4 Advanced Croatian Grammar Topics For Intermediate Learners

If you think you’re ready to take the next step in your Croatian learning, you’ve found the perfect guide.

For this post, I’ve chosen various topics on advanced Croatian grammar that can be useful for intermediate and advanced learners. They’re perfect for those looking to speak Croatian more naturally and get some useful tips along the way!

Advanced Croatian Grammar

At this point, you’re not just focusing on basics anymore, and you’re ready to start speaking more smoothly. Here are some grammar topics I believe will be of use to intermediate learners.

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Conditional Mood

We use the conditional to talk about what could happen and to sound more polite. It’s useful when you want to make requests without sounding too direct or imagining a situation that isn’t real.

When we use conditional present in Croatian, we express actions that depend on some condition, often something that might happen or could have happened. It’s formed with the aorist form of the verb ”to be” (biti):

The forms bih, bi, bismo, and biste in Croatian are used to express the conditional mood. For example, if you want to say ”I would eat” in Croatian, you’d use bih for the first person singular with the verb ”to eat,” which is jesti. That sentence would look like this:

• I would eat – Ja bih jeo (a man speaking)
• I would eat – Ja bih jela (a woman speaking)
  
  

Let’s look at further examples with another verb. We’ll use the verb ”to write” (pisati) to see how we would express conditional mood for each person:

The conditional can also be useful in negative sentences. It’s a simple way to politely decline something or show that something isn’t possible. For example, you can say:

• I wouldn’t want to – Ne bih volio / Ne bih volila
• I couldn’t go – Ne bih mogao ići / Ne bih mogla ići
  
  

It’s important to use either formal or informal language in Croatian. Here, the conditional can also be useful because instead of asking for something directly, you can make the request softer. That is crucial in formal situations or when speaking to someone you don’t know.

• I would like a coffee, please – Htio bih kavu, molim / Htjela bih kavu, molim

Another way you can use it is when you’re talking about things that could happen, but only if something else happens first. For example:

• If it were sunny, I would go to the beach. – Kad bi bilo sunčano, išao/išla bih na plažu

Remember, the correct way to use the conditional in Croatian is to use forms like bih, bi, bismo, and biste. However, in a casual setting, it’s common to hear people use just bi instead of the full forms like bismo or bih, so keep this in mind to avoid confusion.

Imperative Mood

We use the imperative in grammar when we want to tell someone what to do or give a command, instruction, suggestion, or advice. The imperative is quite easy once you get the hang of it because it’s just a matter of changing verb endings, depending on who you’re talking to. To form the imperative, follow these simple steps:

Singular Commands

When you’re telling one person to do something, take the third-person plural form of the verb in the present tense, remove the last letter, and add the correct ending.

For example, the verb ”to look” (gledati) in the third person plural form is gledaju. Remove the u, and you get gledaj! That’s the imperative form, or telling one person to look.

If the verb stem ends in -j once you remove the last letter, you’re done! Here are some more examples:

But if the verb stem doesn’t end in -j when you remove the last letter, add an -i. For example:

Plural Commands

For plural, just add the ending -te to the singular imperative form.

If you want to say “let’s” and include yourself in the action, just add -mo to the singular imperative form.

Third Person Commands

To tell someone else what a third person should do, use neka and the present tense for the third person.

Adjective Comparisons

If you want to sound more natural in Croatian and explain things better, learning how to compare adjectives can be really useful. You’ll often want to describe things in more detail, like which café has better coffe, or saying the weather is colder than yesterday.

Croatian adjectives have three degrees: positive (pozitiv), comparative (komparativ), and superlative (superlativ). Each degree is used to describe things in different ways.

How To Form Comparative And Superlative Degrees

The positive degree simply describes the quality of a noun without comparing it to anything else. Some examples of adjectives in the positive degree:

• A fast car – Brz auto
• A big house – Velika kuća
• A beautiful beach – Lijepa plaža
  
  

The comparative degree is used when you’re comparing two things, showing that one has more or less of a certain quality. The superlative degree is used when you’re talking about the highest or lowest level of quality, usually when comparing more than two things.

