Vikendom često kupujem voće na tržnici.

On weekends I often buy fruit at the market.

Breakdown of Vikendom često kupujem voće na tržnici.

• često: often
• na: at
• vikendom: on weekends
• tržnica: market
• voće: fruit
• kupovati: to buy

Questions & Answers about Vikendom često kupujem voće na tržnici.

What is vikendom exactly, and why is there no preposition like na or u before it?

Vikendom is the instrumental singular form of vikend (weekend), but it’s used adverbially to mean on weekends / at the weekend in general.

Croatian often uses bare case forms to express time, without a preposition. Other similar examples:

• zimi – in winter
• noću – at night
• ponedjeljkom – on Mondays

So you don’t say na vikendu for this meaning; vikendom alone already expresses on weekends in a habitual sense.

What’s the difference between vikendom, za vikend, and svakog vikenda?

All can be translated with on/at the weekend, but there are nuances:

• vikendom – generally on weekends as a repeated, habitual action.
  
  • Implies “whenever it’s the weekend, this is what I (tend to) do.”
• za vikend – at/over the weekend; can be habitual, but very often refers to a specific upcoming or past weekend:
  • Što radiš za vikend? – What are you doing this weekend?
• svakog vikenda – every weekend, explicitly stressing regularity:
  • Stronger than vikendom, leaves no doubt that it’s every single weekend.

In your sentence, vikendom fits because the action is described as a general habit.

Why is it kupujem and not kupim? What’s the difference?

Croatian verbs come in aspect pairs: imperfective vs perfective.

• kupovati – imperfective, “to buy” as an ongoing or repeated action
  
  • 1st person sg: kupujem
• kupiti – perfective, “to buy (once, to complete a buying action)”
  
  • 1st person sg: kupim

In Vikendom često kupujem voće na tržnici, the speaker is talking about a habitual action (what they often do on weekends), so the imperfective aspect (kupujem) is required.

Kupim would usually refer to a single, completed act (e.g. I’ll buy it / I bought it (once)).

Where is the subject “I”? Why isn’t ja used?

In Croatian, subject pronouns (like ja = I, ti = you) are usually dropped, because the verb ending already shows who the subject is.

• kupujem clearly marks 1st person singular (I buy).
• Adding ja is only needed for emphasis or contrast:
  • Ja vikendom često kupujem voće, ali ti ne. – I often buy fruit on weekends, but you don’t.

So the subject is understood from kupujem, and ja is optional.

What form is voće, and why doesn’t it change for the object?

Voće is a neuter singular collective noun meaning fruit (as a mass, not individual pieces). In your sentence it is in the accusative singular, but for this noun the nominative and accusative look the same:

• Nominative (subject): voće je skupo – the fruit is expensive
• Accusative (object): kupujem voće – I buy fruit

We often translate voće as fruit or some fruit, not a fruit or fruits.

To emphasize different kinds of fruit, you might see:

• razno voće – various fruit
• različite vrste voća – different kinds of fruit (here voća is genitive).

Why is voće in the accusative case here?

Voće is the direct object of the verb kupujem — it’s what is being bought.

In Croatian, direct objects of transitive verbs are normally in the accusative case. For this noun:

• Nominative sg: voće
• Accusative sg: voće (same form in this case)

So even though the form doesn’t visibly change, its role in the sentence is accusative.

What case is tržnici, and why is na used with it?

Tržnici is locative singular of tržnica (market, usually an open-air market).

• tržnica (N sg) → na tržnici (locative sg, “at the market”)

The preposition na can take either:

• locative – when something is located somewhere:
  
  • na tržnici – at the market
• accusative – when there is movement towards something:
  
  • na tržnicu – to the market

In your sentence there is no movement expressed, just the location of the buying, so na tržnici (locative) is correct.

Could I say u tržnici instead of na tržnici?

Normally, no. For tržnica (open-air market), Croatian almost always uses na:

• na tržnici – at the market
• idem na tržnicu – I’m going to the market

u is more natural with enclosed spaces like u trgovini (in a shop), u kući (in the house), u zgradi (in the building).

So for this sentence, na tržnici is the standard choice.

What’s the difference between tržnica and trgovina?

Both can be translated as market or shop, but they’re different:

• tržnica – usually an open-air market or a market area with multiple stalls (fruit, vegetables, etc.), closer to farmer’s market.
• trgovina – a shop/store, often a single business (supermarket, grocery store, etc.).

Your sentence specifically suggests buying fruit at an open-air/fresh-produce type market, so na tržnici is appropriate. If you wanted “in a shop”, you would say:

• Vikendom često kupujem voće u trgovini.

What does često mean, and can it move to a different position in the sentence?

Često is an adverb meaning often.

Croatian word order is fairly flexible, so you can move često around, though the neutral, most common version here is:

• Vikendom često kupujem voće na tržnici.

Other possible orders:

• Često vikendom kupujem voće na tržnici. – emphasizes often, then narrows to weekends.
• Vikendom kupujem često voće na tržnici. – possible but less natural; sounds a bit marked.

In general, placing često before the verb (često kupujem) is the most neutral and common.

Are there other natural word orders for the whole sentence, and do they change the meaning?

Yes, several orders are grammatical; meaning stays essentially the same, but the focus can shift slightly. For example:

1. Vikendom često kupujem voće na tržnici. – neutral; time → frequency → verb → object → place.
2. Vikendom kupujem voće na tržnici često. – puts a bit more weight on often at the end (sounds slightly marked).
3. Često vikendom kupujem voće na tržnici. – you first hear often, then on weekends; stylistically fine.
4. Voće često kupujem vikendom na tržnici. – foregrounds fruit (e.g., in contrast with something else).

For a learner, the original sentence is a very natural, standard choice.

How do I pronounce često and tržnici?

• često – pronounced roughly [cheh-sto]

  • č like ch in church
  • e like e in met
  • stress on the first syllable: ČE-sto

• tržnici – roughly [trzh-nee-tsee]

  • r rolled or tapped
  • ž like s in measure
  • c like ts in cats
  • again, stress on the first syllable: TRŽ-ni-ci

The consonant cluster tržn- is dense, but there are no hidden vowels; it’s just pronounced smoothly in sequence.