are used in combination with infinitives of other verbs to form their future tense.

   Budu ti pomáhat. ― I will be helping you.

5. (auxiliary) Conditional forms are used only to form the conditional mood with combination of a verb's past participles.

   Já bych to neudělal. ― I would not do it.

6. (auxiliary) Used in combination with passive participles of other verbs to form their passive voice.

   Jsem překvapen. ― I am surprised.

7. (auxiliary) Past participle forms of "být" are used in combination with conditional forms of "být" and past participles of other verbs to form their past conditional.

   Byl by tam šel, kdyby ho byli pozvali. ― He would have gone there if they had invited him.

Further reading

• býti in Příruční slovník jazyka českého, 1935–1957
• býti in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého, 1960–1971, 1989