10.6 – Taking things – brát / vzít ‘to take’

In this lesson we will learn two new verbs:

These two verbs look very different, but they are members of the same aspectual pair (i.e. imperfective and perfective; see 7.4 – Aspect).

What you’re taking with you:

In this unit we’re going to be using it to talk about what you’re going to be taking with you on a trip, use brát si / vzít si, literally ‘to take for yourself’. This meaning is not exclusive to traveling (you might be grabbing a pen on the way to an appointment, a granola bar on the way out the door, etc.)

They will sometimes add s sebou, which means ‘with yourself’. So vzít si s sebou literally translates as ‘to take for yourself with yourself.

brát; stem = ber-

Co si bereš (s sebou) na dovolenou?

‘What are you taking with you on vacation?’

vzít; stem = vezm-

Co si vezmeš do Plzně?

‘What are you going to take (for yourself) to Plzeň?’ i.e. what are you going to pack?

Petr si vzal na dovolenou dva kufry.

Petr took two suitcases on vacation.