Breakdown of Svaki brodovlasnik mora potpisati ugovor.
morati
must
svaki
every, each
ugovor
contract / treaty
potpisati
to sign (perfective)
Questions & Answers about Svaki brodovlasnik mora potpisati ugovor.
How is the word brodovlasnik constructed?
This is a classic example of a compound noun. It joins brod (ship) and vlasnik (owner) using the connecting vowel -o-. This -o- interfix is the most common way to glue two nouns together into a single concept in Croatian.
Why is ugovor used here without an accusative ending like -a?
ugovor is actually in the accusative case here, as it is the direct object of potpisati (to sign). However, because it is an inanimate masculine noun, its accusative form looks exactly the same as its nominative form. If it were a living thing, it would take the -a ending.
Why use the perfective verb potpisati rather than the imperfective potpisivati?
The sentence refers to the completed action of signing a specific contract. The perfective potpisati focuses on the result (getting it signed). If the sentence was describing the continuous process of signing things regularly, you would use the imperfective potpisivati.
Could I say mora da potpiše instead of mora potpisati?
Standard Croatian strongly prefers using the infinitive (potpisati) after a modal verb like morati (must). The alternative construction using da + present tense (da potpiše) is understood but is a grammatical feature characteristic of Serbian, whereas Croatian favors the infinitive.