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Questions & Answers about Za ručak imamo piletinu.
Why is the word for chicken piletinu instead of piletina?
In this sentence, the chicken is the direct object of the verb imamo (we have), so it must be in the accusative case. For feminine nouns that end in -a like piletina, the accusative ending changes to -u.
The preposition za usually takes the accusative case here. Why doesn't ručak change its ending?
You are right that ručak (lunch) is in the accusative case here. However, because it is a masculine noun that represents an inanimate object (something not alive), its accusative form looks exactly the same as its basic dictionary form.
Why is there no word for "we" in this sentence?
In Croatian, subject pronouns like mi (we) are usually dropped. The verb imamo ends in -mo, which already clearly tells us that "we" are the ones having lunch.
Is piletina the only word for chicken in Croatian?
The word piletina specifically means chicken meat, which is why it is used for a meal here. If you are talking about the living bird, you would use kokoš (hen) or pile (chick). The ending -etina is commonly used for types of meat, just like in svinjetina (pork) or govedina (beef).