Breakdown of Briga za obitelj je važna, no odvoji vrijeme za sebe.
biti
to be (sam, si, je)
obitelj
family (f)
važan
important
sebe
oneself (stressed reflexive)
vrijeme
time
no
but, however (formal)
za
for (+ accusative)
odvojiti
to separate
briga
care
Questions & Answers about Briga za obitelj je važna, no odvoji vrijeme za sebe.
Why is the full form sebe used here instead of the short form se?
After a preposition like za, you must always use the full, stressed form of a pronoun. Since za takes the accusative case here, we use sebe. The short, unstressed form se can never be used right after a preposition.
Could I say za tebe instead of za sebe?
You will sometimes hear native speakers say za tebe, but standard Croatian grammar dictates za sebe. Whenever the object refers back to the subject of the clause (here, the implied 'you' doing the command odvoji), you should use the reflexive pronoun sebe rather than the personal pronoun.
Why doesn't the word obitelj change its ending after the preposition za?
The preposition za does trigger the accusative case here. However, obitelj is a special type of feminine noun that ends in a consonant. For these nouns, the accusative singular form is identical to the nominative singular form, so the word doesn't actually change shape.
What tense or form is the verb odvoji?
It is the imperative, or command form, for 'you' (singular) of the verb odvojiti (to separate or set aside). Because it is a direct command to the listener, the implied subject is 'you', which is why we translate the reflexive sebe as 'for yourself' in English.
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