Word
Njegov strah je takav da se stalno trese.
Meaning
His fear is such that he shakes constantly.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Lesson
Breakdown of Njegov strah je takav da se stalno trese.
biti
to be (sam, si, je)
njegov
his
stalno
constantly
da
that (conjunction)
Questions & Answers about Njegov strah je takav da se stalno trese.
Why do we use takav here instead of tako?
Takav is a demonstrative adjective meaning such or of that kind, and it must agree with the noun it describes. Here, it agrees with the masculine noun strah (fear). You would use the adverb tako (so) if you were modifying a verb or an adjective, for example on se tako jako trese (he shakes so strongly).
How does the structure takav da work in this sentence?
The combination takav da translates directly to such that. It is a common structure used to introduce a result clause. The first part describes the intensity or nature of a noun, and the da clause explains the direct consequence of it.
Why is the verb tresti se reflexive in this sentence?
In English, to shake can be used without an object when someone is trembling. In Croatian, the base verb tresti means to shake something else (like a rug or a tree). To say that a person is physically trembling or shivering, you must use the reflexive pronoun se to show the action happens to the subject's own body.
Why is the word order da se stalno trese and not da stalno se trese?