Questions & Answers about Sunce sada sja nad brdima.
Why do we use the instrumental case for brdima after nad?
The preposition nad (above/over) takes the instrumental case when describing a stationary location or state where no movement towards a new destination is happening. Since the sun is just shining in place above the hills, we use the instrumental. If something were actively moving to a position above the hills, nad would take the accusative case instead.
How is the word brdima formed from its base word?
The dictionary form is brdo, which is a neuter noun meaning hill. To make it plural in the instrumental case, neuter nouns (just like masculine nouns) take the ending -ima, turning brdo into brdima.
Could we use the preposition iznad instead of nad in this sentence?
Yes, you can say Sunce sada sja iznad brda, and the meaning is practically identical. However, remember that iznad always requires the genitive case (hence brda), while nad for location requires the instrumental (brdima).
What is the infinitive of the verb sja?
It comes from the imperfective verb sjati (to shine). sja is the third-person singular present tense, used here because the shining is an ongoing, continuous action happening right now (sada).
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