Laptop je na stolu.

The laptop is on the table.

Breakdown of Laptop je na stolu.

• biti: to be
• na: on
• stol: table
• laptop: laptop

Questions & Answers about Laptop je na stolu.

Why is there no word for “the” or “a” in Laptop je na stolu?

Croatian has no articles like “the” or “a/an”. Nouns normally appear without any article:

• Laptop je na stolu. = The laptop is on the table. or A laptop is on the table.

Whether it means “the” or “a” is understood from context. If you really need to specify, you usually add a demonstrative:

• Ovaj laptop je na stolu. – This laptop is on the table.
• Onaj laptop je na stolu. – That laptop is on the table.

What does je mean, and why is it needed?

Je is the 3rd person singular form of the verb biti (to be), so it means “is” here.

• Laptop je na stolu. – The laptop *is on the table.*

You normally cannot drop it in standard Croatian; the sentence without je (Laptop na stolu) sounds incomplete or like a fragment.

Why is it na stolu and not na stol?

Stol is the basic (nominative) form: stol = table.

Croatian uses grammatical cases. After na you can have:

• na
  • locative for location (where something is)
• na
  • accusative for direction (where something is going)

With a static location (“on the table”), you must use locative:

• stol → (na) stolu (locative singular)

So:

• Laptop je na stolu. – The laptop is on the table. (location)
• Stavio sam laptop na stol. – I put the laptop onto the table. (direction, accusative stol)

Which case is stolu, and when do I use it?

Stolu is locative singular of stol.

You use locative (almost always with a preposition) to express location:

• na stolu – on the table
• u stanu – in the apartment
• na poslu – at work

So in Laptop je na stolu, na + stolu (locative) tells you where the laptop is.

Can I say “Na stolu je laptop” instead? Is the word order fixed?

Yes, Na stolu je laptop is also correct and very natural.

• Laptop je na stolu. – neutral; starting from the subject.
• Na stolu je laptop. – emphasizes the location, like “On the table is the laptop.”

Word order in Croatian is more flexible than in English and is often used for emphasis or information structure, not grammar. You cannot, however, freely split things like this:

• ✗ Na stolu laptop je. – sounds wrong in standard language.

What gender are laptop and stol, and does that matter here?

Both laptop and stol are masculine nouns.

It matters for:

• How they decline in different cases:
  • laptop → laptopa, laptopu, laptopom…
  • stol → stola, stolu, stolom…
• Agreement with adjectives:
  • crni laptop je na velikom stolu.
    • The black laptop is on the big table.

In this sentence, their gender doesn’t change the form of the verb je (which is the same for all genders in 3rd person singular), but it does explain why the locative is stolu (masculine pattern).

How do I pronounce je and stolu?

• je: pronounced like “ye” in “yes”.
  • IPA: /je/
• stolu: roughly “STOH-loo”
  • sto- like “stow” in English (but with a pure short o)
  • -lu like “loo” (again with a pure u, as in Italian)

Stress in stolu is usually on the first syllable: STO-lu.

Is laptop the normal word, or should I use something like računalo?

Laptop is very common and natural in everyday speech for a portable computer.

Some related words:

• laptop – a laptop (portable computer)
• računalo – computer (more general, also standard/Croatian-specific word)
• kompjutor – computer (colloquial, from English computer)

In Laptop je na stolu, using Laptop is perfectly normal.

Why does stol become stolu and not something like stolu vs stole or stoli?

Masculine nouns like stol (ending in a consonant) often take -u in the locative singular:

• stol → stolu (na stolu, o stolu)
• grad (city) → u gradu
• zid (wall) → na zidu

There are other patterns (e.g. some use -u or -i depending on declension), but stol → stolu is a standard masculine pattern you just need to memorize.

What’s the difference between na stolu and za stolom?

• na stolu – literally on the table (on its surface)
  • Laptop je na stolu. – The laptop is on the table.
• za stolom – at the table (sitting/standing by it, not on top of it)
  • Sjedim za stolom. – I am sitting at the table.

So you’d usually say:

• Laptop je na stolu.
• Ljudi sjede za stolom. – People are sitting at the table.

Can je ever be omitted, like dropping “is” in English headlines?

In standard Croatian, in a normal sentence like Laptop je na stolu, you keep je.

You might see je omitted:

• In very informal speech or messaging, especially with other words:
  • Laptop na stolu, papiri na podu. – a kind of note/list style.
• In some headlines:
  • Laptop na stolu, a novac nestao.

But in regular, correct sentences you should say/write Laptop je na stolu.

Can na stol ever be correct, or is it always na stolu?

Both can be correct, but they mean different things and require different verbs:

• na stolu (locative) – where something is (location)
  • Laptop je na stolu. – The laptop is on the table.
• na stol (accusative) – where something is being put/moved (direction)
  • Stavio sam laptop na stol. – I put the laptop onto the table.
  • Stavi laptop na stol. – Put the laptop on(to) the table.

With je (is), you must use na stolu, not na stol.