Breakdown of Izmjenjujte uspravno i opušteno držanje tijela.
i
and
opušten
relaxed
držanje tijela
posture
uspravan
upright; erect
Questions & Answers about Izmjenjujte uspravno i opušteno držanje tijela.
What does izmjenjujte mean in this sentence?
Here izmjenjujte means alternate, switch between, or keep changing from one to the other.
It comes from the verb izmjenjivati, which is an imperfective verb. In this kind of instruction, it suggests a repeated or ongoing action, not just a one-time change.
So the sentence is telling someone to keep alternating between two kinds of posture.
Why is it izmjenjujte and not izmijenite?
This is a question about aspect, which is very important in Croatian.
- izmjenjujte = imperfective imperative
- suggests repetition, continuation, or habit
- keep alternating
- izmijenite = perfective imperative
- suggests a completed action, often one change
- change/switch once
Since this sentence is giving advice about posture, Croatian uses the imperfective form because the idea is repeat this action over time.
Is izmjenjujte a command to one person or to several people?