Czech for IT Professionals: The Vocabulary That Actually Matters in a Czech Tech Team
Your code is perfect. Your standup is a mystery. Fix that.
You joined a Czech tech team. The Jira board is in English. The technical interview was in English. Slack is in English.
So why does every standup feel like you're watching a film with the subtitles off?
Because the meeting is officially in English — and the conversation around it is in Czech. The comment before the scrum master opens the call. The side exchange between two senior devs after someone flags a blocker. The quiet laughter during sprint retrospective that you can't quite place.
This is the gap that czech for IT professionals closes. Not grammar for its own sake. Not tourism phrases. The specific vocabulary that actually circulates in a Czech tech team — in standups, code reviews, HR conversations, and the kitchen three minutes after a sprint ends.
Why the IT Context Is Different
Czech is the native language of most developers in Czech tech hubs. Brno — home to Red Hat, Kiwi.com, AT&T, and a growing cluster of international tech firms — operates in mixed-language environments where English covers formal process and Czech governs everything else. Prague's tech sector follows the same pattern.
English handles the ticket. Czech handles the trust.
Czech professional communication is direct, concise, and precise. There is no corporate warmth layered over a message. When a colleague says "To nefunguje" (That doesn't work), they mean it literally. When someone is silent after your proposal, that silence carries weight. Understanding these signals — in Czech — is not a soft skill. It is a technical advantage.
The good news: you do not need fluency. Research into language and trust in multinational teams consistently shows that it is awareness of language practices, not expert knowledge, that builds professional credibility. In Czech IT teams, that means knowing approximately 60–80 words across four contexts. This guide covers them.
The Daily Standup: What You Need to Say (and Follow)
The standup is your highest-frequency professional Czech encounter. Three questions. Fifteen minutes maximum. But the vocabulary around those three questions — and the Czech commentary that wraps them — is where the real communication happens.
Core standup phrases
Reporting your progress:
Včera jsem pracoval/a na… — Yesterday I worked on…
Dokončil/a jsem… — I finished / completed…
Ještě to dodělávám. — I'm still finishing it.
Mám hotovo. — I'm done. / It's done.
Today's plan:
Dnes budu pracovat na… — Today I'll be working on…
Pokračuji v… — I'm continuing with…
Začínám nový task / nový ticket. — I'm starting a new task / ticket.
Blockers — the most important word in your standup vocabulary:
Mám blokér. — I have a blocker.
Čekám na… — I'm waiting for…
Potřebuji pomoc s… — I need help with…
Nejde mi to spustit. — I can't get it to run.
Nemám přístupy. — I don't have access.
Following the conversation:
Rozumím. — I understand.
Promiň, mohl/a bys to zopakovat? — Sorry, could you repeat that?
Co tím myslíš? — What do you mean by that?
One practical tip: Czech speakers often shorten pracoval/a jsem in fast speech. If you hear "pracoval na ticketu číslo pět", you're following correctly. Speed comes with exposure. The words come first.
Code Review: Giving and Receiving Feedback in Czech
Code reviews are where Czech directness is most visible. A colleague who writes "Tohle je špatně" (This is wrong) is not being aggressive — they are being Czech. Clarity over diplomacy is the cultural default. Once you understand that, the feedback stops feeling personal and starts feeling useful.foreigners+1
Phrases for receiving a review
Díky za feedback. — Thanks for the feedback.
Opravím to. — I'll fix it.
Mám k tomu dotaz. — I have a question about that.
Proč jsi zvolil/a tenhle přístup? — Why did you choose this approach?
Dává mi to smysl. — That makes sense to me.
Phrases for giving a review
Tady je chyba. — There's a bug / error here.
Mohl/a bys to přepsat? — Could you rewrite this?
Vypadá to dobře. — Looks good. (The Czech equivalent of LGTM.)
Jde to zjednodušit. — This can be simplified.
Schvaluji. — I approve.
In written Slack or PR comment threads, you will also encounter: schváleno (approved), zamítnuto (rejected / declined), k diskusi (up for discussion). These are the three phrases that determine what happens to your pull request.
HR Conversations: The Vocabulary That Protects You
HR interactions in Czech are formal. The Vy form — the formal second person — is standard until explicitly dropped. Using first names before being invited to do so is noticed. Using ty (informal you) before it is offered is an error that lingers.businessculture+1
Essential HR vocabulary
Mám schůzku s HR. — I have a meeting with HR.
