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Questions & Answers about Bismo li mogli imati drugi plan?
What does each word do in this sentence?
- bismo: “would (we)” — 1st‑person plural conditional auxiliary of biti (to be).
- li: yes/no question particle placed after the first element.
- mogli: past participle plural of moći (to be able); agrees with the subject.
- imati: infinitive “to have.”
- drugi: “second/other/another” (masculine singular).
- plan: “plan” (masculine noun).
What grammar/mood is used here?
- It’s the Croatian Conditional I: (bih/bi/bismo/biste/bi) + past participle + infinitive.
- Here: bismo (we would) + mogli (be able) + imati (to have).
- Commonly used for polite requests or hypotheses.
Why is it “Bismo li mogli …” instead of “Mogli bismo …”?
- Mogli bismo … is a statement: “We could …”
- To make a neutral yes/no question with the conditional, the polite pattern is: Auxiliary + li + participle … → Bismo li mogli …?
Do I have to use the particle “li”? Can I just use intonation?
- With the conditional, li is the standard way to form a neutral yes/no question.
- In casual speech, people may rely on intonation, but in writing and polite speech, keep li.
- Da li …? is widely used colloquially/regionally, but in standard Croatian, prefer (bismo) li ….
Can I say “Bi li mogli …” for “we”?
- For “we,” standard Croatian uses bismo: Bismo li mogli …?
- Forms like Bi li mogli … are common in speech but are not standard for 1st‑person plural. Stick to bismo.
Does “drugi” mean “second” or “another/other” here?
- drugi can mean both “second” and “other/another,” depending on context.
- To emphasize “another/alternative,” you can say:
- neki drugi plan (some other plan)
- još jedan plan (one more plan)
- alternativni/rezervni plan (an alternative/backup plan)
- drugačiji plan (a different kind of plan)
Why is it “mogli” and not some other form? Does it change with gender?
- mogli agrees with the subject in number and gender.
- Mixed or all‑male “we”: mogli
- All‑female “we”: mogle
- I (male): bih mogao
- I (female): bih mogla
Why “drugi plan” and not “drugog plana”?
- imati takes the accusative object. For masculine inanimate nouns, the accusative equals the nominative.
- Hence: drugi plan (not “drugog plana”).
How does this differ from “Možemo li imati drugi plan?”
- Bismo li mogli … = more tentative/polite (“Would we be able to …?”).
- Možemo li … = neutral present ability/possibility (“Can we …?”).
- Both are fine; the conditional sounds softer and more courteous.
What if I want to ask about permission rather than ability?
- Use smjeti (to be allowed):
- Smijemo li imati drugi plan? = “Are we allowed to have another plan?”
Is “imati” the best verb, or can I use others?
- Depends on nuance:
- smisliti/napraviti drugi plan = to come up with/make another plan
- dogovoriti drugi plan = to agree on another plan
- izraditi plan = to draft/prepare a plan
Where do short pronouns (clitics) go if I add them?
- They cluster right after li and before the participle:
- Bismo li ga mogli imati? (Could we have it?)
- Biste li mi mogli poslati plan? (Could you send me the plan?)
How do I make the negative version?
- Ne bismo mogli imati … = We wouldn’t be able to have …
- As a (slightly urging) question:
- Ne bismo li mogli imati …?
- Zar ne bismo mogli imati …? (Isn’t it possible that we could …?)
Any quick pronunciation tips?
- g is always hard (as in “go”): mo-GLI, dru-GI.
- Approximate stress: BÍS-mo li MÓ-gli i-MÁ-ti DRÚ-gi plan?
- Say the consonant cluster in mogli smoothly: MOH-gli, not “mo-jli.”
Is it “bismo” or “bi smo”?
- Always one word: bismo (likewise: bih, bi, bismo, biste, bi). “Bi smo” is a common spelling mistake.
Can I add “mi” (we) for emphasis, and where?
- Yes, the stressed pronoun mi can follow li: Bismo li mi mogli imati drugi plan? (we in particular).
- Don’t confuse this with the unstressed mi = “to me,” which sits with other clitics after li (e.g., Biste li mi mogli …).