Breakdown of Jučer sam počeo projekt.
biti
to be (sam, si, je)
jučer
yesterday
početi
to begin
projekt
project
Questions & Answers about Jučer sam počeo projekt.
Why is sam placed right after Jučer instead of next to the main verb?
sam is a clitic (a short, unstressed word). In Croatian, clitics have a strict rule: they must take the second position in a sentence. Since Jučer is the first word, the helping verb sam is forced into the second spot, separating it from the main verb počeo.
Where is the word for "I" (ja) in this sentence?
Croatian usually drops subject pronouns like ja (I) because the helping verb sam already tells us exactly who is doing the action. You would only add ja if you wanted to emphasize that you started the project, as opposed to someone else.
Does the ending of počeo tell us anything about the person speaking?
Yes! In the Croatian past tense, the main verb changes depending on the gender of the subject. The -o ending in počeo shows that the speaker is male. If a woman were speaking, she would use the feminine ending and say počela.
projekt is the object of the sentence, so shouldn't its ending change?
It actually is in the accusative (object) case! However, projekt is a masculine non-living thing. In Croatian, non-living masculine nouns do not change their endings in the accusative case, so it looks exactly the same as its dictionary form.
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