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Je li dijete zaplakalo oko ponoći?

Je li dijete zaplakalo oko ponoći?
Did the child burst into tears around midnight?
From Lesson 323:Verbs of sudden inception and attachment (za-)·Croatian

Questions & Answers about Je li dijete zaplakalo oko ponoći?

How does the prefix za- change the meaning of the verb here compared to just using plakati?
The prefix za- adds the meaning of a sudden start or inception. While plakati just means to cry (an ongoing action), zaplakati means to burst into tears or to suddenly start crying.
Why is the verb form zaplakalo ending in -lo?
In the past tense, the participle must agree in gender and number with the subject. The subject here is dijete (child), which is a neuter noun in Croatian despite ending in -e. Therefore, the verb takes the neuter singular ending -lo.
What case is ponoći, and why is it used after oko?
Ponoći is in the genitive case. The preposition oko (meaning around in time or space) always requires the genitive. Ponoć is a feminine noun ending in a consonant (an i-declension noun), so its genitive singular ending is -i.
What would it mean if I asked 'Je li dijete plakalo oko ponoći?' instead?
Using the imperfective verb plakalo would change the meaning to 'Was the child crying around midnight?' It asks about an ongoing action that was in progress at that time, rather than the sudden event of starting to cry (zaplakalo).

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