Pes
Dog
Usage
Everywhere, town or village. "Pozor, zlý pes" is the beware-of-the-dog sign
Kočka
Cat
Usage
This is the female; a tomcat is "kocour"
Pták
Bird
Usage
The general word, for feeding birds in a park or for birdwatching
Ryba
Fish
Usage
The animal and the food alike; the Christmas carp, "kapr", is a national dish
Kůň
Horse
Usage
Seen at tourist stables and carriage rides
Kráva
Cow
Usage
Still pastured in the countryside. Milk is "mléko"
Prase
Pig
Usage
The live animal; pork on a menu is "vepřové", and it dominates Czech menus
Slepice
Chicken
Usage
The hen; the meat on a menu is usually "kuře", a young chicken
Kachna
Duck
Usage
Common on park ponds, and roast duck is a Czech classic
Koza
Goat
Usage
Goat; goat cheese is "kozí sýr"
Liška
Fox
Usage
Seen in forests and on town edges; the same word also means the chanterelle mushroom
Medvěd hnědý
Brown bear
Usage
The brown bear has no resident population in Czechia; individuals occasionally wander into the Beskydy from Slovakia
Vlk
Wolf
Usage
Wolves have returned to the Šumava and Beskydy and are occasionally sighted
Rys
Lynx
Usage
The lynx, an emblem of Šumava National Park and very hard to actually see
Ježek
Hedgehog
Usage
A familiar garden and park animal, and nocturnal
Divoké prase
Wild boar
Usage
One to watch for on forest hikes; colloquially "divočák"
Srnka
Roe deer
Usage
The roe deer, often seen at forest edges at dusk; the larger red deer is "jelen"
Veverka
Squirrel
Usage
Comes within arm reach in city parks
Zajíc
Hare
Usage
Seen at field edges and forest margins
Myš
Mouse
Usage
Can come up about lodgings; it is also the computer mouse
Netopýr
Bat
Usage
Seen in caves and parks at dusk; the Moravian Karst caves are full of them
Čáp
Stork
Usage
Nests on village roofs and poles, and its spring return is local news
Holub
Pigeon
Usage
Fills every square; feeding them draws a crowd, so mind your bags
Labuť
Swan
Usage
Common on the Vltava in central Prague, and it will hiss if you crowd it
Had
Snake
Usage
The general word; almost every Czech species is harmless
Zmije
Adder (viper)
Usage
The adder is the only venomous snake in Czechia, found on sunny upland slopes
Žába
Frog
Usage
Seen by ponds and rivers, and loud on spring nights
Komár
Mosquito
Usage
Common by rivers and lakes in summer; repellent is "repelent"
Klíště
Tick
Usage
The insect to take most seriously in spring and early summer forests — Czechia has one of the highest rates of tick-borne encephalitis in Europe
Grammar Note
Check your body after any forest walk, have a doctor remove one, and note that a vaccine exists
Moucha
Fly
Usage
Lands on food at stalls and garden terraces
Mravenec
Ant
Usage
Forest anthills grow huge and are protected — leave them alone
Včela
Bee
Usage
Beekeeping is popular, and it comes up at the honey — "med" — stalls
Vosa
Wasp
Usage
Drawn to sweet drinks in summer beer gardens, and a sting can trigger an allergy
Pavouk
Spider
Usage
Common indoors, and none of them are dangerous here
Šváb
Cockroach
Usage
Turns up in older kitchens; tell reception if you see one
Motýl
Butterfly
Usage
Everywhere in summer meadows
More Czech phrases
- Basic Words
- Basic Nouns
- Basic Verbs
- Adjectives
- Question Words
- Greetings
- Food & Drinks
- Transportation
- Shopping
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- Hotel
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- Signs
- Body Parts
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- Feelings
- Slang
- Local Dishes
- Local Drinks
- Indulgences