Questions & Answers about Neka pijani ljudi spavaju.
Why do we use neka here instead of a regular command form?
Croatian doesn't have a direct imperative (command) form for the third person (he, she, it, they). To say 'let them do something' or give a command to a third party, we use the particle neka followed by a present tense verb. Here, neka plus spavaju means 'let them sleep'.
Does the word neka change its ending based on the subject?
No, neka is a fixed particle that never changes. All the grammar work is done by the verb that follows it. You just conjugate the verb in the present tense to match your subject, which here is the third-person plural spavaju to match pijani ljudi (drunk people).
Why is the word for 'people' ljudi? Isn't the singular form completely different?
Yes, this is an irregular plural that often trips learners up! The singular word for 'person' or 'man' is čovjek. Instead of adding a standard ending to it, Croatian uses the completely different word ljudi for the plural. Because it is grammatically masculine plural, the adjective pijan (drunk) gets the matching -i ending to become pijani.
Does this sentence mean 'Drunk people should sleep'?
It is very close in meaning, but neka acts more like a command, a concession, or granting permission ('let them sleep' or 'leave them to sleep'). If you wanted to say 'should' as a piece of advice or obligation, you would use the verb trebati (to need/should) instead, such as Pijani ljudi bi trebali spavati.