umít

Umít is a form sometimes encountered in discussions of Czech and Slovak language usage, but it is not the standard infinitive in contemporary Czech. The correct Czech infinitive is umět, meaning “to be able to; to know how to.” In Slovak, the equivalent verb is usually umieť. The appearance of umít is typically viewed as nonstandard, dialectal, or a historic spelling rather than a separate lexical entry.

Usage and meaning

Umět expresses acquired ability or skill—something someone can do because they have learned or prepared for it. It is used with another verb in the infinitive to indicate the action one can perform. For example: já umím plavat (I can swim). It is distinct from moci, which is used to express general possibility or permission rather than a specific skill.

Conjugation notes

In standard Czech, the present tense forms of umět are: já umím, ty umíš, on/ona/ono umí, my umíme, vy umíte, oni umí. Past tense forms reflect gender and number: já uměl (masc), já uměla (fem); my uměli/uměly (masc/neuter; fem). The nonstandard spelling umít is not used in formal writing and is typically not listed in modern dictionaries as the infinitive form.

Relationship to other languages

The concept expressed by umět exists across Slavic languages with related forms (for example, umieť in Slovak). In each language, the verb conveys skill or capability and is often contrasted with moci, which covers possibility or permission rather than a learned ability.

See also

umieť (Slovak), umět (Czech), moci (to be able to, in a broader sense).