Learn Croatian: Nema više ulja za salatu. - There is no more oil for the salad.

Nema više ulja za salatu.

There is no more oil for the salad.

Breakdown of Nema više ulja za salatu.

salata

salad

for / at (a table) (+ instrumental)

Questions & Answers about Nema više ulja za salatu.

Why is the word for oil spelled ulja instead of ulje?

Because the sentence uses nema (there is no). In Croatian, when you say that something is missing or does not exist, the missing thing must be in the genitive case. Ulje (oil) is a neuter noun, and its genitive form ends in -a, making it ulja.

Could I say "ne ima" instead of "nema"?

No, nema is the special, mandatory negative form of ima (there is). You cannot say ne ima in Croatian; the negative particle ne and the verb always merge into the single word nema.

How does the phrase "nema više" work together here?

Combining nema (there is no) with više (more) is the standard way to say "there is no more" or "we are out of" something. The item you are out of still follows the rule for nema and takes the genitive case.

Why is the word for salad written as salatu?

It changes because of the preposition za (for). When za is used to show purpose, like what an ingredient is intended for, it requires the following noun to be in the accusative case. Since salata is a feminine noun, its ending changes from -a to -u.