Breakdown of Ovaj poklon pripada tebi, a ne njemu.
a
and / but
ovaj
this (m) / ova (f), ovo (n)
ne
no, not
poklon
gift
Questions & Answers about Ovaj poklon pripada tebi, a ne njemu.
Why do we use the long forms tebi and njemu here instead of the short forms ti and mu?
Because the sentence makes a strong contrast between you and him. Whenever you want to emphasize a pronoun or contrast it with someone else, you must use the full (emphatic) forms. The short forms can never carry this kind of emphasis.
Why are the pronouns in the dative case?
The verb pripadati (to belong) always requires the dative case to show who receives or owns the item.
The English translation says 'and not to him'. Why do we use a instead of i for 'and'?
In Croatian, a is a contrasting conjunction. You use it when you are comparing or contrasting two different things or situations. Since we are contrasting who gets the gift (you vs. him), a is the natural choice. The word i is only used for adding similar things together.
Could I say Ovo poklon instead of Ovaj poklon?
No, because poklon (gift) is a masculine noun, so the word for 'this' must match it using the masculine form Ovaj. You would only use Ovo if the noun was neuter (like Ovo pismo) or if you were making a general statement like 'This is a gift' (Ovo je poklon).