Breakdown of Ako ti ne dođeš, ona će otići s najboljim prijateljem.
ti
you (sg. informal)
ona
she
prijatelj
friend
ne
no, not
htjeti
to want (intent, will)
doći
to come, to arrive
otići
to leave, to go away
s
with
najbolji
best
ako
if
Questions & Answers about Ako ti ne dođeš, ona će otići s najboljim prijateljem.
In the phrase Ako ti ne dođeš, why is the present tense used when talking about the future?
This is the standard way to make a real conditional in Croatian. When talking about a realistic future condition, the ako (if) part of the sentence uses the present tense, while the result part uses the future tense (ona će otići).
Dođeš is a perfective verb. I thought perfective verbs aren't used in the present tense?
You have a good memory! In regular main sentences, perfective verbs (which describe completed actions) are rarely used in the present tense. But inside an ako clause, it is totally normal. It shows that the condition (you arriving) is a single, completed action that dictates what happens next.
Why are the pronouns ti and ona used here? Doesn't Croatian usually drop them?
Yes, subject pronouns are usually dropped. However, including them here creates a strong contrast: if you don't come, she will leave. Using ti and ona emphasizes the two different people involved in the condition.
Why is the future tense written as će otići instead of otići će?
The little word će (will) must take the second position in its clause. Because the pronoun ona is in the first position, će must come right after it. If you dropped the pronoun ona, the verb would go first and it would flip to otići će s najboljim prijateljem.
Why does the ending change to najboljim prijateljem?
The preposition s (with) requires the instrumental case when you are doing something in someone's company. The dictionary form is najbolji prijatelj, but the instrumental case changes the masculine endings to -im for the adjective and -em for the noun.
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