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Questions & Answers about Tvoja knjiga je nova.
What part of speech is tvoja?
Tvoja is a possessive adjective (sometimes called a possessive pronoun). It modifies a noun by indicating ownership, and in Croatian it agrees with the noun’s gender, number, and case.
Why does tvoja end in -a?
Because it modifies knjiga, which is a feminine singular noun in the nominative case. Croatian adjectives and possessives must match the noun’s gender, number, and case—feminine nominative singular takes -a.
What gender, number, and case is knjiga, and how can you tell?
Knjiga is feminine, singular, and in the nominative case. The -a ending is a strong indicator of a feminine singular noun in nominative.
Why does the adjective nova also end in -a?
Because nova is describing knjiga as a predicate adjective (the complement of je), it still agrees with its subject (feminine singular nominative), so it takes the same -a ending.
Why is nova placed after the verb je instead of before knjiga?
When an adjective functions as a predicate (with the verb biti, “to be”), it follows the verb: knjiga je nova. If you want to use an attributive adjective (directly modifying the noun), you place it before the noun: nova knjiga.
What is the role of je in this sentence?
Je is the third person singular present tense form of biti (“to be”). It links the subject (Tvoja knjiga) to the predicate adjective (nova).
How would you say “Your books are new” in Croatian?
Use the feminine plural forms and the plural of biti:
Tvoje knjige su nove.
• tvoje (possessive, feminine plural nominative)
• knjige (noun, feminine plural nominative)
• su (3rd person plural of biti)
• nove (adjective, feminine plural nominative)
How do you make the sentence polite or formal?
Replace the informal tvoja with the formal vaša:
Vaša knjiga je nova.
This form can address one person formally or a group.