Breakdown of Ne, ali jesam siguran.
biti
to be (sam, si, je)
siguran
sure
ne
no, not
ali
but (strong contrast)
Questions & Answers about Ne, ali jesam siguran.
Why use jesam here instead of the short form sam?
Jesam is the long (or emphatic) form of "I am". You use it here because the speaker is emphasizing the fact that they are sure, contrasting with the "No" in the first part of the sentence. In English, we show this by putting heavy stress on the verb: "No, but I AM sure."
Would it be wrong to use the short form sam here?
It wouldn't be grammatically wrong to say Ne, ali sam siguran, but it changes the tone. The short form sam is just an unemphasized "am", so you lose that strong contrasting emotion. Using jesam highlights and defends your certainty.
How can we tell if a man or a woman is saying this?
Why is there no Croatian word for "I" (ja) in this sentence?
Croatian often drops subject pronouns like ja (I) because the verb form already tells you who is speaking. Since jesam specifically means "I am", adding ja isn't necessary. The emphasis is already on the verb itself rather than the person.