To nije problem; imamo drugi plan.

to be

Breakdown of To nije problem; imamo drugi plan.

• imati: to have
• ne: not
• problem: problem

Questions & Answers about To nije problem; imamo drugi plan.

Why is it To nije problem and not To ne je problem?

Because ne + je contracts to nije in Croatian. It’s the regular negative of the verb biti (to be).

• Affirmative: To je problem. (That is a problem.)
• Negative: To nije problem. (That is not a problem.) Other present-tense forms of biti for reference: sam, si, je, smo, ste, su; negatives: nisam, nisi, nije, nismo, niste, nisu.

What exactly does to mean here? How is it different from ovo and ono?

to is a neutral demonstrative pronoun often used for “that/it” referring to something already known from context.

• ovo = this (near the speaker)
• to = that/it (neutral/default)
• ono = that over there/that (distant or less immediate) All three can be subjects: Ovo/To/Ono nije problem.

Where is the English article “a” in “not a problem”?

Croatian has no articles. Predicate nouns after je/nije stand bare: To je problem. / To nije problem. Context supplies the “a/the” meaning.

Why is it problem and not problema after nije?