Log inSign up

Budi nježan prema mlađem bratu.

Budi nježan prema mlađem bratu.
Be gentle with your younger brother.
From Lesson 178:Describing character (duhovit, skroman, glup)·Croatian

Breakdown of Budi nježan prema mlađem bratu.

brat
brother
mlad
young
nježan
gentle, tender

Questions & Answers about Budi nježan prema mlađem bratu.

The English translation says "with", but the Croatian sentence uses prema. Why not use s or sa?
In Croatian, when you are talking about your attitude, behavior, or feelings towards someone, you use the preposition prema. Using s or sa (with) would literally mean doing a physical activity alongside them, rather than directing a behavior at them.
Which case is being used for mlađem bratu?
It is in the dative case. The preposition prema requires the dative case when it means "towards" a person or object.
Why does the adjective end in -em (mlađem) instead of the usual masculine dative ending -om?
The base adjective is mlađi (younger). Because its stem ends in the "soft" consonant đ, the standard dative ending -om changes to -em. You will see this -em ending on other masculine and neuter adjectives that end in soft consonants (like j, č, ć, š, and ž).
Does nježan change if I am speaking to a woman?
Yes! Nježan (gentle) is in the masculine singular form, which means this sentence is addressed to a male. If you are telling a female to be gentle, you must change the adjective to match her gender: Budi nježna.

Learn Budi nježan prema mlađem bratu and more in Croatian

All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.

  • ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
  • ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
  • ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free
Start learning Croatian →