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Svaki gutljaj je jako ukusan.

Svaki gutljaj je jako ukusan.
Every sip is very tasty.
From Lesson 385:Approximative adjectives (-kast)·Croatian

Questions & Answers about Svaki gutljaj je jako ukusan.

Could I use the suffix -kast from this lesson on ukusan to say the sip is 'somewhat tasty'?
No. The suffix -kast (meaning '-ish') is generally attached to basic, objective tastes and colors, like slatkast (sweetish) or gorkast (bitterish). Because ukusan (tasty) is a subjective evaluation, we don't attach -kast to it. To say 'somewhat tasty', you would simply use an adverb like donekle ukusan.
How is the noun gutljaj formed?
It comes from the verb gutati, which means 'to swallow'. The suffix -ljaj is used to create masculine nouns representing a single instance or result of an action. You will recognize this same useful pattern in words like zagrljaj (a hug, from hugging) and doživljaj (an experience, from experiencing).
Why does this sentence use the indefinite form ukusan rather than the definite form ukusni?
When an adjective is used as a predicate (meaning it comes after the verb 'to be' to describe the subject), it must be in the indefinite form if the adjective has one. You would use the definite form ukusni only if it were directly modifying the noun, such as in the phrase taj ukusni gutljaj (that tasty sip).
Could I use vrlo or veoma instead of jako here?
Yes, they all mean 'very' and are grammatically interchangeable in this sentence. However, jako (which stems from the adjective jak, meaning 'strong') is the most common choice in everyday spoken Croatian. Vrlo and veoma tend to sound slightly more formal or literary.

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