Breakdown of Hoću kupiti nov auto.
nov
new
auto
car (short form)
htjeti
to want (intent, will)
kupiti
to buy (perfective)
Questions & Answers about Hoću kupiti nov auto.
Why does this sentence use hoću instead of the short form ću?
Could I say Ja ću kupiti nov auto instead?
You can, because adding the pronoun Ja (I) means the verb is no longer the first word, allowing you to use the short form ću. However, Ja ću kupiti is usually used for the future tense to mean "I will buy". By using the full form hoću without Ja, the sentence keeps the strong meaning of "I want to buy".
Since auto ends in -o, doesn't that make it a neuter noun?
Normally, nouns ending in -o or -e are neuter, but auto is a very common exception! It is actually a masculine noun. Because a car is an inanimate object (a thing, not a living being), its accusative form—used here because it is the direct object being bought—stays exactly the same as its dictionary form.
Why is the adjective nov (new) used here instead of novi?
Nov is the indefinite form of the adjective, which is used here to match the English "a new car" (an unspecified car). If you said novi auto, you would technically be using the definite form, meaning "the new car". Note that in casual, everyday spoken Croatian, people often use the -i ending for both!
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