From frozen blood to little souls: How Czechs talk about fear

Fall brings shorter days, longer evenings and a slightly mysterious atmosphere—the perfect time to explore how Czechs talk about fear.

Simply saying Bojím se (“I’m scared”) is far from your only option. Czech has plenty of more colorful expressions in which fear doesn’t just stay in your head. Your blood can freeze, your heart can move to unexpected places and even your soul can shrink.

Here are seven expressions to use when Bojím se just isn’t enough.

Literally “to have a tightened stomach,” this means feeling anxious or tense, often about something ahead—such as an important interview or exam.

Literally “to have a little soul,” this expression describes someone who feels scared, uncertain or suddenly less brave.

A colloquial way of saying someone is really scared:

Když uslyšel kroky za sebou, měl pořádně nahnáno.

“When he heard footsteps behind him, he got really scared.”

When Czechs get scared, their hearts apparently don’t like staying put. You can have your heart “in your throat” when nervous or frightened—or, when things get really scary, “in your pants.”

Literally “frost runs down my back.” Something unsettling or frightening gives you chills—much like the English expression “sends shivers down your spine.”

Literally, someone’s hair “stands up on their head”—similar to the English expression “your hair stands on end.” The phrase can also describe something appalling or outrageous.

When “the blood freezes in your veins,” you are experiencing intense fear or horror that seems to make your whole body freeze.

Stomach, soul, heart, back, hair and blood—when it comes to fear, Czech gets almost the whole body involved. All that’s left is to choose just how scared you are.

Leona Špetová works at the Methodological Center of the Institute for Language and Preparatory Studies of Charles University (UJOP CU).

The institute specializes in teaching Czech as a foreign language. It offers Czech courses for foreigners at its Prague Voršilská center near Národní třída metro station, university foundation programs in various fields, methodological training for teachers of Czech as a second language and official Czech exams for citizenship and permanent residence.

UJOP is also the creator of the CCE, an internationally recognized Czech-language certificate exam.