Breakdown of Radit ću od ponedjeljka do petka, a onda ću otputovati sam.
a
and / but
raditi
to work
htjeti
to want (intent, will)
onda
then
od
from
do
to, until, up to / in the mood for (nije mi do)
ponedjeljak
Monday
petak
Friday
sam
alone
otputovati
to depart
Questions & Answers about Radit ću od ponedjeljka do petka, a onda ću otputovati sam.
Why is the verb otputovati spelled with a 't' instead of a 'd' if the prefix is od-?
The prefix is indeed od-, which indicates departure. However, when the voiced consonant d comes directly before a voiceless consonant like p, it changes to its voiceless pair t to make pronunciation easier. This phonetic rule changes it to otputovati.
What is the exact difference between putovati and otputovati?
Putovati is an imperfective verb meaning "to travel" in a general or ongoing sense. By adding the prefix od- (spelled ot- here), we create the perfective verb otputovati. The prefix adds the specific meaning of separation or departure, so it translates to "to set off," "to depart," or "to leave on a trip."
Is there a connection between the prepositions od and do used here and the verbal prefixes we are learning?
Yes! They share the exact same logic. The preposition od marks a starting point or separation (from Monday), while do marks a limit or end point (to Friday). When used as verbal prefixes, they do the exact same thing to the action of the verb, such as in otputovati (to depart or move away from) or doputovati (to arrive or reach a limit).
Just as a refresher, why do ponedjeljak and petak end in -a here?
Both the prepositions od (from) and do (until/to) always require the genitive case. Because of this, the nominative noun ponedjeljak drops its fleeting 'a' and takes the genitive ending to become ponedjeljka, and petak similarly becomes petka.
If a female speaker were saying this sentence, would anything change?
Yes, the word sam (alone) is an adjective that must agree with the subject's gender. A female speaker would say sama. The verbs wouldn't change because the future tense in Croatian doesn't show gender the way the past tense does.
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