To describe movement down a surface—like sliding down a hill or skiing down a slope—use the spatial preposition niz (down) followed by a noun in the accusative case.
For masculine inanimate nouns like brijeg (hill), the accusative form is identical to the nominative. For feminine nouns like padina (slope), the ending changes from -a to -u.
| The sled is sliding down the hill. | Sanjke klize niz brijeg. |
| The skier is going down the steep slope. | Skijaš ide niz strmu padinu. |
Adding Adjectives
Adjectives modifying the noun must also take the accusative case. For masculine inanimate nouns, the adjective often takes the -i ending (like strmi). For feminine nouns, both the adjective and the noun end in -u (like strmu padinu).
| You must slide carefully down the steep hill. | Moraš oprezno kliziti niz strmi brijeg. |
| The skiers are looking carefully down the slope. | Skijaši oprezno gledaju niz padinu. |
Saying "Downhill"
To express the general direction of downward motion without naming a specific slope, use the adverb nizbrdo (downhill). Because it is an adverb, its form never changes.
| downhill | nizbrdo |
| We love to sled downhill. | Volimo se sanjkati nizbrdo. |
| Two children are sledding downhill. | Dvoje djece se sanjka nizbrdo. |
Putting It All Together
Naturally, you can combine this downward motion vocabulary with other grammar patterns you have learned, such as using dok ne to mean "until".
| Do not go down the steep hill until I come. | Nemoj ići niz strmi brijeg dok ja ne dođem. |
