Breakdown of Pretpostavlja se da ovaj barkod nije važeći.
biti
to be (sam, si, je)
ovaj
this (m) / ova (f), ovo (n)
da
that (conjunction)
pretpostavljati
to assume, to suppose (imperfective)
Questions & Answers about Pretpostavlja se da ovaj barkod nije važeći.
Why is "se" used in "Pretpostavlja se" instead of a passive verb?
In Croatian, the impersonal or passive voice is most often formed using the reflexive pronoun se with the 3rd person singular verb. While you could technically use a passive participle, Pretpostavlja se (literally 'assumes itself') is the most natural, everyday way to express 'It is assumed' or 'People assume'.
The word "važeći" ends in "-ći". Is it a verb form or an adjective here?
It comes from the verb važiti (to be valid / to matter) and originally takes the form of a present active participle. However, in modern Croatian, važeći functions entirely as a standard adjective meaning 'valid'. As an adjective, it declines to match its noun, which is why it is in the nominative masculine singular form here to match barkod.
Could I use "valjan" instead of "važeći" to say the barcode isn't valid?
Yes, valjan also translates to 'valid' and is grammatically correct. However, važeći is the preferred and much more common colocation when talking about the official validity of codes, tickets, documents, and laws.
How does Croatian treat an English loanword like "barkod"?
Loanwords are typically adapted to Croatian phonetics and spelling. Here, 'barcode' becomes the single word barkod. It acts as a totally standard regular masculine noun ending in a consonant, meaning it will decline just like any other masculine noun (for example, the genitive would be barkoda).