Breakdown of Je li petak trinaesti loš datum?
biti
to be (sam, si, je)
li
question particle
loš
bad
petak
Friday
trinaesti
thirteenth
datum
date
Questions & Answers about Je li petak trinaesti loš datum?
Wait, this lesson is about dates in the genitive case. Why isn't trinaesti in the genitive here?
Great catch! We use the genitive case when we want to say on a specific date (like 'I am travelling on the thirteenth'). But in this sentence, 'Friday the thirteenth' is the subject — we are just asking what it is. Because it is the subject, trinaesti stays in the nominative case.
Why does trinaesti end in -i? Is it masculine?
Yes, it is masculine! Ordinal numbers act like adjectives, so they must match the gender of the noun they describe. Here, it is describing petak (Friday), which is a masculine noun. If it were describing a feminine noun, it would be trinaesta.
Can I ask this question by just saying Je petak trinaesti... instead of Je li?
No, you cannot start a yes/no question with just the short verb je (is). You have to use je li (is + question particle). Another option is to use the phrase da li and say Da li je petak trinaesti..., which is also very common.
Why doesn't datum change its ending here?
Because datum (date) is also in the nominative case. It is connected to the subject by the verb je (is). When you say one thing is another thing in Croatian, both things stay in their basic dictionary form.
Learn Je li petak trinaesti loš datum 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