The Second Position Rule
In Croatian, clitics (short, unstressed words like je, su, ga, and se) must appear in the second position of their clause. In complex sentences, each clause has its own second position.
When a subordinate clause begins with a conjunction like da (that) or ako (if), the conjunction counts as the first element. This means any clitics must be placed directly after it.
| If you analyze it, the result is better. | Ako ga analiziraš, rezultat je bolji. |
| He claims that his theories are interesting. | Tvrdi da su njegove teorije zanimljive. |
If the clause contains multiple clitics, they cluster together immediately after the conjunction.
| I think that philosophy is her biggest problem. | Mislim da joj je filozofija najveći problem. |
Other Conjunctions
This rule applies to all subordinate conjunctions, including jer (because), što (what), and kad (when).
| Philosophy is useful because it gives us answers. | Filozofija je korisna jer nam daje odgovore. |
| I asked what freedom means to him. | Pitao sam što mu znači sloboda. |
| She reads when her reason seeks the truth. | Ona čita kad joj razum traži istinu. |
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