Breakdown of Podignimo čaše i čestitajmo im!
oni
they
i
and (additive)
čaša
glass
podignuti
to raise
čestitati
to congratulate
Questions & Answers about Podignimo čaše i čestitajmo im!
Why does podignimo end in -imo but čestitajmo ends in -jmo?
Both are first-person plural imperatives (meaning "let's..."), but they use different endings based on the verb. The present tense stem of podignuti ends in a consonant (podign-), so we add -imo. The present tense stem of čestitati ends in a vowel (čestita-), so we add -jmo for smoother pronunciation.
Why do we use im instead of ih for "them"?
The verb čestitati (to congratulate) always takes the Dative case in Croatian. You are essentially saying "let's give congratulations TO them". The word im is the short Dative form for "them", while ih is the Accusative form.
What case is čaše here?
It's the Accusative plural. The singular word for "glass" is čaša (a feminine noun). Since the glasses are the direct object being raised, they must be in the Accusative case. For feminine nouns ending in -a, the plural Accusative ending changes to -e, making it čaše.
Is there another way to say "let's raise" in everyday conversation?
Yes! In spoken Croatian, people frequently use da followed by the regular present tense instead of the formal imperative. You will often hear da podignemo instead of podignimo, and da čestitamo instead of čestitajmo.
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