misliti / smatrati / držati (to think / consider)

This page is the toolkit for expressing an opinion in Croatian — "I think…", "I consider…", "It seems to me…", "I agree". English leans heavily on one verb, think, plus a few others; Croatian spreads the load across several verbs with different government, and choosing the wrong construction is one of the clearest markers of a learner. We cover five workhorses — misliti (think), smatrati (consider), držati (hold the view), činiti se (seem), and slagati se (agree) — with brief paradigm notes and the case or clause each one demands. For misliti's full paradigm see misliti; here the focus is how the verbs combine into real opinions.

misliti — "to think"

Imperfective, i-class: mislim, misliš, misli, mislimo, mislite, misle. L-participle mislio/mislila; perfekt mislio sam; future mislit ću; imperative misli, mislimo, mislite. The aspect partner pomisliti ("to think — at a moment, to have a thought") covers the punctual sense.

Its government depends on what you are thinking about:

• misliti + da-clause — "to think that…", the default for stating an opinion. The clause is indicative.
• misliti na + accusative — "to think of/about" in the sense of having someone/something in mind, keeping them in your thoughts.
• misliti o + locative — "to think about, to have an opinion of", reflecting or judging.

smatrati — "to consider, to regard as"

Imperfective, a-class: smatram, smatraš, smatra, smatramo, smatrate, smatraju. L-participle smatrao/smatrala; perfekt smatrao sam; future smatrat ću. It has no everyday perfective partner — it expresses a held view, which is inherently ongoing.

Smatrati has two main frames, and the first is the one English speakers most often get wrong:

• smatrati + accusative + INSTRUMENTAL — "to regard X as Y", where the role/category Y goes in the instrumental, with no "as": smatram ga prijateljem ("I consider him a friend"). This is the predicate-instrumental construction. See the predicative instrumental.
• smatrati + da-clause — "to consider/be of the opinion that…", interchangeable in many contexts with mislim da, but a touch more deliberate and formal.

držati — "to hold the view"

Držati literally means "to hold" (i-class: držim, držiš, drži, držimo, držite, drže; perfekt držao/držala sam). In the opinion sense it is used in two ways:

• držati + da-clause — "to hold/maintain that…", slightly formal or emphatic, common in argument and writing.
• držati do
  • genitive — "to value, to set store by", a related idiom: držim do tvog mišljenja ("I value your opinion").

It also shares smatrati's instrumental frame in the reflexive držati se ("to consider oneself"): drži se stručnjakom ("he considers himself an expert").

činiti se — "to seem" (impersonal)

Imperfective činiti se, normally used impersonally in the 3rd person, with the experiencer in the dative: čini mi se ("it seems to me"). This is the softest way to give an opinion — you present it as an impression rather than a claim. Perfective učiniti se ("to seem — at a moment"): učinilo mi se ("it seemed to me, I thought [for a second]").

• čini mi se da
  • clause — "it seems to me that…"
• čini se
  • adjective/adverb — "it seems (so)": Čini se tako.

slagati se — "to agree"

Imperfective slagati se ("to get along; to agree"), present slažem se, slažeš se, slaže se, slažemo se, slažete se, slažu se (note the g → ž alternation). Perfective složiti se ("to come to agree, to concur"). The person you agree with takes s(a) + instrumental; you can also agree with an idea (s tim).

Building an opinion: ready-made openers

Croatian has a set of fixed phrases for prefacing an opinion. Learn them as units:

• Mislim da… — "I think that…" (neutral, everyday).
• Smatram da… — "I consider that…" (a touch more formal).
• Čini mi se da… — "It seems to me that…" (tentative, polite).
• Po mojem mišljenju… / Po meni… — "In my opinion… / If you ask me…" (the second is informal). Note po
  • locative (mojem mišljenju).
• Što se mene tiče… — "As far as I'm concerned…".

For practising these in conversation, see giving opinions. For relaying someone else's opinion (reported speech), see reported speech.

Common Mistakes

Key Takeaways

• misliti (think): da-clause for opinions; na
  • accusative = have in mind; o
    • locative = judge/reflect.
• smatrati (consider): accusative
  • instrumental
  for "regard X as Y" (no "kao"); or a da-clause.
• držati (hold the view): da-clause (emphatic); držati do
  • genitive = "value".
• činiti se (seem): impersonal, experiencer in the dative — čini mi se da… (the gentlest opinion).
• slagati se (agree): s(a)
  • instrumental for the person/idea you agree with; perfective složiti se.
• Memorise the openers Mislim da…, Smatram da…, Čini mi se da…, Po mojem mišljenju… as fixed units.