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Questions & Answers about Ona misli da učimo brzo.
What does the word da do here? Is it like “that” in English?
Yes. da is a complementizer that introduces a content clause, just like English “that”: “She thinks that we …”. After verbs of thinking/saying/perceiving, Croatian commonly uses da + indicative. Don’t confuse this with the “volitive” da (used for wishes/commands), which is a different construction in other contexts.
Do I have to keep the subject pronoun Ona?
No. Croatian is a pro‑drop language, so you can say Misli da učimo brzo. The ending on misli already signals 3rd person singular. Keeping ona can clarify or emphasize “she” (as opposed to he/it).
If I drop ona, how do I know whether it means “he,” “she,” or “it”?
You don’t, from the verb form alone—misli can mean “he/she/it thinks.” Context (earlier mentions, names, agreement with adjectives/participles elsewhere, etc.) tells you which one is meant. If you need to be explicit, keep ona (or on/ono).
Is učimo “we learn” or “we are learning”?
It can be either. The Croatian present covers both the English simple present and present progressive. Context decides whether it’s a general habit (“we learn quickly”) or something happening now (“we’re learning quickly”).
Could učimo ever mean “we teach”?
The verb učiti can mean both “to learn/study” and “to teach,” but “to teach” normally appears with a person as a direct object: učimo djecu (“we teach children”), učim nekoga matematiku. In your sentence there’s no object, so učimo is interpreted as “we (are) learn(ing).”
Should it be učimo se to say “we are learning”?
Usually no. Učiti by itself already means “to learn/study.” The reflexive učiti se does exist, and some speakers use it to stress “learning for oneself” or to disambiguate when followed by another verb:
- Učimo voziti. can be misread as “we teach (someone) to drive,” so many say
- Učimo se voziti. “we’re learning to drive.” But with nouns like languages, the non‑reflexive is standard: Učimo hrvatski.
Where does the adverb brzo go? Is učimo brzo the only option?
Both učimo brzo and brzo učimo are fine. Word order is flexible:
- učimo brzo is neutral.
- brzo učimo slightly foregrounds the speed (“we quickly learn”). Prosody and emphasis determine the nuance more than strict rules.
How would I say “She thinks we will learn quickly”?
Use the future: Ona misli da ćemo brzo naučiti.
- naučiti (perfective) focuses on completing the learning (“will learn/master”). If you mean “we will be studying quickly (at a fast pace),” use the imperfective: Ona misli da ćemo brzo učiti.
How would I say “She thinks we learned quickly” vs. “She thinks we were learning quickly”?
- Result/completion: Ona misli da smo brzo naučili.
- Ongoing process: Ona misli da smo brzo učili. Note: The past participle agrees with gender/number: naučili (masc./mixed plural), naučile (all‑female group).
How do I make it negative: “She thinks we don’t learn quickly”?
Ona misli da ne učimo brzo. Put ne directly before the verb inside the da‑clause.
Can I replace da with kako here?
You’ll hear kako in reported speech with some verbs, and some speakers use it with misliti too, e.g., Ona misli kako učimo brzo. However, da is the neutral, safest choice in standard Croatian after misliti.
Do I need a comma before da?
No. In sentences like this, there’s no comma: Ona misli da učimo brzo. A comma would appear if the da‑clause comes first: Da učimo brzo, ona misli.
Can I drop da and say “Ona misli učimo brzo”?
No. With a finite clause, you need da. Without da, misliti would have to be followed by an infinitive in a different meaning (e.g., “intend”), which isn’t what you want here.
What do the verb endings tell me about the subjects?
- misli = 3rd person singular present (“he/she/it thinks”).
- učimo = 1st person plural present (“we learn/are learning”). For these -iti verbs, present endings are: -im, -iš, -i, -imo, -ite, -e (e.g., mislim, misliš, misli, mislimo, mislite, misle; učim, učiš, uči, učimo, učite, uče).
Can I add mi (“we”) in the clause for emphasis?
Yes: Ona misli da mi učimo brzo. Adding mi makes it contrastive—“she thinks that we (as opposed to others) learn quickly.” Without mi, učimo already encodes “we,” but it isn’t contrastive.
How do I ask “Does she think we learn quickly?” in Croatian?
- Misli li ona da učimo brzo? (particle li after the verb)
- Da li ona misli da učimo brzo? (also common in many varieties) Using rising intonation alone is possible in speech, but li is the clearest formal way.
What’s the comparative/superlative of brzo?
- Comparative: brže (“faster”): Ona misli da učimo brže od drugih.
- Superlative: najbrže (“fastest”): Ona misli da učimo najbrže.