Questions & Answers about Pitam se zašto danas pada kiša.
What does se mean in Pitam se? Is it like myself in English?
Se is a reflexive pronoun, but you almost never translate it directly into English.
- The verb pitati means to ask (someone).
- Pitam te. = I ask you.
- When you add se, you get pitati se, which means to wonder, literally to ask oneself:
- Pitam se zašto… = I wonder why…
In normal English, Pitam se zašto danas pada kiša. is I wonder why it’s raining today, not I ask myself why…, even though that’s the literal idea.
You cannot just drop se and keep the same meaning.
Without se, you must normally say who you are asking:
- Pitam te zašto danas pada kiša. = I’m asking you why it’s raining today.
Can I say Pitam zašto danas pada kiša without se?
No, not in standard Croatian.
- Pitam zašto danas pada kiša. sounds incomplete or wrong, because pitati expects an object (someone you’re asking).
- You must say either:
- Pitam se zašto danas pada kiša. = I wonder why it’s raining today.
- Pitam te zašto danas pada kiša. = I’m asking you why it’s raining today.