Porovnáte

Porovnáte is a Czech verb form, specifically the second-person plural future tense of the perfective verb porovnat, meaning to compare. In Czech, the perfective present tense often expresses a future action, so porovnáte denotes that you (plural or formal you) will compare something. It is formed from the prefix po- added to the root rovnat, with the typical ending for the second-person plural.

Etymology and meaning: porovnat comes from po- plus rovnat, the latter related to making things even or aligning them, and in this sense to place items side by side for evaluation. The form porovnáte is therefore used when addressing an audience and indicating a forthcoming comparison, such as in instructions, reports, or analyses.

Usage: Porovnáte appears in procedural or analytical writing and in conversational Czech when describing planned actions. It often introduces a step in a sequence, for example in guidance or research briefs: “Porovnáte ceny v různých obchodech” (You will compare prices in different shops). It can also occur in questions or instructions: “Jak porovnáte tyto dvě metody?” (How will you compare these two methods?). The phrase is generally formal or neutral in tone and requires a subject pronoun vy.

Related terms: porovnat (to compare, to make a comparison), porovnání (the act of comparing, comparison), srovnání (comparison, juxtaposition). The imperative form for direct instruction is porovnejte.

Notes: Porovnáte is distinct from the imperfective form porovnáváte, which also means “you compare” but refers to an ongoing or habitual action rather than a planned future one.