Tisuću ljudi uči lončarstvo.

In Croatian, subjects with numbers like pet (five), sto (a hundred), or tisuću (a thousand) very often take a singular verb.

So:

• Tisuću ljudi uči = normal Croatian structure

Even though the meaning is plural, Croatian treats this kind of number phrase as a single quantified unit more than English does.

A useful comparison:

• Tri ljudi uče would sound odd anyway, but with two/three/four you more often see plural agreement.
• With five and higher, singular agreement is very common.

So uči is exactly what you should expect here.

Here ljudi is genitive plural after the numeral tisuću.

After numbers like five, ten, a hundred, a thousand, Croatian normally puts the counted noun in the genitive plural.

So the structure is basically:

• tisuću = a thousand
• ljudi = of people

One thing that can confuse learners is that ljudi has the same form for:

• nominative plural: people
• genitive plural: of people

So in this sentence, it looks simple on the surface, but grammatically it is functioning as genitive plural.

In counting expressions like this, Croatian commonly uses tisuću before the noun:

• tisuću ljudi
• tisuću puta
• tisuću kuna

The form tisuća also exists, but tisuću is the standard counting form you should learn for expressions like a thousand people.

So for a learner, the safest rule is:

• when saying a thousand + noun, use tisuću + genitive plural

Example:

• tisuću ljudi
• tisuću učenika
• tisuću kuća

Yes. The whole phrase tisuću ljudi functions as the subject of the sentence.

This is a very common feature of number expressions in Croatian: the noun inside the phrase may not be in nominative, but the entire phrase still acts as the subject.

So in this sentence:

• Tisuću ljudi = subject
• uči = verb
• lončarstvo = object

English learners often expect the subject noun itself to be nominative, but with numerals, Croatian does not always work that way.

Lončarstvo is in the accusative singular, because it is the direct object of učiti.

The verb učiti can mean to learn or to study, and when it takes a direct object, that object is usually in the accusative:

• učiti jezik = to learn a language
• učiti matematiku = to study mathematics
• učiti lončarstvo = to learn pottery

Also, lončarstvo is a neuter noun, and for many neuter nouns the nominative and accusative singular look the same. So even though the form is lončarstvo, its role here is accusative.

It can mean any of those, depending on context.

Croatian present tense often covers meanings that English splits into different forms:

• learns
• is learning
• studies
• is studying

So Tisuću ljudi uči lončarstvo could be understood as:

• A thousand people learn pottery
• A thousand people are learning pottery
• A thousand people study pottery

Context tells you which English version sounds best.

Because ljudi is the normal plural form used for people.

The singular is:

• čovjek = person / man

But the plural is irregular:

• ljudi = people

So Croatian does not normally build this with a regular-looking plural of čovjek. You simply learn:

• čovjek → ljudi

That is why tisuću ljudi is the natural phrase for a thousand people.

A more formal or administrative alternative could be:

• tisuću osoba = a thousand persons

But ljudi is the most natural everyday choice.

Yes. Croatian word order is more flexible than English word order because case endings carry a lot of the grammatical information.

The neutral order here is:

• Tisuću ljudi uči lončarstvo.

But you could also hear:

• Lončarstvo uči tisuću ljudi.
• Uči lončarstvo tisuću ljudi.

These alternatives change the focus or emphasis, not the basic meaning.

Very roughly:

• Tisuću ljudi uči lončarstvo. = neutral statement
• Lončarstvo uči tisuću ljudi. = emphasis on pottery
• Uči lončarstvo tisuću ljudi. = more marked, often used for stylistic or discourse reasons

So the original sentence is the most straightforward version for learners.

Because Croatian has no articles.

English needs words like:

• a
• an
• the

Croatian normally does not use anything equivalent in ordinary sentences.

So Tisuću ljudi uči lončarstvo does not literally mark whether it is:

• a thousand people
• the thousand people

Context decides that. In most situations, the natural English translation is simply A thousand people are learning pottery or A thousand people learn pottery.

Grammatically, it is treated as an abstract field or skill that can be learned.

The noun lončarstvo means something like:

• pottery
• pottery-making
• the craft of pottery

With učiti, Croatian often uses this kind of abstract noun directly:

• učiti glazbu = learn/study music
• učiti slikarstvo = learn/study painting
• učiti lončarstvo = learn/study pottery

So the sentence presents lončarstvo as a craft or discipline people are learning.