To talk about exact portions—like measuring water and clay for pottery—Croatian uses specific nouns for fractions.
Fractions as Nouns
In Croatian, fraction words like polovica (half), trećina (a third), and četvrtina (a quarter) are standard feminine nouns. They change endings depending on their role in the sentence (for example, taking the accusative -u when acting as a direct object).
| half (noun, one of two equal parts) | polovica |
| When we have a potter's wheel, we will shape half of the clay. | Kad budemo imali lončarsko kolo, oblikovat ćemo polovicu gline. |
The Genitive of the Measured Substance
To express a fraction of something (like "half of the clay" or "a third of the pots"), the substance being divided must be in the genitive case.
Notice how the fraction word changes case based on the grammar of the sentence, but the material being measured remains consistently in the genitive.
| My friend needs half of the clay for the potter's wheel. | Moj prijatelj treba polovicu gline za lončarsko kolo. |
| This piece of clay is bigger than half of the table. | Ovaj komad gline je veći od polovice stola. |
Thirds and Quarters
These exact same rules apply for trećina (a third) and četvrtina (a quarter). They behave as regular feminine nouns and require the genitive case for whatever is being divided.
| When we are kneading, a third of the clay will be soft. | Kad budemo mijesili, trećina gline bit će meka. |
| Drying takes time, and a third of the pots are finished. | Za sušenje treba vremena, a trećina lonaca je gotova. |
| They will knead a quarter of the mixture and be very precise. | Oni će mijesiti četvrtinu smjese i biti vrlo precizni. |
| She will shape the pot and add a quarter of a liter of water. | Ona će oblikovati lonac i dodati četvrtinu litre vode. |