Questions & Answers about Idem natrag u hotel.
Why is there no word for "I" before idem?
In Croatian, you usually drop subject pronouns like "I" or "you". The verb ending already tells you who is doing the action. Because idem ends in -m, we know it means "I am going". You would only add ja (I) if you really wanted to emphasize it, for example: I am going, but you are staying.
I learned that u means "in". Why does it mean "to" in this sentence?
The preposition u changes meaning depending on the verb. When you use it with a verb of motion like idem (I am going), it shows movement towards a destination, meaning "to" or "into". If you were just sleeping at the hotel and not moving towards it, it would mean "in".
If this is a destination, shouldn't hotel change its ending for the accusative case?
It actually is in the accusative case right now! In Croatian, for masculine nouns that are non-living things (like hotel), the accusative form looks exactly the same as the basic dictionary form. A masculine noun only gets a new ending here if it is a living thing, like a person or an animal.
Is it possible to use the word nazad instead of natrag here?
Yes! You will often hear native speakers say Idem nazad u hotel. The words natrag and nazad both mean "back" and are completely interchangeable in this situation.
Learn Idem natrag u hotel and more in Croatian
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free