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Questions & Answers about Jesi li siguran da je to adresa?
Why is it Jesi li and not Je li or Si li?
- Jesi is the full 2nd‑person singular form of the verb “to be” and means “you are.”
- Je is 3rd‑person singular (“he/she/it is”), so Je li would mean “Is he/she/it…?” not “Are you…?”
- Si is a clitic (unstressed form) and cannot start a sentence. You can’t say Si li in standard Croatian; you must use the full form Jesi li to form a neutral yes/no question for “you.”
Can I drop li and just say Jesi siguran…?
Yes, in everyday speech you’ll often hear Jesi siguran/sigurna…? with questioning intonation. In neutral or formal writing, Jesi li… is preferred.
How do I change it for different genders or politeness?
The adjective agrees with the person you’re asking:
- to a man: Jesi li siguran da je to adresa?
- to a woman: Jesi li sigurna da je to adresa?
- to one person formally (Vi) or to a mixed/male group: Jeste li sigurni da je to adresa?
- to a group of women: Jeste li sigurne da je to adresa?
Why is there no comma before da?
In Croatian, when da introduces a content clause closely tied to the main verb or adjective (e.g., siguran), you normally do not use a comma: Jesi li siguran da je…; Mislim da je…; Znam da je…
Why is it da je to adresa and not da to je adresa?
Because je is a clitic and must stand in second position within its clause. In the da‑clause, da counts as the first element, so je comes right after it: da je to adresa is correct; da to je adresa is not.
Can I use da li instead of Jesi li?
In standard Croatian, Jesi li…? / Je li…? is preferred. Da li si…? / Da li je…? is very common in Serbian and Bosnian and is heard in some Croatian speech, but it’s less standard in Croatian, especially in formal writing.
What does to mean here, and could I use ovo/ono/ta instead?
- to is a neutral demonstrative pronoun meaning “that/this/it” used as a standalone subject: To je adresa.
- You can add nuance with distance: ovo = “this (near me)”, ono = “that (over there)”. For example: Jesi li siguran da je ovo/ono adresa?
- If you mean a specific previously mentioned address, you can say: Jesi li siguran da je to ta adresa? (that that is the address in question).
- Don’t say to adresa to mean “that address”; use the feminine demonstrative with the noun: ta adresa.
Why is adresa in the nominative?
After the copula je in an identity/equative sentence (X je Y), both sides are nominative: to (nom.) je adresa (nom.). The entire clause is just being reported under da.
Can I embed je li instead of a da‑clause?
For “be sure that…,” Croatian uses a da‑clause: Jesi li siguran da je to adresa?
A structure like Jesi li siguran je li to adresa? literally means “Are you sure whether that is the address?”, which sounds awkward or overly indirect. Use da je….
Where do the clitics go in this sentence?
- li follows the first stressed verb in the main clause: Jesi li siguran…
- je is second position inside its clause: da je to adresa.
That’s why da je to… is correct and da to je… is not.
Can I start with Si (e.g., Si siguran…)? What about Siguran si…?
- You can’t start a clause with Si; it’s a clitic.
- You can say Siguran si da je to adresa? (statement order) with rising intonation to make it a question. It’s common in speech but less neutral than Jesi li siguran….
Are there colloquial contractions?
Yes:
- Jesi l’ siguran/sigurna da je to adresa? (contracted Jesi li)
- Je l’ to adresa? (contracted Je li)
These are fine in informal writing/speech, not in formal contexts.
What’s the difference between Je li to adresa? and the original sentence?
- Je li to adresa? simply asks “Is that the address?”
- Jesi li siguran/sigurna da je to adresa? asks about the listener’s certainty: “Are you sure that that’s the address?”
Is je ever written as jest?
jest is an emphatic or archaic variant of je. You may hear Jest, to je istina (“Yes, it is true”), but inside a da‑clause you normally use je: da je to adresa, not da jest to adresa in everyday usage.