Grad je manje zagađen kad ljudi prestanu pušiti cigarete na ulici.

The city is less polluted when people stop smoking cigarettes in the street.

Breakdown of Grad je manje zagađen kad ljudi prestanu pušiti cigarete na ulici.

• biti: to be
• grad: city
• kad: when
• ulica: street

Questions & Answers about Grad je manje zagađen kad ljudi prestanu pušiti cigarete na ulici.

Why is je needed in Grad je manje zagađen? Can it be left out?

Je is the present tense of biti (to be). Croatian normally needs this verb in the present tense to link the subject (grad) with a description (manje zagađen).

• Grad je manje zagađen. = The city is less polluted.
• You cannot omit je in standard Croatian: ✗ Grad manje zagađen is ungrammatical.

You can move je a bit for emphasis (because it's a clitic), e.g. Grad je manje zagađen / Grad je zagađen manje, but it must be present somewhere in the clause.

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What exactly is happening in manje zagađen? Why two words, and why this form?

Manje zagađen is made of:

• manje – the comparative form of malo (little), used here as an adverb meaning less.
• zagađen – a past passive participle from zagaditi (to pollute), used as an adjective meaning polluted.

Together: manje zagađen = less polluted.

Agreement details:

• grad is masculine singular nominative.
• zagađen is also masculine singular nominative, so it agrees with grad.
• manje does not change for gender/number here; it just modifies zagađen.

Examples with agreement changes: