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The perfekt is the everyday past tense of Croatian. It is formed with the short present of biti (sam, si, je, smo, ste, su), the auxiliary, and the past form of the verb (the -l participle), which agrees with the subject in gender and number: Bio sam kod kuće. Ivana je radila. One perfekt translates English I worked, I was working and I have worked.
The perfekt of biti and of regular verbs: bio sam, radila je; the auxiliary in second place#
Formation
The past form is formed by removing -ti from the infinitive and adding -o for a masculine subject, -la for a feminine one and -lo for a neuter one; in the plural, -li for men or a group with at least one man, -le for women only, -la for neuter nouns: radi-ti → radio, radila, radilo, radili, radile; čita-ti → čitao, čitala, čitalo. Verbs in -jeti take -io in the masculine singular and -je- in the other forms: živio, živjela, živjeli. The past form is formed on the infinitive even when the present is irregular: pisati, pišem → pisao, pisala. The auxiliary is the short present of biti: radio sam, radila si, radili smo.
| biti | raditi | |
|---|---|---|
| ja (on) | bio sam | radio sam |
| ja (ona) | bila sam | radila sam |
| ti (on) | bio si | radio si |
| ti (ona) | bila si | radila si |
| on | bio je | radio je |
| ona | bila je | radila je |
| ono | bilo je | radilo je |
| mi (oni) | bili smo | radili smo |
| mi (one) | bile smo | radile smo |
| vi (oni) | bili ste | radili ste |
| vi (one) | bile ste | radile ste |
| oni | bili su | radili su |
| one | bile su | radile su |
Use
The auxiliary is a clitic and stands second in the clause, after its first word or phrase, never first: Jučer sam radio. Ja sam radio. Radio sam jučer. After a subject of several words or a question word, the auxiliary comes next: Moja sestra je radila. Gdje si bio? The perfekt is used for a finished action, for an action in progress in the past and for an experience: Sinoć sam gledao film (“I watched a film last night”), Jesi li bila u Dubrovniku? (“Have you been to Dubrovnik?”).
- Sinoć smo bili u kinu.We were at the cinema last night.
- Ana je radila do osam.Ana worked until eight.
- Gledali smo film i pili sok.We watched a film and drank juice.
- Ivan i Petra su živjeli u Londonu.Ivan and Petra lived in London.
- Kuća je bila stara, ali lijepa.The house was old, but nice.
Difference from English
English I worked has no auxiliary, and I was shows no gender; the Croatian perfekt always has the auxiliary, and its past form shows whether a man or a woman is meant: radio sam, radila sam.
Common mistakes
Sam radio jučer.→ Radio sam jučer. / Jučer sam radio.The auxiliary is never placed first.Petra je bio u školi.→ Petra je bila u školi.The past form agrees with a feminine subject in -la.Ja radio.→ Ja sam radio.The perfekt needs the auxiliary.
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The perfekt in the negative and in questions: nisam bio, Jesi li bio? Je li radila?#
Formation
The negative is formed with the negative forms of biti, nisam, nisi, nije, nismo, niste, nisu, and the past form: Nisam bio kod kuće. Ana nije radila. A yes–no question begins with the long form of the auxiliary followed by li: Jesam li bio…? Jesi li radila? Je li bio? Jesmo li bili? Jeste li bili? Jesu li bili? The short answer is the long form or the negative form alone: Jesam. / Nisam.
| Negative | Question | Yes | No | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ja | nisam radio | Jesam li radio? | Jesam. | Nisam. |
| ti | nisi radila | Jesi li radila? | Jesam. | Nisam. |
| on, ona | nije radio | Je li radila? | Jest. | Nije. |
| mi | nismo radili | Jesmo li radili? | Jesmo. | Nismo. |
| vi | niste radili | Jeste li radili? | Jesmo. | Nismo. |
| oni, one | nisu radili | Jesu li radile? | Jesu. | Nisu. |
Use
The negative forms are not clitics, so they may stand first. A question that begins with a question word takes the short auxiliary and no li: Gdje si bio? Što ste radili?
- Jučer nisam bio na poslu.I wasn’t at work yesterday.
- Jesi li gledala taj film? – Jesam.Have you seen that film? – Yes, I have.
- Je li Marko radio u subotu? – Nije, bio je kod kuće.Did Marko work on Saturday? – No, he was at home.
- Petra i Ana nisu dobro spavale.Petra and Ana didn’t sleep well.
- Jeste li bili u Dubrovniku? – Jesmo.Have you been to Dubrovnik? – Yes, we have.
Difference from English
In English the past negative and question are formed with did (“I didn’t work”, “Did you work?”); in Croatian the negative or long form of the auxiliary is used: nisam radio, Jesi li radio?
Common mistakes
Ja ne radio.→ Nisam radio.The negative is formed with nisam.Si li bio u kinu?→ Jesi li bio u kinu?A question begins with the long form.Da li si bio u kinu?→ Jesi li bio u kinu?The standard question begins with the long form, not with da li.
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The perfekt of irregular verbs: išao, došao, rekao, mogao, htio, jeo#
Formation
The past form of the verbs in -ći and of jesti is formed on a stem of its own: ići → išao, išla; doći → došao, došla; reći → rekao, rekla; moći → mogao, mogla; jesti → jeo, jela. Htjeti, like the other -jeti verbs, takes -io in the masculine singular and -je- in the other forms: htio, htjela; vidio, vidjela. Piti is regular: pio, pila. The neuter ends in -lo (išlo, jelo), the plural in -li or -le.
| ići | |
|---|---|
| ja (on) | išao sam |
| ja (ona) | išla sam |
| ti (on) | išao si |
| ti (ona) | išla si |
| on | išao je |
| ona | išla je |
| ono | išlo je |
| mi (oni) | išli smo |
| mi (one) | išle smo |
| vi (oni) | išli ste |
| vi (one) | išle ste |
| oni | išli su |
| one | išle su |
| Infinitive | Masculine | Feminine | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|
| doći | došao | došla | došli, došle |
| reći | rekao | rekla | rekli, rekle |
| moći | mogao | mogla | mogli, mogle |
| htjeti | htio | htjela | htjeli, htjele |
| jesti | jeo | jela | jeli, jele |
| piti | pio | pila | pili, pile |
| vidjeti | vidio | vidjela | vidjeli, vidjele |
Use
The auxiliary and its place are the same as with the other verbs: išao sam, Jučer smo išli, Nisam mogao.
- Jučer smo išli u kupovinu.We went shopping yesterday.
- Ana je došla kasno.Ana came late.
- Što si rekao?What did you say?
- Nisam mogao spavati.I couldn’t sleep.
- Jeli smo ribu i pili bijelo vino.We ate fish and drank white wine.
- Luka nije htio ići.Luka didn’t want to go.
Common mistakes
Ićao sam u grad.→ Išao sam u grad.The past form of ići is išao.Htjeo sam doći.→ Htio sam doći.The masculine past form of htjeti is htio.Jestio sam ribu.→ Jeo sam ribu.The past form of jesti is jeo.
In short
| Point | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| the past form | -o, -la, -lo; -li, -le | radio, radila, radili |
| the auxiliary | sam, si, je, smo, ste, su, second in the clause | Jučer sam radio. |
| biti | bio, bila, bilo, bili, bile | Bila sam umorna. |
| -jeti verbs | -io; -jela, -jeli | živio, živjela |
| negative | nisam + past form | Nisam bio. |
| question | Jesi li + past form? | Je li radila? |
| irregular | išao, došao, rekao, mogao, htio, jeo | Što si rekao? |
Practise
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