Breakdown of Malo učim, ali puno radim.
ali
but (strong contrast)
raditi
to work
učiti
to learn
puno
a lot
malo
a little
Questions & Answers about Malo učim, ali puno radim.
Both verbs here end in -im. Is that the standard ending for "I" in the present tense?
In this lesson, yes! Both učiti (to learn) and raditi (to work) are regular verbs that end in -iti. To make the "I" form in the present tense, you drop the -iti and add -im, giving you učim and radim.
Why is there no word for "I" (ja) in this sentence?
Croatian is a "pro-drop" language, meaning you can drop the pronoun if the verb ending already makes it clear who is doing the action. The -im ending on učim and radim clearly tells us the subject is "I". Adding ja isn't necessary unless you want to add strong emphasis.
Do the words malo and puno change depending on who is talking?
Could I change the word order and say Učim malo, ali radim puno?
Yes, you absolutely can! Croatian word order is quite flexible. However, placing malo and puno before the verbs puts a little more emphasis on the contrast between the amounts: you learn a little, but work a lot.
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