Breakdown of Galebovi lete pokraj visokih borova.
letjeti
to fly
visok
tall / high (of amount, price)
pokraj
next to
galeb
seagull
Questions & Answers about Galebovi lete pokraj visokih borova.
Why is the phrase visokih borova in the Genitive case?
The preposition pokraj (next to) always requires the noun phrase following it to be in the Genitive case. This rule also applies to similar prepositions of spatial proximity taught in this lesson, such as kraj and blizu.
Could I use kraj or blizu instead of pokraj in this sentence?
You can absolutely use kraj, as it is an exact synonym for pokraj (meaning next to or beside). If you use blizu, the meaning changes slightly to near or close to the pine trees. All three of these prepositions require the Genitive case, so the rest of the sentence would stay exactly the same.
Where does the -ova part come from in the word borova?
The base noun is bor (pine tree). Because it is a short, one-syllable masculine noun, it takes the plural extension -ov- before adding any plural case endings. Finally, the Genitive plural ending -a is added to the very end, resulting in borova.
Why does the adjective visokih end in -ih instead of -a like the noun it describes?
Adjectives and nouns have different sets of case endings in Croatian. While the Genitive plural ending for masculine nouns is usually -a (like in borova), the Genitive plural ending for adjectives of all three genders is always -ih.