Learn Croatian: Žao mi je, kasnim. Nema veze! - I'm sorry, I'm late. Never mind!

In Croatian, feelings are often expressed using the dative case to show who is experiencing the emotion. Literally, this translates to 'It is sorry to me.' The word mi is the short dative form meaning 'to me', and je means 'is'.

I want to say 'I am late', so why is there no 'am' (sam) before kasnim?

In English, 'late' is an adjective, so you say 'I am late'. In Croatian, being late is an action expressed by the verb kasniti. The word kasnim is the 'I' form of this verb, so it already means 'I am running late'. You don't use the verb 'to be' with it.

What does Nema veze literally mean?

It literally means 'It has no connection.' The verb nema means 'does not have', and veza means 'connection' or 'relationship'. It is the most common conversational way to say 'never mind', 'no worries', or 'it doesn't matter'.

Why does veza change to veze in the phrase Nema veze?

When you use the verb nema to state that something does not exist or isn't there, the thing that is missing takes the genitive case. Because veza is a feminine noun ending in 'a', its genitive form changes the ending to 'e', making it veze.