Rak je ozbiljan.

to be

Breakdown of Rak je ozbiljan.

• ozbiljan: serious
• rak: cancer

Questions & Answers about Rak je ozbiljan.

What does each word in Rak je ozbiljan do?

• rak = a noun
• je = is, the 3rd person singular present form of biti (to be)
• ozbiljan = serious, an adjective

So the structure is very similar to English: noun + is + adjective.

Why is there no word for the or a?

Croatian does not use articles the way English does. There is no direct equivalent of a/an or the in normal sentences.

So Rak je ozbiljan can mean:

• Cancer is serious
• The cancer is serious

Which one is intended depends on context.

What case is rak in here?

Rak is in the nominative singular.

That is the normal case used for the subject of a sentence. Since rak is the thing being described as serious, it appears in the nominative.

Why is it ozbiljan and not some other form of serious?