Breakdown of Moj brat je nezaposlen već godinu dana.
biti
to be (sam, si, je)
brat
brother
dan
day
godina
year
moj
my
već
already
nezaposlen
unemployed
Questions & Answers about Moj brat je nezaposlen već godinu dana.
Why does the Croatian sentence use the present tense (je) when the English translation uses the present perfect (has been)?
In Croatian, if a state or action started in the past and is still ongoing, you use the present tense. English uses the present perfect for this, so using je here instead of a past tense form is a very common trap for native English speakers.
Why is the word dana added after godinu?
Adding dana, the genitive plural of dan, after a time period like a week, month, or year is a very common Croatian idiom. It emphasizes a full period of time, similar to saying a solid year or a year's time in English. You could technically just say već godinu, but već godinu dana sounds much more natural.
Where is the preposition to translate the word for in this sentence?
There isn't one! In Croatian, to express duration (how long something lasts), you simply put the time noun into the accusative case without any preposition. That is why the nominative godina becomes the accusative godinu.
How does the word već function in this time expression?
The word već usually translates to already. When placed before a time duration in a present-tense sentence, it emphasizes how long the ongoing situation has lasted. Paired with the accusative of time, it creates the combined meaning of for a year already.
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