Breakdown of Umjesto da učim, ležim na kauču i gledam seriju.
i
and (additive)
gledati
to watch
učiti
to learn
na
on, at / to, onto (with motion) / about (thinking about)
Questions & Answers about Umjesto da učim, ležim na kauču i gledam seriju.
Why does the sentence use da učim instead of a noun or an "-ing" verb for "studying"?
English uses an "-ing" verb here ("instead of studying"). However, Croatian prefers full clauses for this. To say "instead of doing something", you use the conjunction umjesto da (literally "instead that") followed by a conjugated verb. So, umjesto da učim literally translates to "instead that I study".
Why is the word for couch kauču instead of just kauč?
The preposition na (on) requires the locative case here because it describes a static location where an action is happening (where you are resting). Since kauč is a masculine noun, it takes the -u ending in the locative case to become na kauču.
I know the word for a TV series is serija. Why does it end in -u here?
It is the direct object of the verb gledam (I watch), which means it must be in the accusative case. For feminine nouns ending in -a, the accusative ending is -u, making it seriju.
Should I include the pronoun ja (I) somewhere to show who is doing all this?