Learn Hardcore Croatian: Ujak je pametan i uvijek ima dobar razlog za svoje savjete. - My uncle is smart and always has a good reason for his advice.

So Ujak je pametan… means My (mother’s) brother is smart…, not just any uncle in general. Context, however, often lets people translate it simply as uncle in English.

Why is there no word for the or a before ujak?

Croatian has no articles like a/an/the. The bare noun ujak can mean:

an uncle, my uncle, the uncle, depending on context.

In this sentence, it’s natural to understand it as (my) uncle. If you need to specify whose uncle, you add a possessive:

Moj ujak je pametan… – My uncle is smart…

Why is the verb je in second position? Could I put it somewhere else?

Je (is) is a clitic and Croatian has a strong rule: clitics usually appear in second position in the clause.

In Ujak je pametan…:

Ujak = first element
je = clitic in second position
pametan = predicate adjective

You generally cannot move je to the end (✗ Ujak pametan je) or put it before Ujak (✗ Je ujak pametan in a normal statement). It must stay right after the first stressed word or phrase of the clause.

Why is it pametan and not pametna or pametno?

Pametan is an adjective meaning smart, intelligent. It agrees with the gender and number of the subject:

Ujak is masculine singular, so the correct form is pametan.
If the subject were feminine singular: Teta je pametna. – Aunt is smart.
Neuter singular: Dijete je pametno. – The child is smart.
Masculine plural: Ujaci su pametni. – Uncles are smart.

So pametan is masculine singular, matching ujak.

What role does uvijek play here, and can I move it?

Uvijek means always and here it is an adverb modifying ima (has).

The neutral position is before the verb:

…uvijek ima dobar razlog…

You can move it for emphasis, but you must respect the clitic position of je and other clitics:

Ujak je uvijek pametan… – Uncle is always smart… (focus on being always smart)
Ujak uvijek ima dobar razlog… – still fine, with slightly different rhythm

What you cannot do is break the clitic rule, e.g. ✗ Ujak uvijek je pametan (odd / wrong in standard Croatian).

What does ima come from, and why not something like imati?

Ima is the 3rd person singular present tense of the verb imati (to have).

Basic pattern (present tense):

ja imam – I have
ti imaš – you have (sg)
on/ona/ono ima – he/she/it has
mi imamo – we have
vi imate – you have (pl/polite)
oni/one/ona imaju – they have

Infinitive imati is used in dictionaries and after some verbs, but in a main clause with a subject (ujak) you use the conjugated form ima.

Why is it dobar razlog, not dobro razlog or dobri razlog?

Dobar is the adjective good, and it must agree with razlog (reason) in:

gender: masculine,
number: singular,
case: nominative (it’s the complement of ima).

So:

razlog (masc. sg. nom.) → dobar razlog (masc. sg. nom.)

Other forms, for comparison:

dobra knjiga – a good book (fem. sg.)
dobro pitanje – a good question (neut. sg.)
dobri razlozi – good reasons (masc. pl.)

What case is svoje savjete, and why?

Svoje savjete is in the accusative plural.

Reason:

The preposition za (for) in Croatian normally requires the accusative.
The noun base is savjet (advice, a piece of advice).
Plural nominative: savjeti
Plural accusative: savjete
The possessive svoje must match the noun in gender, number, and case, so it’s also accusative plural.

So: za + svoje savjete (accusative plural) = for his advice / for his pieces of advice.

Why do we use svoje and not njegove for his here?

Croatian has a reflexive possessive svoj (with forms svoj, svoja, svoje…) that is used when the possessor is the subject of the clause itself.

Here:

Subject: Ujak
Possession: savjete
Meaning: the advice belongs to the same person as the subject → his own advice.

Therefore:

za svoje savjete = for his own advice (ujak’s advice)

If you said za njegove savjete, it would usually be understood as:

for his advice (someone else’s, not the subject’s)
E.g. Ujak poštuje Marka i ima dobar razlog za njegove savjete. – Uncle respects Mark and has a good reason for *his (Mark’s) advice.*

So in the original sentence, svoje is the natural, correct choice.

What exactly does savjete mean, and is savjet countable?

Savjet is a countable noun:

savjet – a piece of advice / a recommendation
savjeti – pieces of advice / recommendations (plural nominative)
savjete – plural accusative (used here after za)

In English, advice is usually uncountable, but in Croatian it behaves like a countable noun. So literally:

za svoje savjete ≈ for his (own) pieces of advice → naturally translated as for his advice.

Could I say Ujak uvijek ima dobar razlog za svoje savjete or Uvijek ujak ima dobar razlog za svoje savjete?

Yes, but with slightly different emphasis:

Ujak uvijek ima dobar razlog za svoje savjete.
- Perfectly natural. Close in meaning to the original, just a different rhythm.
Uvijek ujak ima dobar razlog za svoje savjete.
- Grammatically possible but more marked/emphatic.
- Often sounds like you’re stressing always strongly, or contrasting ujak with someone else (e.g. It’s always uncle who has a good reason…).

The original Ujak je pametan i uvijek ima… is the most neutral and typical in everyday speech.

Why is je used only with pametan but not with ima?

In Croatian:

je is the present tense of biti (to be). It’s needed with pametan, because you’re saying what ujak is:
- Ujak je pametan. – Uncle is smart.
ima is already a full present-tense verb of imati (to have). It doesn’t need je.
Saying ✗ Ujak je ima would be ungrammatical (Uncle is has…).

So you have two separate clauses joined by i (and):

Ujak je pametan
(Ujak) uvijek ima dobar razlog za svoje savjete. (subject is understood in the second clause)

Does uvijek ima mean something like an English continuous tense (is always having)?

Croatian doesn’t have a separate continuous tense like English. The simple present often covers:

general truths,
habits,
ongoing states.

In this sentence, uvijek ima expresses a habitual / characteristic behavior:

Uvijek ima dobar razlog… – He always has a good reason… (as a rule, character trait)

You would never say “is always having” in English here; Croatian still just uses the simple present ima.

I’ve seen savete in some places instead of savjete. What’s the difference?

Savjete is the standard Croatian form (ijekavian):

savjet → savjeta, savjetu, savjet, savjetom…; plural acc: savjete

Savete is a Serbian (ekavian) form. If you are learning Croatian, you should use:

savjet, savjeta, savjete, etc.

So in Croatian the correct sentence is:

Ujak je pametan i uvijek ima dobar razlog za svoje savjete.