Word
Malo tko živi na ovom pustom i surovom otoku.
Meaning
Hardly anyone lives on this desolate and harsh island.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Malo tko živi na ovom pustom i surovom otoku.
ovaj
this (m) / ova (f), ovo (n)
i
and (additive)
živjeti
to live
na
on, at / to, onto (with motion) / about (thinking about)
Questions & Answers about Malo tko živi na ovom pustom i surovom otoku.
Why does malo tko take the singular verb živi if it means 'few people'?
Even though it refers to a few people in meaning, malo tko is grammatically based on the pronoun tko (who). Just like tko, it always takes a third-person singular verb.
Does the phrase malo tko change if it is the object of the sentence instead of the subject?
Yes, the tko part declines normally while malo stays the same. If the sentence was 'I see hardly anyone', you would use the accusative form: Vidim malo koga.
Why do the words ovom pustom i surovom end in -om?
They are masculine adjectives and pronouns in the locative case, modifying otoku (island). The preposition na requires the locative case here because it describes a static location (where someone lives).
The adjective pustom comes from pust. Does this just mean 'empty'?
It means empty, deserted, or desolate. You can easily remember this word if you know the noun pustinja (desert), which shares the same root for a barren, uninhabited place.