"They do not know where to look for food."
Translation:Nevědí, kde hledat žrádlo.
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Here is a tip that was given to me: ZNÁT always takes a direct object, while VĚDĚT is followed by a clause. In this sentence, there is no direct object, so the verb used should not be ŽNÁT.
Full disclosure: There's also a difference in meaning, but I've found that tip so useful that I haven't paid any attention to it. (Bad.)
So if "žrádlo" is the preferred word, does that mean the subjects are animals? Or can "žrádlo" be used for human food too - and if so, is that considered slangy? (I think there was mention of it earlier in a forum but don't know how to locate that.)
I'm being told, by Czechs, that 'žrádlo' and 'zere' are considered vulgar even when referring to animals. Is that a regional / dialect thing?
No, that is not correct. Maybe they are some modern people who only have a pet they treat almost like a human person?
It is a normal word for animals. Even for pets.
Shops and dog food makers will prefer krmivo or krmení but žrádlo is fine for normal conversation.
And remember that animals are not just pets. We also have agriculture and wild animals.
How wrong is saying "kde hledat jídlo nevědí"? Is it because I used jídlo instead of žrádlo, or because I should've placed nevědí in the beginning as it does suggest?
I put "Nevědí, kde jídlo hledat" and got it wrong. Can someone please explain a little bit about what principles are governing the word order in this case with the infinitive and the object? Is this a matter of it sounding weird because of the wrong word being emphasized by being in the final position? Or do you only put the object before the infinitive when it's a pronoun and not a noun? Thanks!
Tho normal Czech order is SVO. If you use a different order, you are stressing the final element. It might actually be possible here in some special corner case, but I can't think of anything specific. By stressing the verb you are making the object something already mentioned so it would more likely appear as "the food" or just as "it". "Nevědí, kde to jídlo hledat." is perfectly fine.
Thanks for the explanation. I study too many languages where I just hold my breath and wait for the infinitive at the end, which I expected here.
The standard plural form of "vědět" is only "vědí", while "ví" is the singular form (on/ona ví): https://prirucka.ujc.cas.cz/?slovo=v%C4%9Bd%C4%9Bt
We sometimes do say "ví" instead of "vědí" in Common Czech, so your answer is natural, but we only accept standard forms here.
(Pokud chcete odpověď v češtině: "oni ví" je obecná čeština, čili nespisovný tvar. Spisovně je jen "oni vědí".)
Does the direct object have to follow the infinitive? I wrote "Nevědí kde nežrádlo hledat" and it was marked wrong (Never mind, I see the explanation below)