Breakdown of Doma me čeka obitelj.
doma
at home / home (direction)
me
me (accusative clitic)
čekati
to wait for
obitelj
family (f)
Questions & Answers about Doma me čeka obitelj.
Why is me in the second position of the sentence instead of after the verb?
me is a clitic (a short, unstressed pronoun). In Croatian, clitics follow a strict rule: they must go in the second position of the sentence. Here, it sits right after the first word, Doma. You cannot say Doma čeka me obitelj because that pushes the clitic to the third position.
Why is there no word for "for" in this sentence?
In English, we say "wait for someone", but the Croatian verb čekati simply takes a direct object. You just use the accusative case of the pronoun (in this case, me) directly with the verb, without adding any extra prepositions.
Why is the subject (obitelj) at the very end of the sentence?
Croatian word order is very flexible because the grammar tells you who is doing what. Putting obitelj at the end adds a little emphasis to who is waiting. It is also perfectly correct to say Obitelj me čeka doma if you want a more standard flow (notice how me stays in the second position!).
I see obitelj ends in a consonant. Is it a masculine word?
Actually, obitelj is one of those tricky exceptions you will encounter at this level! Even though it ends in a consonant (which usually signals a masculine noun), it is a feminine noun.
Learn Doma me čeka obitelj and more in Croatian
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free