Breakdown of Možete li piti vodu iz čaše od plastike?
voda
water
li
question particle
piti
to drink
čaša
glass
Questions & Answers about Možete li piti vodu iz čaše od plastike?
Why does the word for glass change to čaše?
The preposition iz (out of / from) always requires the noun that follows it to be in the Genitive case. The dictionary form is čaša (a feminine noun ending in -a). To make it Genitive, the -a changes to -e, giving us iz čaše.
How do you say "made of" in Croatian?
You use the preposition od (from/of) followed by the material in the Genitive case. Here, plastika (plastic) becomes plastike in the Genitive. So, od plastike literally means "of plastic".
Isn't it contradictory to say a "glass" is made of plastic?
In English, "glass" usually implies the material. But in Croatian, čaša simply refers to the shape and function of the drinking vessel (a cup without a handle), regardless of what it's made of. So a plastic cup is a čaša od plastike.
Why is it vodu instead of voda?
Vodu is the direct object of the verb piti (to drink) — it is the thing being drunk. Therefore, it needs to be in the Accusative case. For feminine nouns ending in -a like voda, the ending changes to -u in the Accusative.
What is li doing in this sentence?