Chci se zeptat na… — I'd like to ask about…
Pracovní smlouva — Employment contract
Výplata — Salary / Pay
Dovolená — Holiday / Annual leave
Nemocenská — Sick leave
Výpovědní lhůta — Notice period
Hodnocení — Performance review
Benefity — Benefits
Nástup — Start date / Onboarding
In a review conversation:
Jak hodnotíte moji práci? — How do you evaluate my work?
Co mohu zlepšit? — What can I improve?
Můžeme se domluvit na termínu? — Can we agree on a date/time?
One cultural note: Czech HR professionals are precise about documentation. Written agreements carry more weight than verbal ones in Czech professional culture. If something is agreed verbally, follow up with an email. It is not a sign of distrust — it is professional practice.businessculture
Czech Office Culture: The Unwritten Rules
Language is only part of it. Four cultural habits shape daily life in a Czech tech office — and knowing them prevents the kind of misread that no dictionary can fix.
Punctuality is non-negotiable. Arriving on time means arriving slightly before. For a standup at 9:00, be ready at 8:55. Tardiness is not tolerated gracefully. The Czech phrase "Přišel pozdě" (He/she arrived late) carries genuine professional weight.
The coffee break is the real meeting. The kitchen conversation — "Dáš si kafé?" (Fancy a coffee?) — is where decisions are made informally and relationships are built. If you are invited, say yes. Declining repeatedly reads as distance.
Formal address until invited otherwise. In offices with older team structures, colleagues may address each other as pan (Mr.) + surname, or use academic titles. Even in flat startup cultures, wait to be offered first-name terms. "Říkejte mi Tomáš" (Call me Tomáš) is the green light.
Direct feedback is not personal. The Czech communication style does not soften negatives. A colleague who says "To je zbytečné" (That's unnecessary) about your approach is offering a professional assessment. Respond with "Díky za upřímnost" (Thanks for the honesty) and you will earn more respect than any deflection.
Czech Vocabulary for Tech Teams: A Quick Reference
The table below maps the most-used Czech vocabulary across the four contexts covered in this guide. These are the words that appear every week in a Czech tech environment.
| Czech | English | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Hotovo | Done / Finished | Standup |
| Blokér | Blocker | Standup |
| Čekám na… | I'm waiting for… | Standup |
| Schváleno | Approved | Code Review |
| Chyba | Bug / Error | Code Review |
| Pull request | Pull request | Code Review |
| Dovolená | Holiday / Leave | HR |
| Výplata | Salary / Pay | HR |
| Pracovní smlouva | Employment contract | HR |
| Přístupy | Access / Permissions | Office |
| Termín | Deadline / Appointment | Office |
| Schůzka | Meeting | Office |
| Zpětná vazba | Feedback | Office |
| Deadline | Deadline | Office |
Note: Czech tech teams often use English tech terms — "sprint", "deploy", "ticket" — without translation. Your vocabulary effort applies to the surrounding conversation, not the technical core.
The Right Way to Learn This Vocabulary
Reading a list is a start. Using it in real conditions is the goal.
The fastest path for IT professionals is targeted practice built around your actual work context — your team's vocabulary, your role's specific situations, your company's communication culture. Generic apps do not cover the standup format. Textbooks do not cover pull request language. A business Czech course online built for your professional context delivers what you actually need, at the pace a working professional can sustain.
Czech colleagues notice the effort before they notice the accuracy. Starting with the phrases in this guide — even imperfectly — puts you inside the room rather than observing from its edge.
For further reading on the professional case for learning Czech, see:
Why Learning Czech Makes You a Better Professional in Czech Teams — Czech Atelier Insights
Czech at Work: Phrases You Need Every Day — ICJ Language Institute
Atlassian: What is a Stand-Up Meeting — Standup meeting structure and best practices
For corporate teams looking to invest in Czech for their international hires, see our corporate Czech programmes.
Start Where It Counts
You do not need to master Czech. You need to master the Czech your day is actually made of.
The standup. The code review. The HR conversation. The coffee break that determines whether you are trusted or merely tolerated.
This vocabulary exists. It is learnable. And it changes your professional reality in a Czech tech team faster than any broad language programme could.
Book a business Czech lesson today — and build your vocabulary around the contexts that matter in your role, your team, and your career in Czechia.
Czech Atelier is a premium Czech language school for professionals and expats, taught by native Czech language experts. Online. Flexible. Built for real Czech life.
