On želi očistiti stol prije večere.

He wants to clean the table before dinner.

Breakdown of On želi očistiti stol prije večere.

• on: he
• večera: dinner
• prije: before
• željeti: to want
• stol: table
• očistiti: to clean

Questions & Answers about On želi očistiti stol prije večere.

Is the subject pronoun on (he) necessary here, or can it be left out?

In Croatian the subject pronoun is usually optional because the verb ending shows the person.

• On želi očistiti stol prije večere. – fully correct, a bit more explicit/emphatic.
• Želi očistiti stol prije večere. – also fully correct and very common.

You normally use on if:

• you want to contrast (He wants to clean the table, but she doesn’t.), or
• you want to clarify who you are talking about in a context where it might be ambiguous.

Why is it želi očistiti and not something like želi da očisti?

Croatian commonly uses verb + infinitive after verbs of wanting, needing, being able, etc.

• On želi očistiti stol. = He wants to clean the table.

You could technically say želi da očisti stol, and people will understand it, but:

• želi očistiti is more natural and standard in Croatian.
• The da + present tense structure is more typical with other verbs (e.g. nadam se da će očistiti – I hope he will clean), not with željeti in this basic meaning.

What is the difference between želi and hoće?

Both can be translated as wants, but there are nuances:

• želi

  • Neutral, slightly more polite/formal.
  • Often used for wishes, desires, or polite requests.
  • Common in both speech and writing.

• hoće

  • Everyday, colloquial wants / is willing to.
  • Can sound more direct or even a bit stubborn, depending on tone.
  • Also used to form the future tense (e.g. on će očistiti).

In your sentence, On želi očistiti stol prije večere. is perfectly natural and maybe a bit more neutral/polite than On hoće očistiti stol prije večere.

What is the difference between očistiti and čistiti?

This is a difference in aspect:

• čistiti – imperfective: focuses on the process or repeated action.

  • On čisti stol. – He is cleaning the table / He cleans the table (in general).

• očistiti – perfective: focuses on the completion/result of the action.

  • On želi očistiti stol. – He wants to have the table cleaned (finished).

In your sentence, očistiti implies he wants the task completed before dinner, not just that he will be in the process of cleaning.

What case is stol in here, and why doesn’t its form change?

In On želi očistiti stol prije večere., stol is a direct object, so it is in the accusative case.

For masculine inanimate nouns like stol, the accusative singular form is the same as the nominative:

• Nominative: stol je prljav. – The table is dirty.
• Accusative: očistiti stol. – (to) clean the table.

So the case has changed (grammatically), but the form just happens to stay the same.

Why is it prije večere and not prije večera or prije večeru?

The preposition prije (before) always takes the genitive case.

• večera – nominative (dictionary form)
• večere – genitive singular

So:

• prije + genitive → prije večere = before dinner

Other examples with prije + genitive:

• prije posla – before work
• prije škole – before school
• prije ručka – before lunch

What case is večere exactly?

Večere here is genitive singular of večera (dinner).

The pattern:

• Nominative (subject): večera je u sedam. – Dinner is at seven.
• Genitive (after prije): prije večere – before dinner.

You’ll frequently see genitive used after prepositions like:

• prije – before
• poslije – after
• bez – without
• od – from/of

Could I say On želi očistiti stol pre večere instead of prije večere?

Standard Croatian uses prije, not pre, in this meaning.

• prije večere – correct in standard Croatian.
• pre večere – non‑standard / dialectal; you may hear it in some regions or in Serbian, but it’s not standard Croatian.

So in standard Croatian, keep prije večere.

Can the word order change, for example: On želi prije večere očistiti stol?

Yes. Croatian word order is fairly flexible, and all of these are grammatically correct:

• On želi očistiti stol prije večere.
• On želi prije večere očistiti stol.
• Prije večere on želi očistiti stol.

Differences are mostly about emphasis and rhythm:

• On želi očistiti stol prije večere. – neutral; the time (prije večere) comes at the end.
• On želi prije večere očistiti stol. – slightly emphasizes the time more.
• Prije večere on želi očistiti stol. – strongly emphasizes before dinner (e.g., contrasting with some other time).

For a learner, the original word order is a good default.

Why is the verb želi in the present tense if the action is in the future (before dinner)?

In Croatian, you normally use the present tense to talk about current wishes or plans, even if the action will happen in the near future.

• On želi očistiti stol prije večere. – Right now, he wants to clean the table (and he’ll do it later, before dinner).

If you need to be more explicit about the future action itself, you could say:

• On će očistiti stol prije večere. – He will clean the table before dinner.

But when the main idea is what he wants, the present tense želi is natural.

What is the difference between večere here and večeru, as in Idem na večeru?

They are different cases of the same noun:

• večere – genitive singular (used after prije):

  • prije večere – before dinner

• večeru – accusative singular (used after certain prepositions like na when indicating destination/goal):

  • Idem na večeru. – I’m going to (have) dinner.

So you choose the form of večera based on what preposition (or verb) it follows and what case that preposition/verb requires.

Could you use another verb instead of očistiti here, like pospremiti?

Yes, you can, but the nuance changes slightly:

• očistiti stol – to clean the table (remove dirt, crumbs, stains).
• pospremiti stol – to tidy/clear the table (remove plates, things, put everything in order).

So:

• On želi pospremiti stol prije večere. – He wants to clear/tidy the table before dinner (e.g., remove stuff so they can eat).
• On želi očistiti stol prije večere. – He wants to clean the table (focus more on cleanliness).

Both are correct; which one is better depends on what exactly you mean.

How should I pronounce želi and očistiti?

Approximate guidance:

• želi

  • ž like s in measure or vision
  • stress usually on the first syllable: ŽE‑li

• očistiti

  • o‑ČI‑sti‑ti
  • č like ch in church
  • each vowel is pronounced clearly; no silent vowels
  • typical stress is on ČI: o‑ČI‑sti‑ti

So the whole sentence sounds roughly like: On ŽE‑li o‑ČI‑sti‑ti stol PRI‑je VE‑če‑re, with clear, even vowels and stress on the indicated syllables.