Learn Hardcore Croatian: Neka djeca čuvaju svoje igračke u sobi, a ne na mokrom tepihu. - Let the children keep their toys in the room, and not on the wet carpet.

Indefinite pronoun – “some children”
- Neka djeca čuvaju svoje igračke... = Some children keep their toys...
- Here neka is the indefinite pronoun neki / neka / neko = some.
- With djeca (grammatically neuter plural), the correct form is neka djeca.
Imperative particle – “let (the) children”
- Neka djeca čuvaju svoje igračke... = Let (the) children keep their toys...
- Here neka is a particle used to form a 3rd‑person imperative:
  - Neka on dođe. – Let him come.
  - Neka djeca čuvaju igračke. – Let the children keep the toys.

In writing, without extra context, “some children” is often the more natural reading, but both are grammatically possible.

Why is it neka djeca and not neki djeca?

The pronoun neki (“some”) agrees with the noun in gender and number:

djeca is grammatically neuter plural (even though it refers to people).
The neuter plural form of neki is neka.

So:

neka djeca ✅ – correct (some children)
neki dječaci ✅ – some boys (masculine plural)
neke djevojke ✅ – some girls (feminine plural)
neki djeca ❌ – wrong agreement

Is djeca singular or plural? Why does it take čuvaju (3rd person plural)?

Djeca means children and is grammatically plural:

dijete – child (singular, neuter)
djeca – children (plural, neuter plural form)

The verb agrees with this plural subject:

Djeca čuvaju svoje igračke. – The children keep their toys.
- čuvaju = 3rd person plural (oni/one/ona čuvaju)

So even though djeca doesn’t look like a regular plural in English terms, in Croatian it is a normal plural subject and must use plural verb forms.

Why is it svoje igračke and not njihove igračke for “their toys”?

Croatian has a reflexive possessive pronoun svoj that is used when the owner is the subject of the sentence:

Subject = djeca
Owned thing = igračke
So we use svoje:
- Neka djeca čuvaju svoje igračke. – The children keep their own toys.

Use njihov / njihove only when the owner is someone else, not the subject:

Djeca čuvaju njihove igračke. – The children are keeping their toys (the toys belong to some other people, not to these children).

So in your sentence, since the toys belong to the same children who are the subject, svoje is the natural and correct choice.

What case is igračke in, and why?

Igračke is in the accusative plural:

Base form: igračka (toy), feminine singular.
Accusative plural: igračke.

It’s accusative because it is the direct object of the verb čuvaju:

(Neka) djeca čuvaju [koga/što?] igračke.
- koga/što? = accusative question (“whom/what?”)
- Answer: igračke.

Why do we say u sobi and not u sobu?

The preposition u uses two different cases:

u + accusative → movement into something
- Idem u sobu. – I’m going into the room.
u + locative → position in something (no movement)
- Igračke su u sobi. – The toys are in the room.

In your sentence, we are talking about where the toys are kept (location), not movement:

...čuvaju svoje igračke u sobi... – they keep their toys in the room.
So soba must be in the locative singular: u sobi.

What case is na mokrom tepihu, and why does mokrom end in -om?

Na mokrom tepihu is locative singular masculine:

Nominative: mokri tepih – the wet carpet.
Locative (with na – on, at): na mokrom tepihu – on the wet carpet.

In Croatian, dative, locative, and instrumental singular of masculine and neuter nouns often look the same (and adjectives take -om in those cases):

mokrom – adj., masc. sg. dative/locative/instrumental
tepihu – noun, masc. sg. dative/locative

With the preposition na, here we know it’s locative because we’re talking about location (“on the carpet”), not movement.

Could we say na mokri tepih instead of na mokrom tepihu? What would be the difference?

Yes, but the meaning changes:

na mokrom tepihu – on the wet carpet (location, where something is)
- na + locative
na mokri tepih – onto the wet carpet (movement to a surface)
- na + accusative

Compare:

Stojim na mokrom tepihu. – I am standing on the wet carpet.
Stajem na mokri tepih. – I am stepping onto the wet carpet.

Your sentence describes where the toys are kept, so locative: na mokrom tepihu is correct.

What exactly does čuvati mean here? Is it “to keep”, “to store”, or “to guard”? Could we use držati or spremati instead?

Čuvati has the basic meaning to keep safe / to look after / to care for.
In this context it implies both keeping the toys in a certain place and taking care of them (so they don’t get wet or ruined).

Possible alternatives:

držati – to hold / to keep (in some place)
- Djeca drže svoje igračke u sobi. – Children keep their toys in the room.
- More neutral, less focus on “taking care of”.
spremati – to put away / to tidy up / to store
- Djeca spremaju svoje igračke u sobi. – Children put away their toys in the room.
- Focus on the action of tidying or putting them away.

Čuvati here combines the idea of location with protecting the toys (so they are not on a wet carpet and don’t get damaged).

What does a ne do in this sentence? How is it different from just ne or from nego?

A ne is used to express a contrastive alternative: “and not / rather than / instead of”.

...u sobi, a ne na mokrom tepihu.
– ...in the room, and not on the wet carpet.

Differences:

ne alone just negates:
- Ne na mokrom tepihu. – Not on the wet carpet. (stand‑alone negation)
a ne contrasts two options:
- u sobi, a ne na tepihu – in the room, not (i.e. rather than) on the carpet.
nego is used mainly after comparisons with a negation:
- Ne na mokrom tepihu, nego u sobi. – Not on the wet carpet, but in the room.

So a ne nicely links the preferred place and the place to be avoided in one sentence.

Can the word order change? For example, could we say Djeca neka čuvaju svoje igračke u sobi?

Some word order variation is possible, but with small changes in emphasis:

Neka djeca čuvaju svoje igračke u sobi...
- Default order; can mean Some children keep... or Let the children keep... (depending on context).
Djeca neka čuvaju svoje igračke u sobi...
- Sounds more clearly like an instruction: Let the children keep their toys in the room...
- Here neka is more obviously the imperative particle.
You can also move the place phrase for emphasis:
- Neka djeca u sobi čuvaju svoje igračke, a ne na mokrom tepihu.
  – Emphasises in the room.

Croatian word order is relatively flexible, but the neutral, most natural version of your sentence is the one you started with.