Questions & Answers about Gleda u ogledalo i brije se.
Why do we need the word se after brije?
The word se is a reflexive pronoun that means 'oneself'. In Croatian, many personal grooming actions require it. Without se, the verb brije would just mean 'he is shaving (someone or something else)'. Together, brije se means 'he is shaving himself'.
How do we know it means 'he is looking' if there is no word for 'he' in the sentence?
In Croatian, you usually do not need to use subject pronouns like on (he) because the verb endings tell you who is doing the action. The endings on gleda and brije show it is a third-person singular subject (he, she, or it). Context tells us it is 'he'.
Why do gleda and brije end in different letters if they are both done by the same person?
Croatian verbs belong to different groups based on how they conjugate (change endings). The verb gledati (to look) takes an -a ending for 'he/she/it', becoming gleda. The verb brijati (to shave) takes an -e ending, becoming brije.
Could we put se right after i, like '... i se brije'?