Njena mačka spava na balkonu kad je sunce jako.
Her cat sleeps on the balcony when the sun is strong.
Questions & Answers about Njena mačka spava na balkonu kad je sunce jako.
Why is njena used here, and what does it correspond to in English?
Njena is a possessive adjective meaning her (as in her cat).
- It comes from the pronoun ona (she).
- It must agree with the noun it describes in:
- gender → mačka is feminine
- number → mačka is singular
- case → here mačka is in the nominative (it’s the subject)
So you get njena mačka = her cat (feminine, singular, nominative).
Could we also say Njezina mačka instead of Njena mačka? Are they different?
Yes, you can also say Njezina mačka spava na balkonu kad je sunce jako.
- njena / njen and njezina / njezin are two sets of forms for her (possessive).
- In many descriptions of standard Croatian, njezina is the “more correct / textbook” form, and njena is very common in everyday speech.
- In practice, you will hear and read both, and everyone will understand both.
As a learner of Croatian, it’s safe to use njezina if you want to stick closely to the textbook standard, but you will constantly hear njena as well.
Why is mačka feminine? Is every cat feminine in Croatian?