Breakdown of Ovo je stručan žargon, to jest, jezik koji laik ne razumije.
biti
to be (sam, si, je)
ovaj
this (m) / ova (f), ovo (n)
ne
no, not
razumjeti
to understand
jezik
language
koji
which
stručan
professional
žargon
jargon
to jest
that is (i.e.)
laik
layman
Questions & Answers about Ovo je stručan žargon, to jest, jezik koji laik ne razumije.
How exactly does to jest function in this sentence, and does it require commas?
To jest literally translates to 'that is,' and it's used to clarify or define the preceding term, stručan žargon. In Croatian, it acts as an explanatory conjunction. When it introduces an explanation in the middle of a sentence, it must be preceded by a comma. The comma after it is technically optional in standard Croatian grammar, but it is often used to reflect a natural spoken pause. You will frequently see this marker abbreviated as tj. in writing.
Could I use drugim riječima or odnosno instead of to jest here?
Yes, but with slight nuances. Drugim riječima ('in other words') works perfectly since you are rephrasing the concept for the layman. Odnosno is also very common for clarifications, though it can sometimes ambiguously mean 'or' depending on the context. To jest is the most precise choice here because it perfectly matches the English 'that is to say' or 'i.e.,' which directly defines the term just mentioned.
In the phrase jezik koji laik ne razumije, what case is koji?
It is in the accusative case. The subject of the relative clause is laik (the layman, nominative), and the verb razumjeti (to understand) takes a direct object in the accusative. Because the noun it refers to, jezik, is masculine and inanimate, its accusative form is identical to its nominative form. That is why the pronoun remains koji instead of changing to the animate accusative form kojeg.
Why is the adjective written as stručan instead of stručni?
Stručan is the indefinite form of the adjective, while stručni is the definite form. When describing a noun for the first time as part of a predicate (after the verb 'to be', like ovo je...), the indefinite form is grammatically correct because you are saying 'this is a professional jargon'. However, as a B2 learner, you have likely noticed that native speakers frequently use the definite form stručni in everyday speech regardless of this rule.
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