Sjetila sam se gdje je torba.

I (female) remembered where the bag is.

Breakdown of Sjetila sam se gdje je torba.

• biti: to be
• gdje: where
• torba: bag
• sjetiti se: to remember

Questions & Answers about Sjetila sam se gdje je torba.

Why is there se in sjetila sam se?

Because the verb for “to remember” in Croatian is reflexive: sjetiti se. The clitic se is required. Without se, sjetiti means “to remind (someone).” So:

• Sjetila sam se. = I remembered.
• Sjetila sam ga. = I reminded him. (different verb)

Why does it say sjetila with an -a at the end?

That marks the feminine singular past participle. In the Croatian compound past, the l-participle agrees with the subject:

• Female speaker: Sjetila sam se.
• Male speaker: Sjetio sam se.
• Mixed or all-male group: Sjetili smo se.
• All-female group: Sjetile smo se.

Where do sam and se go? Could I say Sjetila se sam?

No. Croatian clitics follow strict placement rules:

• The auxiliary sam/si/je/smo/ste/su tends to go in the second position of the clause.
• The reflexive se follows the auxiliary. So you say: Sjetila sam se, not Sjetila se sam. If you include the pronoun, you can also say: Ja sam se sjetila…

What tense is Sjetila sam se?

It’s the compound past (perfect): l-participle (sjetila) + present of biti (sam). It describes a completed event of recalling at a specific moment.

What’s the difference between sjetiti se and sjećati se?

• sjetiti se (perfective) = to recall/remember at a point in time (a “moment of realization”): Sjetila sam se gdje je torba.
• sjećati se (imperfective) = to remember/be able to recall in general or was remembering: Sjećala sam se gdje je torba, “I was remembering/I used to remember where the bag is.”

Why is it gdje je torba, not gdje torba je?

je (“is”) is also a clitic and in Croatian it prefers second position in its clause. In the subordinate clause, gdje is the first element, so je comes next: gdje je torba, not gdje torba je.

Why is it torba and not torbe?

Inside the clause gdje je torba, torba is the subject of je and is therefore in the nominative. You would use genitive after sjetiti se if it directly governs a noun: Sjetila sam se torbe = “I remembered the bag.” But with a full clause (gdje je torba), nominative is correct.

Could I say Sjetila sam gdje je torba without se?

No. In standard Croatian, “remember” requires the reflexive: sjetiti se. Sjetila sam gdje… is incorrect for “I remembered where…”

Do I need a comma before gdje?

No comma here. Complement clauses introduced by question words like gdje usually do not take a comma: Sjetila sam se gdje je torba.

How do I pronounce gdje?

Pronounce it roughly like “gd-ye” in one beat. Many speakers simplify it to something close to “dje” or “đe” in casual speech, but the standard spelling is gdje.

What’s the difference between gdje, kamo, and kuda?

• gdje = where (location, static): gdje je torba (where the bag is)
• kamo = to where (destination): kamo ideš? (where are you going to?)
• kuda = which way/along what path: kuda ideš? (by which route?)

Why is the subordinate clause in the present (gdje je torba) when the main clause is past?

Croatian tenses in subordinate clauses are relative to the time of the situation described. If the bag’s location is still relevant now, you use present: gdje je torba. If you mean its past location, use past: Sjetila sam se gdje je bila torba (“I remembered where the bag was” then).

Can I drop the subject pronoun ja?

Yes, and it’s normal to do so because the auxiliary sam already shows person/number. Both are correct:

• Sjetila sam se gdje je torba. (neutral)
• Ja sam se sjetila gdje je torba. (adds emphasis on “I”)

Is je here “is” or “her”?

Here je is the third-person singular of biti (“to be”) = “is.” There’s also a clitic je meaning “her/it (fem. accusative),” but in gdje je torba it’s definitely the verb.

How do I say “my bag” here?

Two natural options:

• Possessive adjective: gdje je moja torba
• Dative possessor (very common in speech): gdje mi je torba (“where’s my bag?” literally “where is to-me the bag”)

How do I make it negative or a yes–no question?

• Negative: Nisam se sjetila gdje je torba. (ne + sam → nisam)
• Yes–no question (neutral speech intonation usually suffices): Jesam li se sjetila gdje je torba? Or simply say Sjetila sam se gdje je torba? with rising intonation in conversation.