Breakdown of Porazmislio je i onda odbio projekt.
biti
to be (sam, si, je)
i
and (additive)
onda
then
projekt
project
odbiti
to refuse
porazmisliti
to think for a moment
Questions & Answers about Porazmislio je i onda odbio projekt.
How does the prefix po- change the meaning of razmisliti here?
The base verb razmisliti already means to think over or to consider. By adding the attenuative prefix po-, we get porazmisliti, which means to do that action to a lesser degree or for a short time. In this sentence, it specifies that he mulled it over briefly before making his decision.
Doesn't razmisliti already have a prefix? Can verbs have two prefixes?
Yes! The root verb is misliti (to think, imperfective). Adding raz- makes it razmisliti (to consider, perfective). Adding po- on top creates a double prefix (po-raz-misliti). This is a common way in Croatian to fine-tune the exact duration or intensity of an action.
Why is there no auxiliary verb je before or after odbio?
When you have a compound sentence with multiple past tense verbs sharing the same subject, you usually drop the auxiliary verb (je) the second time to avoid repetition. Saying Porazmislio je i onda je odbio would sound unnatural and clunky to a native speaker.
Why does the direct object projekt look like it is in the nominative case?
Projekt is in the accusative case because it is the direct object being refused. However, because it is a masculine inanimate noun (a non-living thing), its accusative form is completely identical to its nominative form.
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