Breakdown of Oni sada nisu zajedno.
oni
they
zajedno
together
sada
now
nisam
am not (nisi, nije, nismo, niste, nisu)
Questions & Answers about Oni sada nisu zajedno.
How do we form the negative word nisu?
To say "are not" for "they" (oni), we combine the negative word ne with the verb su (are). Instead of saying ne su, they merge into one single word: nisu. This happens for all present tense forms of the verb biti (to be), like nisam (I am not) and nisi (you are not).
If su usually has to be in the second position in a sentence, why is nisu in the third position here?
Great observation! The positive word su is an enclitic (a short, unstressed word that must sit in the second position of a sentence). However, the negative forms like nisu, nisam, and nije are strong words. Because they carry their own stress, they are not forced into the second position, so the word order in Oni sada nisu zajedno is perfectly fine.
We used oni for "they". Could we use one or ona in this exact same sentence?
Yes! You would change the pronoun depending on who "they" are. Oni is used for a group of males or a mixed group. If "they" were an all-female group, you would say One sada nisu zajedno. If it were a group of neuter nouns, you would use Ona. The rest of the sentence remains exactly the same.
I sometimes see sad instead of sada. Can I use here?