Hrvatski → English
The present tense: biti and first sentences (ja sam, nisam, Je li…?)
The present of biti in its short forms (ja sam, ti si, on je, mi smo, oni su), the subject pronoun left out, ti or the polite Vi ste, the negative nisam, nisi, nije, pointing out with Tko je to? and Što je to?, and questions with Je li…? and Jesi li…? answered Jesam or Nisam.
A first conversation:
— Zdravo, ja sam Ana.
— Bok, ja sam Luka.
— Kako si?
— Dobro, hvala.
— Drago mi je, Ana.
— I meni je drago. Do skorog viđenja!
Zovem se… (my name is…), Kako si? (how are you?) and Drago mi je (pleased to meet you) are learnt as set phrases. With ja (I) the form of biti is sam, with ti (you) it is si: Ja sam Ana. Ti si Luka? The form of biti already shows the person, so the subject pronoun is usually left out and is said only for emphasis or contrast: Liječnica sam (I'm a doctor). The short form comes second and never opens the sentence: Student sam, not Sam student.
English has one you; Croatian has two. ti with si is used to a friend, a child or a relative; Vi, written with a capital, with ste, is used to one person you do not know well, even though ste is a plural form: Vi ste gospodin Kovač? (Are you Mr Kovač?) The question Kako si? becomes Kako ste? The long forms jesam, jesi, jeste are met in Asking questions: Je li…? Jesi li…? Gdje je…?
When you speak to someone, a man's name or title changes its ending: Ivan becomes Ivane, gospodin becomes gospodine: Hvala, Ivane. Dobar dan, gospodine. A woman's name in -a usually stays as it is: Drago mi je, Ana.
Show the answer biti · prezent · ja samalso: jesamShow the answer
Show the answer biti · prezent · ti sialso: jesiShow the answer
The personal pronouns in the nominative, with the present of biti:
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| 1st person | ja sam | mi smo |
| 2nd person | ti si | vi ste |
| 3rd person | on, ona, ono je | oni, one, ona su |
On (he) is used for a man, ona (she) for a woman and ono (it) for a neuter noun. A name or a noun as the subject takes the form of on and ona: Josip je kod kuće. In the plural, oni is used for men or a mixed group, one for women only, and ona for neuter nouns; vi (small letter) is said to several people. After mi, vi, oni an adjective ends in -i: Gladni smo (we're hungry), Sretni ste. After ja or ti, a woman says umorna, sretna. The pronoun is said when the subject changes: Ana je studentica. Ja sam liječnik. The long forms are jest, jesmo, jesu.
Show the answer biti · prezent · on/ona/ono jealso: jestShow the answer
Show the answer biti · prezent · mi smoalso: jesmoShow the answer
The negative of biti is one word: ni is added to the short form.
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| 1st person | nisam | nismo |
| 2nd person | nisi | niste |
| 3rd person | nije | nisu |
The negative forms are not tied to second place, so they may open the sentence: Nisam kod kuće (I'm not at home). Luka nije umoran. Nismo gladni. The polite Vi takes niste. The English speaker's trap: I'm not is never two words in Croatian; ne sam is wrong, the form is nisam.
Show the answer Ti ___ student, ti si liječnik. nisiShow the answer
Show the answer Ana ___ kod kuće, ona je ovdje. nijeShow the answer
Tko je to? (who's that?) asks about a person, Što je to? (what's that?) about a thing. The answer usually begins with To je…: Tko je to? – To je Luka. Što je to? – To je stol. Ovo (this) is used for someone or something near the speaker, to (that) for what is near the listener or has just been mentioned, and ono for something further away: Što je ovo? Tko je ono? For it's when pointing at something, to is used rather than the pronoun ono: To je pas (it's a dog, that's a dog). As there are no articles, To je kava is both “it's a coffee” and “that's the coffee”.
Show the answer ___ je to? – To je Maja. TkoShow the answer
Show the answer ___ je to? – To je mobitel. ŠtoShow the answer
A yes–no question opens on the long form of biti, followed by li: Jesam li…?, Jesi li…?, Je li…?, Jesmo li…?, Jeste li…?, Jesu li…? Jeste li umorni? (Are you tired?) The short forms sam, si cannot open a sentence, so Si li…? is wrong. In standard Croatian the question begins with je li, not da li.
A short answer repeats the verb in its long form, or in its negative form, with or without da (yes) or ne (no): Jesi li gladna? – Jesam. or – Nisam. English Yes, I am is Da, jesam, never Da, sam: the short form cannot stand alone. To Je li…? the answer is Jest (also Je) or Nije: Je li Ana ovdje? – Jest. To Jesu li…? it is Jesu or Nisu.
Questions may also open on a question word, followed by the short form in second place and no li: gdje (where), kako (how), kad or kada (when), zašto (why). Gdje je Ana? – Ovdje je. (here) – Tamo je. (there) Kako je Luka? Kad ste ovdje? English Why are you…? is Zašto si…?, not Zašto jesi li…?
Show the answer ___ li Katarina kod kuće? JeShow the answer
Show the answer ___ li ti liječnik? JesiShow the answer
New sentences that mix Saying who you are, Talking about others, Saying no, Asking who and what and Asking questions: the right form of biti for each person, the short form in second place, the negative, the long form in questions and short answers, and the question words.
Show the answer Jesi li sretna? – Da, sretna ___. samShow the answer
Show the answer Tom ___ ovdje, on je kod kuće. nijeShow the answer
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