"Voníš jako růže."
Translation:You smell like roses.
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Can voníš also be used to insult someone (voníš špatně or something like that) or is there a different verb for that in Czech ?
Only ironically. Otherwise we use "smrdíš" or "páchneš" for bad smell.
Is "páchneš" neutral, i.e. you could say both "páchneš krásně" and "páchneš ošklivě"? (I guess it is possible to vary the word order to either put the stress on "páchneš" or the adverb?).
No, it means bad smell. Another is "jsi cítit", as well mostly negative, although maybe this one could allow something like "jsi krásně cítit". Normally we say "voníš" if it is positive.
First question: Isn't "cítit" a feeling? In french we have "sentir", which means either an odor or a feeling
odeur = Tu sent bon (you smell good - voniš dobre) sentiment = "Tu te sent bien aujourdhui? (Do you feel good today - Dnes jsi cítit)"
And "puer" seems to be like "smrdíš" or "páchneš" ex: Tu pu (You smell - Smrdíš)
Second question: what makes me choose between "smrdíš" or "páchneš"?
The verbs "smrdět" or "páchnout" mean "to stink" on top of what Vladimír wrote.
I can't think of a situation where it would have a positive meaning. You can say "You stink like a polecat. = Smrdíš jako tchoř.", "You stink terribly. = Strašně smrdíš.", etc.
Then it's quite a nasty false friend I have to remember as "pachnieć" in Polish means just "to produce a smell", of any kind, or even "to have a good scent". ("Brzydko pachniesz" - "you smell badly" - is quite subtle, while "śmierdzisz" is a brutal way to say that).
"Tchoř" isn't exactly the same as skunk, is it? Google Translate says it's a "polecat", among some other translations. Is it a word you can use to call somebody who is afraid of everything (like "chicken" in English and "tchórz" in Polish :P)?
You're right, I changed the skunk for the polecat.
For the rest, I'd stick to what Vladimír wrote - positive smell (vonět); negative (smrdět).
I don't speak Polish, but the translation "śmierdzisz = smrdíš" looks accurate. :-)
You mean "as"? Are you Czech? If yes, definitely read https://www.helpforenglish.cz/article/2006082101-pleteme-si-like-a-as-jako-a-jako
As is used when something is actually used as something not when it is similar.
I have a vague idea that, somewhere in the exercises, 'you smell of roses' is accepted...Mine here was not but, frankly, in English both can be used (except that 'you smell of roses' might just be ironic...).
There appears to be a fairly clear AmE/BrE usage difference in the interesting discussion at the link that follows, with some participants also pointing out what they consider to be a fairly subtle distinction in meaning between "smells like" and "smells of." My own go-to choice would be "like," but "of" wouldn't sound wrong or even weird to me. https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/217878/are-smell-like-and-smell-of-the-same