Learn Hardcore Croatian: Moram raditi do ponoći. - I have to work until midnight.

After modal or quasi-modal verbs (like morati, moći, htjeti, smjeti, often trebati), Croatian uses the bare infinitive for the second verb: moram raditi, mogu raditi, želim raditi. So you say moram raditi, not “moram radim.”

Note: In standard Croatian you do not say “moram da radim” (that’s characteristic of Serbian). Use the infinitive instead.

Can I change the word order? For example, is Moram do ponoći raditi okay?

Yes. All of these are grammatical:

Moram raditi do ponoći. (neutral)
Moram do ponoći raditi. (slight focus on the time limit)
Do ponoći moram raditi. (fronted time frame; emphasizes the deadline)

The meaning stays the same; the differences are about emphasis and flow.

What case is ponoći and why isn’t it ponoć here?

Ponoći is genitive singular. The preposition do (until/up to) requires the genitive, so do ponoći. The noun ponoć (midnight) is feminine, and its genitive is ponoći.

Very brief pattern for ponoć:

Nominative/Accusative: ponoć
Genitive/Dative/Locative/Instrumental: ponoći

Does do ponoći include midnight, or do I stop before midnight?

By default, do sets a limit you don’t go beyond, so the natural reading is “up to (and not past) midnight.” If you want to stress “no later than,” you can say najkasnije do ponoći. If you mean past midnight, say do poslije/iza ponoći. If you need to be crystal clear about inclusion, add uključivo: do ponoći, uključivo.

How do I say “at midnight” instead of “until midnight”?

Use u + accusative: u ponoć = “at midnight.”
Related contrasts:

do ponoći = until midnight
od ponoći = from midnight
u ponoć = at midnight

How do I pronounce the ć in ponoći? What’s the difference between ć and č?

ć is a soft, palatalized sound (like a very soft “tch”), usually shorter and “lighter.”
č is a harder “ch” sound, like English “ch” in “church.”

Ponoći has ć, the softer one.

Can I use trebam instead of moram?

Sometimes, yes, but there’s a nuance:

Moram = I must / I am obliged to (strong necessity).
Trebam = I need (to) (more about personal need or requirement; many speakers also use it like “have to,” but moram is the unambiguous “must”).

Examples:

Moram raditi do ponoći. (I must work until midnight.)
Trebam raditi do ponoći. (I need to work until midnight; common, but slightly softer.)

How do I say “I don’t have to work until midnight” vs. “I must not work until midnight”?

Ne moram raditi do ponoći. = I don’t have to work until midnight.
Ne smijem raditi do ponoći. = I must not / I am not allowed to work until midnight.

Be careful: ne moram ≠ “must not.”

How do I say this in the future: “I will have to work until midnight”?

Morat ću raditi do ponoći.

Notes:

The future clitic ću tends to go to the second position, and the infinitive often drops the final -i before it: morat ću (preferred) rather than “morati ću.”
You can also say: Sutra ću morati raditi do ponoći. (Here ću is in the second position of the clause.)

How do I say it in the past?

Use the past participle of morati with the auxiliary biti (to be). The participle agrees with the subject’s gender/number:

Masculine speaker: Morao sam raditi do ponoći.
Feminine speaker: Morala sam raditi do ponoći.
Plural (mixed/masculine): Morali smo raditi do ponoći.
Plural (all-feminine): Morale smo raditi do ponoći.

How do I say “You (singular) have to work…” and “You (formal/plural) have to work…”?

Informal singular: Moraš raditi do ponoći.
Formal or plural: Morate raditi do ponoći.

Do I need to say ja? Is Ja moram raditi do ponoći okay?

Croatian usually drops subject pronouns because the verb ending shows the person. Moram raditi do ponoći is the default.
You can add ja for emphasis or contrast: Ja moram raditi do ponoći (a ne ti).

Can I use other time expressions, like “until late”?

Yes. Common alternatives:

Moram raditi do kasno. (until late)
Moram raditi do podneva. (until noon)
Moram raditi do jutra. (until morning)

How do I say “from X to midnight”?

Use od … do …:

Radim od devet do ponoći. (I work from nine to midnight.) Both od and do govern the genitive, though with bare numerals the noun “sati” (hours) is often omitted in casual speech.

Does raditi only mean “to work”?

It mainly means “to work,” but it’s broader:

Što radiš? (What are you doing?)
Sat ne radi. (The clock doesn’t work/isn’t functioning.)
Radim na projektu. (I’m working on a project.)
In everyday speech it can also mean “to make/do” (e.g., Radim ručak. = I’m making lunch), though praviti/napraviti are common for “make.”

I often hear people say radit instead of raditi. Is that correct?

In casual speech the infinitive often drops the final -i: radit, pisat, ić. So you’ll hear Moram radit do ponoći in conversation. In standard writing, keep the full form: raditi.