Breakdown of Predugo gledanje u ekran nije dobro za oči, pa ponekad zatvorim laptop i odem u park.
Questions & Answers about Predugo gledanje u ekran nije dobro za oči, pa ponekad zatvorim laptop i odem u park.
Gledanje is a verbal noun (sometimes called a gerund-like form), made from the verb gledati (to watch / to look).
- gledati = to watch (verb, infinitive)
- gledanje = watching / the act of watching (noun)
In this sentence, predugo gledanje u ekran is a noun phrase and functions as the subject of the sentence:
- Predugo gledanje u ekran nije dobro za oči.
= Watching the screen for too long is not good for the eyes.
You could also say the same idea with a full clause:
- Ako predugo gledam u ekran, to nije dobro za oči.
If I look at the screen for too long, that is not good for my eyes.
Using gledanje makes the sentence more general and abstract, similar to English “Too much screen time is not good for your eyes.”
Predugo literally means “too long” or “for too long” and is an adverb here.
It modifies the noun gledanje (watching/looking), describing the duration of that activity:
- predugo gledanje = watching that lasts too long / watching for too long
In English we often express this with “too much” or “for too long”, but in Croatian we use predugo (from dugo = long) in front of the action:
- Predugo čekanje – waiting too long
- Predugo sjedenje – sitting for too long
So in this sentence, predugo tells us that the length of time spent looking at the screen is excessive.
The choice of preposition and case here is driven by the verb gledati and its typical pattern.
With gledati (to look/watch), Croatian most often uses:
- gledati u + accusative = to look at / into something
- gledati u ekran – to look at the screen
- gledati u nebo – to look at the sky
- gledati u oči – to look (someone) in the eyes
Compare:
- u ekran (accusative): direction/target of looking – at the screen
- u ekranu (locative): literally in the screen, inside it (only in special contexts)
- na ekran (accusative): to, onto the screen (as a surface) – more about movement of something to the screen, e.g.:
- Projiciramo sliku na ekran. – We project the image onto the screen.
So gledanje u ekran is the standard way to say “looking at the screen”.
The verb je/nije normally agrees with the subject, not with whatever comes later in the sentence.
Here, the subject is predugo gledanje:
- gledanje is a neuter noun
- so the adjective dobar appears in its neuter form: dobro
So we have:
- Predugo gledanje u ekran (neuter subject)
- nije dobro (neuter predicate adjective)
- za oči is just a prepositional phrase explaining for what it’s not good.
The structure is:
- [Predugo gledanje u ekran] – subject (neuter singular)
- nije dobro – “is not good” (neuter, agreeing with gledanje)
- za oči – “for (the) eyes”
Oči are grammatically plural feminine, but they are not the subject, so they do not control agreement here.
The preposition za usually takes the accusative case and can mean several things, including “for”, “in favor of”, “instead of”, “behind”, etc.
In nije dobro za oči, za + accusative expresses who/what something is good or bad for, just like English “good/bad for”:
- Dobro je za zdravlje. – It’s good for your health.
- Loše je za leđa. – It’s bad for your back.
- Nije dobro za oči. – It’s not good for (your) eyes.
Here oči (eyes) is already an irregular plural form, and nominative and accusative are the same, so you don’t see a visible ending change. But grammatically it is accusative plural after za.
Pa is a very common, flexible conjunction in Croatian. In this sentence, it’s best translated as “so”, “and so”, or “and then”.
- Predugo gledanje u ekran nije dobro za oči, pa ponekad zatvorim laptop i odem u park.
Too much screen watching is not good for your eyes, so sometimes I close my laptop and go to the park.
Comparisons:
- i = “and” (simply adds information, no clear cause–effect)
- …nije dobro za oči, i ponekad zatvorim laptop… sounds like just another action, not clearly a consequence.
- zato or zato što = “therefore / because”
- …nije dobro za oči, zato ponekad… – quite strong, explicit “therefore”
- …zato što nije dobro za oči… – “because it’s not good for the eyes…”
Pa here gives a mild, natural link: “that’s why / so / and as a result,” without being heavy or formal.
Yes, ponekad (sometimes) is quite flexible in word order. All of these are possible, with only slight differences in emphasis:
…pa ponekad zatvorim laptop i odem u park.
(neutral; very natural)…pa zatvorim ponekad laptop i odem u park.
(possible, but puts a small emphasis on zatvorim as the thing that happens sometimes)…pa zatvorim laptop i ponekad odem u park.
(now it suggests more clearly that going to the park is what happens sometimes)Ponekad predugo gledanje u ekran nije dobro za oči…
(unusual; sounds like “Sometimes, watching the screen for too long is not good…”, which is odd logically)
Most common and natural here is:
- …pa ponekad zatvorim laptop i odem u park.
So you usually place ponekad:
- before the verb it modifies,
- or right after the conjunction (pa, i, ali, kad, etc.).
This is about aspect: zatvoriti (perfective) vs zatvarati (imperfective).
- zatvoriti – to close (once, to completion) → zatvorim (I close)
- zatvarati – to be closing / to close (generally, repeatedly) → zatvaram (I close / I am closing)
In sentences describing a regular sequence of complete actions, Croatian very often uses the perfective present:
- Dođem kući, presvučem se i večeram.
When I come home, I change clothes and have dinner. - Kad je kasno, ugasim svjetlo.
When it’s late, I turn off the light.
Similarly:
- …pa ponekad zatvorim laptop i odem u park.
The speaker is describing a typical, complete reaction they sometimes have: they (fully) close the laptop and (fully) go off to the park.
Zatvaram laptop would be more about the ongoing process or general ability/habit by itself:
- Svaki dan u 5 zatvaram laptop.
(Imperfective; focuses on the routine, not on one completed act in a cause–effect chain.)
In this specific sentence, the perfective zatvorim nicely matches odem and makes the whole sequence sound finished and natural.
Both idem and odem come from verbs meaning “to go”, but they differ in aspect and nuance:
- ići (imperfective) → idem
– to go (in general, or focusing on the process) - otići (perfective) → odem
– to go away, to leave for some place (a single, completed trip)
In context:
- …pa ponekad zatvorim laptop i odem u park.
– I close the laptop and (then) I go off to the park.
Odem suggests a single, completed movement away from where you are, fitting the idea: I leave the computer behind and go to the park.
You could also say:
- …pa ponekad zatvorim laptop i idem u park.
This is understandable and not wrong, but:
- odem sounds more like a whole action with an endpoint (I leave for the park).
- idem can sound a bit more like you’re in the process of going or just generally do go to the park.
Native speakers very often pair perfective verbs in such sequences: zatvorim… odem…
Yes. A very natural, more “literal” version using finite verbs would be:
- Ako predugo gledam u ekran, to nije dobro za oči, pa ponekad zatvorim laptop i odem u park.
Breakdown:
- Ako predugo gledam u ekran – If I look at the screen for too long
- to nije dobro za oči – that is not good for (my) eyes
- pa ponekad zatvorim laptop i odem u park – so sometimes I close my laptop and go to the park.
Your original sentence with predugo gledanje u ekran is a bit more compact and abstract, like English “Too much looking at the screen isn’t good for your eyes…”, but both versions are correct and natural.