Learn Hardcore Croatian: Na zabavi svi plešemo, a djeca gledaju naš ples i smiju se. - At the party we all dance, and the children watch our dance and laugh.

na zabavi can mean at a party or at the party
djeca can mean children or the children
naš ples means our dance (and context tells you whether it’s specific or general)

Definiteness is understood from context, not from a separate word. If you really need to stress this particular thing, you can use demonstratives like ova (this), ta (that):

na ovoj zabavi – at this party
ta djeca – those children

Why is it na zabavi (at the party) and not u zabavi?

Both na and u can mean in / at, but they are used with different types of nouns.

With events and similar things, Croatian typically uses na:

na zabavi – at a party
na koncertu – at a concert
na sastanku – at a meeting
na ručku – at lunch

u zabavi would mean something like inside the fun itself and sounds wrong in this context. Here, zabava is an event, so you say na zabavi.

Why does zabavi end in -i instead of the base form zabava?

This is a case change. The base form is:

zabava – party (nominative singular)

After the preposition na with the meaning at / on (location), Croatian uses the locative case:

na zabavi – at the party (locative singular)

Compare:

Idemo na zabavu. – We are going to the party. (accusative, direction)
Smo na zabavi. – We are at the party. (locative, location)

So zabava → zabavi is just the regular locative singular ending for many feminine nouns.

What exactly does svi mean here, and why is it before plešemo?

svi means all / everyone. In this sentence:

svi plešemo = we all dance / we’re all dancing

Even though Croatian can drop the subject pronoun (mi for we), svi makes it clear we mean all of us.

Word order:

Svi plešemo. – neutral: We all dance.
Plešemo svi. – similar meaning, but with a slight emphasis on svi (it’s really everyone).
Mi svi plešemo. – even stronger emphasis on we all (not someone else).

In the given sentence, svi plešemo is the most natural, neutral order.

Can I also say Plešemo svi na zabavi? Does it change the meaning?

Yes, Plešemo svi na zabavi is grammatically correct and means essentially the same thing:

Na zabavi svi plešemo. – neutral, topic is the party, then what happens there.
Plešemo svi na zabavi. – starts with the action we dance, then adds where and who (all of us).

The change is mainly in emphasis and rhythm, not in basic meaning. All of these are okay:

Na zabavi svi plešemo.
Na zabavi plešemo svi.
Svi plešemo na zabavi.
Plešemo svi na zabavi.

They just sound slightly different in focus.

How is the verb plešemo formed from plesati?

The infinitive is plesati (to dance), but in the present tense the stem changes to pleš-:

ja plešem – I dance
ti plešeš – you dance
on/ona/ono pleše – he/she/it dances
mi plešemo – we dance
vi plešete – you (pl.) dance
oni/one/ona plešu – they dance

So plešemo is 1st person plural present of plesati. The vowel a in plesati disappears and the consonant s → š shifts in the present stem.

Does plešemo mean we dance or we are dancing?

It can mean both. Croatian does not have a separate present continuous form like English.

Svi plešemo.
– can be We dance (in general), or
– We are dancing (right now), depending on context.

In this sentence (describing what is happening at the party right now), the natural translation is we are dancing. Context always decides if the meaning is general or happening now.

What is the difference between a and i in this sentence?

The sentence has both:

..., a djeca gledaju naš ples i smiju se.

i is a simple and, just adding another action with the same subject:

djeca gledaju naš ples i smiju se
= the children watch our dance and (they) laugh.
Same subject (djeca) for both gledaju and smiju se.

a also often translates as and, but it usually shows contrast, opposition, or a change of subject:

Na zabavi svi plešemo, a djeca gledaju...
= At the party we all dance, and meanwhile/whereas the children watch...

So:

a connects two clauses and contrasts we vs. the children.
i connects two actions of the same subject (the children watch and laugh).

Why does djeca use the plural verb gledaju even though it ends in -a, which often looks singular?

djeca means children and is grammatically plural, even though it ends in -a.

Singular and plural are irregular:

dijete – child (singular)
djeca – children (plural)

So you must use plural verb forms:

Djeca gledaju. – The children watch.
Djeca se smiju. – The children are laughing.

The -a ending here does not mean singular; djeca is one of those special nouns that are only plural in form but represent a group.

Why is it naš ples and not našu ples or naša ples?

Because naš has to agree in gender, number, and case with the noun ples.

ples (dance) is masculine singular, in the accusative (as a direct object: our dance).
For a masculine singular noun in the accusative (when it’s inanimate), the form of naš is simply naš.

So:

naš ples – our dance (masc. sg.)
naša zabava – our party (fem. sg., nominative)
našu zabavu – our party (fem. sg., accusative)

našu ples or naša ples are wrong because those forms are for feminine nouns, but ples is masculine.

Could I say gledaju kako plešemo instead of gledaju naš ples? What’s the difference?

Yes, both are possible, but they focus on slightly different things:

gledaju naš ples
– literally: they watch our dance
– treats the dance as a thing/event, like a performance.
gledaju kako plešemo
– literally: they watch how we are dancing
– focuses on the process / manner of us dancing.

In many contexts they can both be used with almost the same meaning, but naš ples sounds more like a performance, while kako plešemo sounds more like they are watching us while we dance.

What does smiju se literally mean, and why do we need se?

The verb is smijati se = to laugh (reflexive verb).

smiju se = they laugh / they are laughing

The small word se is a reflexive pronoun. In English we don’t say “they laugh themselves”, but in Croatian this se is part of the verb and cannot be dropped.

Without se:

smijati (without se) usually means to mock / to laugh at someone and is used with a direct object:
- smijati nekoga – to mock someone

So smiju alone would sound incomplete or would suggest they are mocking (someone), not just they are laughing. In this sentence, we need smiju se for the normal meaning are laughing.

Can I say Djeca se smiju instead of djeca smiju se? Where can se go?

Yes, Djeca se smiju is very natural and actually more common.

General rules for se:

Djeca se smiju. – most neutral, standard word order.
Djeca smiju se. – also possible, with slightly different rhythm or emphasis.
Smiju se djeca. – more emphasis on djeca (it’s the children who are laughing).

What you cannot do is simply drop se:

✗ Djeca smiju. – sounds wrong or means the children are mocking (someone).

So yes, you can move se around a bit for emphasis, but it must be there with smijati se.

How do you pronounce djeca and plešemo?

Approximate pronunciation:

djeca – [dye-tsa]
- dj is one sound, similar to the dy in duty said quickly: dje ≈ dye
- c is always ts, like in cats.
plešemo – [ple-she-mo]
- š is like English sh in shoe: pleše ≈ ple-she
- Stress is usually on the first syllable here: PLE-še-mo.

So the whole sentence might sound roughly like:
Na ZA-ba-vi SVI PLE-še-mo, a DJE-ca GLE-da-ju naš PLES i SMI-ju se.