Nakon dugog dana u uredu napokon spavam osam sati.

After a long day in the office I finally sleep for eight hours.

Breakdown of Nakon dugog dana u uredu napokon spavam osam sati.

• u: in
• dan: day
• sat: hour
• spavati: to sleep
• osam: eight
• ured: office
• nakon: after
• dug: long
• napokon: finally

Questions & Answers about Nakon dugog dana u uredu napokon spavam osam sati.

Why is it nakon dugog dana and not something like nakon dugi dan?

The preposition nakon (after) always takes the genitive case.

• dan (day) → genitive singular: dana
• dug (long) → masculine genitive singular: dugog

So you must say nakon dugog dana = after a long day.

If you said nakon dugi dan, both the adjective and the noun would be in the nominative, which is ungrammatical after nakon.

What is the difference between nakon and poslije? Can I say Poslije dugog dana u uredu…?

nakon and poslije both mean after and both take the genitive:

• nakon dugog dana
• poslije dugog dana

They are mostly interchangeable in this kind of sentence.
Very roughly:

• nakon can feel a bit more formal or “bookish” in some contexts.
• poslije is very common in everyday speech.

So Poslije dugog dana u uredu napokon spavam osam sati is also correct and natural.

Why is it u uredu and not u ured?

The preposition u (in, into) can require either locative or accusative, depending on meaning:

• u
  • locative = location (where?)
    
    • u uredu = in the office
• u
  • accusative = direction (where to?)
    
    • u ured = to the office (motion into the office)

In the sentence, we’re talking about a location (being in the office during the day), so we use locative: u uredu.

I’ve seen u redu meaning “OK”. How is u uredu different?

Good to notice that:

• u redu (two words) literally: in order → idiomatic meaning: OK, alright
• u uredu (two words, but second word is uredu) = u
  • ured (office) in locative: in the office

So:

• To je u redu. = That’s OK.
• Radim u uredu. = I work in the office.

They sound similar but are different words and meanings.

Why is the subject “I” missing? Why not Ja napokon spavam osam sati?

Croatian is a pro-drop language: subject pronouns are often omitted because the verb ending already shows the person.

• spavam = I sleep (1st person singular is clear from the ending -am)

You can add ja for emphasis or contrast:

• Ja napokon spavam osam sati, ali ti još ne.
  I finally sleep eight hours, but you still don’t.

In the neutral sentence, Ja is normally left out.

Why is it spavam and not something like ću spavati if we talk about the night after the long day?

spavam is present tense of spavati (to sleep) and here it describes what happens as a regular consequence after such a day, or what happens “that night” in a narrative style.

You could say:

• Nakon dugog dana u uredu, napokon spavam osam sati.
  → “After a long day at the office, I (finally) sleep eight hours.” (habitual or narrative)

If you want to emphasize the future (tonight) for a specific occasion, you can use the future:

• Nakon dugog dana u uredu, napokon ću spavati osam sati.
  → “After a long day at the office, I will finally sleep eight hours.”

Both are correct; the nuance is aspect and time focus.

Is spavati the right verb here, or should it be zaspati?

Both exist, but they mean different things:

• spavati = to sleep (state, duration) → spavam = I sleep / I am sleeping
• zaspati = to fall asleep (moment when sleep begins) → zaspim = I fall asleep

Your sentence talks about sleeping for eight hours (duration), so spavati is correct:

• napokon spavam osam sati = I finally sleep eight hours.

If you say:

• napokon zaspim = I finally fall asleep (not about how long you sleep, just that you manage to fall asleep).

Why is it osam sati and not osam sat or osam sata?

In Croatian, numbers govern nouns in a special way:

• 1 sat (nominative singular)
• 2, 3, 4 sata (a special form, often genitive singular or a “paucal” use)
• 5, 6, 7, 8… sati (genitive plural)

So with osam (8), the noun sat must be in genitive plural: sati.

That’s why we say:

• osam sati = eight hours
• pet minuta = five minutes (genitive plural of minuta)

Why is the adjective dugog and not dugi in dugog dana?

Adjectives must agree with the noun in gender, number, and case.

• dan: masculine, singular, genitive → dana
• Adjective dug: masculine, singular, genitive → dugog

So:

• Nominative: dugi dan = a long day
• Genitive: dugog dana = of a long day (required after nakon)

Because nakon requires genitive, both the noun and the adjective change:

• nakon (koga? čega?) dugog dana

Can I change the word order, like Napokon spavam osam sati nakon dugog dana u uredu?

Yes. Croatian word order is relatively flexible. All of these are grammatically correct, with slightly different emphasis:

• Nakon dugog dana u uredu napokon spavam osam sati.
  (Neutral; sets the time frame first.)
• Napokon spavam osam sati nakon dugog dana u uredu.
  (Emphasis on finally sleeping eight hours.)
• Napokon, nakon dugog dana u uredu, spavam osam sati.
  (More “spoken” / dramatic, with commas and pauses.)

The basic meaning stays the same; word order mainly affects what feels emphasized.