Czechs often apologize for their English when there’s no need — most native speakers admire your effort, not your mistakes. But if you’re looking for quick ways to improve, here are ten common errors to address.

Mistake No.1

Czechs tend to use ‘on’ instead of ‘at’ with places, which can change the meaning of a sentence. For example, I once received this message from a student: “I cannot come to class today, I am on the airport. Thank you for all. Goodbye.” At first glance, I thought it was a suicide note.

Mistake No.2

Czechs often use “please” instead of “sorry” when they want you to repeat something. This is not a catastrophic error, but gives the impression the speaker is begging for reprieve mid-conversation.

Mistake No.3

Czechs say “strange person” when they mean “stranger.” In English, a stranger is a person you don’t know, while a strange person is weird. I once explained this to a student after she told me she liked talking to strange people. When I asked if she meant “strange person” or “stranger,” she replied: “Both.”

Mistake No.4

Czechs say “chief” when they mean “boss.” E.g., “I like my chief.” Native speakers will still understand but may wonder why they’ve been transported into a Cowboys and Indians movie.

Mistake No.5

Czechs tend to pronounce every letter of every word. A good example is fruit, which Czechs pronounce as ‘fru-it’ when it should rhyme with shoot. I’ve explained this to many students that I sometimes wake up in the night with “fruit rhymes with shoot” spinning through my mind.

Mistake No.6

The Czech word for ‘check’ (kontrolovat) is a false friend. Czechs translate it as ‘control’ instead of ‘check’ and create sentences like: “I need to control my homework.” This creates an image of ‘out of control homework’ threatening to take over the world. A new Disney movie perhaps?

Mistake No.7

When an agreement has been reached, Czechs say, “I’ll count with you,” rather than “I’ll count on you”. Here, the wrong preposition changes the meaning of a sentence and brings to mind two people agreeing to count from one to a hundred together.

Mistake No.8

Czechs use the word “action” when they mean “event”. In English, an action is a protest. For example, “An action in the city centre against the government.” This has prompted some confusing English conversations:

Student: “Last weekend we had a work action in the forest.”

Me: “You were protesting?”

Student: “I’m not sure. But yes, I am not happy to have work actions at the weekend.”

Me: “So you protest against having actions at the weekend by organising actions at the weekend?”

Student: “I’m sorry, I’m lost. Let me try a different answer. At the weekend I picked fru-it on the cottage.”

Mistake No.9

Czechs use ‘satisfied’ when they mean ‘happy’. Satisfied tends to be used when expectations are met. E.g., “I’m satisfied with my internet provider.” So it can be amusing to hear a Czech say: “I’m very satisfied with my new girlfriend.”

Mistake No.10

Czechs speak much better English than they think and just need more confidence in their ability to use it. I understand that telling people to ‘speak with more confidence’ is like telling an anxious person to stop worrying. But this shift in mindset will be more beneficial than hundreds of grammar and pronunciation lessons.

*I recently published  a book entitled 101 English mistakes Czechs make. Click here for more.