Naša ulica je uska, ali most preko rijeke je širok.

to be

Breakdown of Naša ulica je uska, ali most preko rijeke je širok.

• ali: but
• ulica: street
• naš: our
• most: bridge
• preko: over
• rijeka: river
• uzak: narrow
• širok: wide

Questions & Answers about Naša ulica je uska, ali most preko rijeke je širok.

Why is it naša ulica and not naš ulica?

In Croatian, adjectives must agree in gender, number and case with the noun.

• ulica (street) is feminine singular nominative.
• The adjective naš (our) in the feminine singular nominative form is naša.

So:

• naš – masculine (for words like naš most – our bridge)
• naša – feminine (for words like naša ulica – our street)
• naše – neuter (for words like naše selo – our village)

Because ulica is feminine, you must say naša ulica, not naš ulica.

Why is ulica feminine and most masculine?

In Croatian, grammatical gender is mostly fixed for each noun and must be memorized, but there are patterns:

• Nouns ending in -a are usually feminine → ulica (street) = feminine.
• Many nouns ending in a consonant are masculine → most (bridge) = masculine.

So we get:

• naša ulica je uska
  
  • naša / uska = feminine forms, agreeing with ulica.
• most … je širok
  
  • širok = masculine form, agreeing with most.

Why is it uska and širok, not the same form for both adjectives?

Again, this is gender agreement:

• ulica is feminine → the adjective must be feminine: uska (narrow, fem.).
• most is masculine → the adjective must be masculine: širok (wide, masc.).

If we switch them, it becomes ungrammatical:

• Naša ulica je uski ✗ (wrong: masculine adjective with a feminine noun)
• Most je široka ✗ (wrong: feminine adjective with a masculine noun)

Correct forms:

• uski most (narrow bridge – masculine)
• široka ulica (wide street – feminine)

What exactly does je mean, and why is it used twice?

je is the 3rd person singular of the verb biti (to be). It means “is”.

The sentence has two clauses:

1. Naša ulica je uska – Our street is narrow.
2. (ali) most preko rijeke je širok – (but) the bridge over the river is wide.

Each clause has its own verb je. In everyday speech, Croatians sometimes drop the second je in parallel sentences, so you might hear:

• Naša ulica je uska, ali most preko rijeke širok.

This is acceptable, but the version with both je (as in your sentence) is clearer and more neutral, especially for learners.

Can je go in a different position in the sentence?

With the simple “X is Y” type sentences, je normally comes right after the subject or after the first element in focus:

• Naša ulica je uska. (standard, neutral)
• Ulica je uska. (neutral)
• Uska je naša ulica. (emphasis on uska – “Narrow is our street.”)

You cannot put je at the very end as in English questions:

• Naša ulica uska je. ✗ (unusual / wrong in standard Croatian in this meaning)

Why is there a comma before ali?

ali means “but” and introduces a contrast. In Croatian, when you join two independent clauses with ali, you normally put a comma before ali:

• Naša ulica je uska, ali most preko rijeke je širok.

This is similar to English:
“Our street is narrow, but the bridge over the river is wide.”

What is the difference between ali and a? Could I say … je uska, a most preko rijeke je širok?

Both ali and a can sometimes be translated as “but”, but they are not identical:

• ali = strong contrast, often like “but / however”
• a = weaker contrast or simple opposition, sometimes like “and / whereas”

Your sentence can use either, but the nuance is a bit different:

• … je uska, ali most preko rijeke je širok.
  → Clear, strong “but” contrast.

• … je uska, a most preko rijeke je širok.
  → More neutral contrast, like “while/whereas the bridge is wide.”

Both are grammatically correct here.

What does preko mean, and why is rijeke in that form?

preko is a preposition meaning “over / across / via”.

It always requires the genitive case after it.
The base form of the noun is:

• rijeka – river (nominative singular, dictionary form)

The genitive singular of rijeka is rijeke:

• preko rijeke – over the river / across the river

So the pattern is:

• preko
  • genitive → preko rijeke, preko mosta, preko trga, etc.

Why do ulica and most look like their dictionary forms, but rijeka changes to rijeke?

Their functions in the sentence are different:

• Naša ulica – subject
• most – subject (of the second clause)
• rijeke – object of the preposition preko

Subjects are in the nominative case, which is usually the dictionary form:

• ulica (nom.) – street
• most (nom.) – bridge

After prepositions like preko, you must use specific cases.
preko takes the genitive, so:

• rijeka → rijeke (genitive)

That’s why only rijeka changes its form here.

Could I say “most nad rijekom” instead of “most preko rijeke”?

Yes, but the meaning and usage are slightly different:

• most preko rijeke – literally “bridge over/across the river”;
  focuses on crossing from one side to the other.

• most nad rijekom – literally “bridge above the river”;
  focuses more on vertical position (the bridge is above the river).

Both are grammatically correct, but preko rijeke is the most common way to express “bridge across the river” (as something you cross).

Why are there no words like “the” or “a” in Croatian?

Croatian has no articles (no equivalents of a/an or the).
Definiteness or indefiniteness is expressed by:

• context:
  
  • Naša ulica je uska. → It’s understood as “Our (specific) street is narrow.”
• word order and stress (in more complex sentences)
• demonstratives like taj (that), ovaj (this) when necessary

So most preko rijeke can mean “a bridge over the river” or “the bridge over the river”, depending on context. English articles just don’t exist in Croatian grammar.

Can the adjective naša come after ulica, like ulica naša?

Normally, adjectives come before nouns in neutral word order:

• naša ulica, uska ulica, širok most

You can put the adjective after the noun, but this is:

• stylistically marked (poetic, emphatic, or dialectal), or
• used in fixed expressions.

For everyday standard speech, you should say:

• Naša ulica je uska.
  and not
• Ulica naša je uska. (sounds poetic / unusual in normal conversation)

Can I drop naša and just say Ulica je uska, ali most preko rijeke je širok?

Yes. Grammatically, that is completely fine:

• Ulica je uska, ali most preko rijeke je širok.
  → “The street is narrow, but the bridge over the river is wide.”

Without naša, you simply lose the information that it is our street.
The rest of the grammar (word order, cases, adjectives) stays the same.