Breakdown of Ma super, dovraga, opet kiša!
kiša
rain
super
great, awesome (colloquial)
ma
come on!, oh (dismissive particle)
dovraga
damn it! (mild expletive)
Questions & Answers about Ma super, dovraga, opet kiša!
What exactly does Ma mean at the beginning of the sentence?
Ma is a very common conversational particle in Croatian. It does not have a strict English translation, but it adds emphasis, emotion, or a sense of resignation. Here, it translates roughly to the "Oh" in "Oh great" and highlights the speaker's sarcastic frustration.
How is the word dovraga formed, and how offensive is it?
It comes from combining the preposition do (to) and vraga, which is the genitive case of vrag (devil). Literally, it means "to the devil." It is a mild, everyday expression of frustration, similar to "damn it" or "darn" in English, so it is not considered highly offensive.
Why is there no verb like je (is) in this sentence?
In casual spoken Croatian, it is very common to drop the verb in short exclamations when the meaning is obvious. Saying opet kiša (rain again) instead of opet je kiša (it is raining again) makes the sentence sound punchier and more natural for a sudden reaction.
Does the word super ever change its endings depending on what it describes?
No, super is an informal loanword and is completely indeclinable. Whether it describes a masculine, feminine, plural, or singular noun, it never changes its form.
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