Question 1

How exactly does bilo gdje mean 'anywhere' in this sentence, and is it always two words?

Accepted Answer

The particle bilo adds the meaning of 'any-' to question words. Since gdje means 'where', adding bilo in front of it creates bilo gdje (anywhere). Unlike some other word-building prefixes, bilo is always written as a completely separate word.

Question 2

Would I use bilo kamo instead of bilo gdje if I were talking about going somewhere?

Accepted Answer

Yes! In Croatian, there is a strict difference between location and destination. Because we are talking about sleeping in a fixed place here, we use gdje (where at). If the sentence involved movement to a destination, like 'We can go anywhere', you would use a destination word: Možemo ići bilo kamo.

Question 3

Why does the sentence use večeras for 'tonight' instead of a phrase using noć (night)?

Accepted Answer

In Croatian, večeras (derived from večer, meaning evening) is the standard adverb used for plans happening later today, which English speakers usually translate as 'tonight'. You would typically only use noćas if you are referring to the deep middle of the night, or the night that just passed.

Question 4

Could we use the da + present tense structure here instead of the infinitive spavati?

Accepted Answer

While you might hear da spavamo in some regions or in Serbian, standard Croatian strongly prefers using the infinitive (spavati) directly after a modal verb like možemo (we can) when the person doing both actions is the same.

Večeras možemo spavati bilo gdje.

Breakdown of Večeras možemo spavati bilo gdje.

Questions & Answers about Večeras možemo spavati bilo gdje.

Learn Večeras možemo spavati bilo gdje and more in Croatian