Breakdown of Ako si pogriješio, uzmi korektor i gumicu, a ne selotejp.
biti
to be (sam, si, je)
a
and / but
i
and (additive)
ne
no, not
Questions & Answers about Ako si pogriješio, uzmi korektor i gumicu, a ne selotejp.
Why do korektor and selotejp look like they are in the nominative case here, while gumica changes to gumicu?
They are all in the accusative case because they are the direct objects of the verb uzmi (take). Because korektor and selotejp are masculine inanimate nouns (objects, not living beings), their accusative form is identical to their nominative form. Gumica is a feminine noun, so its ending changes from -a to -u in the accusative.
Is selotejp just the English brand name 'Sellotape'?
Yes! In Croatian, foreign brand names or words are often spelled phonetically and then treated as regular native nouns. Here, it acts as a standard masculine noun meaning adhesive tape. You will also see this with words like flomaster for a felt-tip marker.
Could I say ali ne selotejp instead of a ne selotejp?
Why is the perfective verb pogriješio used here instead of the imperfective griješio?