Breakdown of Ili će dadilja ili majka odgajati dijete.
dijete
child
majka
mother
htjeti
to want (intent, will)
ili
or
dadilja
nanny
odgajati
to raise (children)
Questions & Answers about Ili će dadilja ili majka odgajati dijete.
The current lesson is about the "-t-" stem expansion for dijete (like djeteta). Why is it just dijete here?
In this sentence, the child is the direct object being raised, so it needs to be in the accusative case. Because dijete is a neuter noun, its accusative form is exactly the same as its nominative form (dijete). The special "-t-" stem expansion only shows up in the genitive, dative, locative, and instrumental cases.
How do you say "either... or" in Croatian?
You simply use the word ili (or) twice! Ili dadilja ili majka literally translates to "Or nanny or mother," which is how Croatian expresses "Either the nanny or the mother."
Why is the future tense helper će separated from the verb odgajati?
Enclitics (like the short future helper će) naturally want to sit in the second position of a sentence or clause. Here, it takes the second spot right after the first Ili. You could also keep the entire subject together and place the enclitic after it: Ili dadilja ili majka će odgajati dijete.
Why use the imperfective verb odgajati here?
Raising a child is a continuous, long-term process rather than a single, completed action. Because the focus is on this ongoing duration, Croatian uses the imperfective verb odgajati.
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