Breakdown of Mi darujemo besplatnu odjeću.
mi
we
darovati
to donate
odjeća
clothes
besplatan
free (of charge)
Questions & Answers about Mi darujemo besplatnu odjeću.
The dictionary form of "to donate" is darovati. How do we get darujemo?
This is a great example of an -ovati verb! When conjugating verbs that end in -ovati in the present tense, the -ova- part drops out and is replaced by -uj-. Then, we add the normal present tense ending for "we". So, darovati becomes daruj- + -emo = darujemo (we donate).
The English translation says "clothes", which is plural. Why is odjeću in the singular form?
In Croatian, the word for clothes, odjeća, is a collective noun. This means it acts like a singular feminine word, even though it describes multiple items. It functions a lot like the English word "clothing". Because of this, it takes singular endings.
Why do besplatnu and odjeću both end in -u here?
Because "free clothes" is the direct object of the verb darujemo (it is what is being donated), the phrase needs to be in the accusative case. Odjeća is a feminine noun, and feminine singular nouns change their -a ending to -u in the accusative. The adjective must match the noun, so besplatna also changes its -a to -u to become besplatnu.
If the dictionary word for "free" is besplatan, why isn't the feminine form besplatanu instead of besplatnu?
The masculine form besplatan has a "fleeting a" (the final -a- right before the -n). This extra vowel is just there to make the word easier to pronounce when it ends in certain consonant clusters. When we add endings for other genders or cases, that extra -a- disappears. So besplatan drops the "a" to become besplatna (feminine nominative) and then besplatnu (feminine accusative).
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