The comparative is often formed by adding -iji at the end, but there are exceptions to this.

The superlative form is created by adding naj in front of the comparative form. Let’s look at a few examples:

As you can see, each adjective undergoes specific changes when moving from the positive to the comparative and superlative forms. Here are some important things to look out for:

Many comparative forms are formed by adding -iji at the end. Adjectives like white (bijel), beautiful (lijep), and valuable (vrijedan) also lose their ”i” in the comparative. So bijel become bjelji, smiješan becomes smješniji, etc. Whenever an adjective contains an “i,” we drop it in the comparative form!

The rest of the adjectives, like good (dobar), small (malen), big (velik), and tall (visok), are what we call irregular, which means they don’t follow regular patterns.

Unfortunately, adjective comparison in Croatian is quite tricky, with lots of exceptions. Here’s a list of some other hard ones that you have to remember by heart. For the superlative forms, always simply put naj in front of the comparative, and you’re good to go!

Keep in mind, that all of these adjectives would only agree with the masculine nouns!

Here’s the table in a clear format:

Reflexive Verbs

Reflexive verbs are a special kind of Croatian verbs that are used for expressing self-directed actions or actions shared between people. They use the reflexive pronoun ”se” to show that the subject is performing an action on themselves. For example:

• I’m showering – Ja se tuširam
• He’s dressing – On se oblači
  
  

It’s also used when expressing emotional states:

• She’s afraid – Ona se boji
• I feel good – Osjećam se dobro
  
  

Why is this important for intermediate learners? If you don’t use se, the verb can mean an entirely different thing! This is a common Croatian grammar mistake that can lead to misunderstandings.

• Vratiti = Return something
• Vratiti se = Come back

Useful Studying Tips

Here’s some tips to keep in mind for when you’re trying hard to master all the grammar rules:

1. Remember that adjective endings match the gender of the noun. For example, ”beautiful” is lijep for masculine nouns, lijepa for feminine nouns, and lijepo for neuter nouns.
   
   
2. Don’t forget to apply Croatian cases in sentences. The word house (kuća), becomes kući in dative, kuću in accusative, and so on.
   
   
3. Create flashcards for all the tricky adjective comparisons and go through them every day. That’s a fantastic way to remember a big chunk of information instead of memorizing grammar rules. This also works for other things like past, present, and future verb forms.
   
   
4. Try using grammar rules in real-life sentences to help you remember how and when to use them. Language apps like the Ling app are great for this because they offer context-driven practice, allowing you to see grammar and vocabulary in action.
   
   
5. Take your time with one grammar topic before you jump to the next. This way, you can avoid confusion and not overwhelm yourself.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What’s The Difference Between ”Bih” And ”Bi”?

Bih is used in the first person (I would) and bi in the second person (you would). Both are conditional forms but serve different subjects.

2. What Are Reflexive Verbs Used For in Croatian?

Reflexive verbs show that the action is being done to oneself. For example, ”I’m laughing” is Ja se smijem (it’s self-directed). With some verbs, you need to use se, or the meaning of the verb changes entirely.

3. Will Duolingo Ever Get Croatian?

It’s not clear if Duolingo will add Croatian anytime soon. That said, if you’re looking to dive into Croatian, we highly recommend trying Ling. It’s known for offering courses in less common languages, including Croatian, and provides a tailored learning experience that could really help you get started and progress. It’s the best way to learn the Croatian language online!

Spoken Like A True Croat

To wrap things up, diving into advanced Croatian grammar will really step up your language game. In this post, we’ve gone through the conditional mood, the imperative, adjective comparisons, and reflexive verbs.

Now, you can ask for things more politely, describe things more clearly, and tell people what to do like a true Croat. Take it slow, and you’ll feel more comfortable with each topic. You’re doing great, so keep it up!

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