Danas u parku skupljamo smeće i učimo kako reciklirati papir i plastične boce.

Today in the park we are collecting trash and learning how to recycle paper and plastic bottles.

Breakdown of Danas u parku skupljamo smeće i učimo kako reciklirati papir i plastične boce.

• u: in
• i: and
• učiti: to learn
• danas: today
• park: park
• kako: how
• papir: paper
• boca: bottle
• skupljati: to collect
• smeće: trash
• reciklirati: to recycle
• plastičan: plastic

Questions & Answers about Danas u parku skupljamo smeće i učimo kako reciklirati papir i plastične boce.

What tense are skupljamo and učimo, and do they mean we collect / we are collecting and we learn / we are learning?

Both skupljamo and učimo are in the present tense, 1st person plural (we).

• skupljamo = we collect / we are collecting
• učimo = we learn / we are learning

Croatian does not have a separate continuous (progressive) tense like English. The same present form covers both:

• Danas skupljamo smeće.
  → Today we collect trash or Today we are collecting trash.

The context word danas (today) makes it clear that the action is happening now, so both English translations are possible.

Why is it u parku and not something like na parku? What case is parku?

U parku uses:

• u
  • locative case of park (parku) to show location: in the park / at the park.

In Croatian:

• u (in) + locative → being inside / within a space

  • u kući (in the house)
  • u školi (at school)
  • u parku (in the park)

• na (on, at) + locative → on a surface or certain open/public places

  • na stolu (on the table)
  • na plaži (on the beach)
  • na trgu (in the square)
  • na koncertu (at the concert)

For park, the usual and most natural choice is u parku. The noun park in the locative singular becomes parku.

Why is there no word for the or a before park, trash, paper, and plastic bottles?

Croatian does not use articles (no the, a, or an).

So:

• u parku can mean in a park or in the park
• skupljamo smeće can mean we are collecting trash or we are collecting the trash
• reciklirati papir i plastične boce = to recycle paper and plastic bottles / the paper and the plastic bottles

Definiteness (whether it is the or a) is understood from context, not from a separate word. If the context clearly refers to a specific park or specific trash, the listener will understand it that way.

What case are smeće, papir, and plastične boce in, and why?

They are all direct objects of the verbs, so they are in the accusative case:

• skupljamo smeće – we are collecting trash
  
  • smeće is neuter singular; nominative and accusative look the same.
• reciklirati papir – to recycle paper
  
  • papir is masculine singular; nominative and accusative are also the same here.
• plastične boce – plastic bottles
  
  • boce is feminine plural, accusative form of boca (bottle).
  • plastične is an adjective agreeing with boce in gender, number, and case (feminine plural accusative).

So grammatically:

• Verb of action → accusative direct object:
  
  • (mi) skupljamo koga/što? smeće
  • (mi) recikliramo što? papir, plastične boce

Why is it plastične boce and not plastične boca or plastična boca?

Because the sentence talks about more than one bottle and uses the accusative plural:

• boca – (one) bottle, nominative singular
• boce – bottles, nominative and accusative plural

The adjective must agree:

• plastična boca – a plastic bottle (feminine singular)
• plastične boce – plastic bottles (feminine plural: nominative/accusative)

Here we have:

• reciklirati (što?) plastične boce
  
  • boce = accusative plural
  • plastične = feminine plural accusative to match boce

What exactly does smeće mean? Is it like trash, garbage, or rubbish?

Smeće is a general word for trash / garbage / rubbish, usually uncountable, similar to trash in English.

A few notes:

• It is neuter singular grammatically.
• It can be used for:
  • general household rubbish
  • litter in a park or on the street
• In some contexts, it can also be used figuratively (e.g. for something of very poor quality).

Examples:

• Baci smeće. – Throw out the trash.
• Na plaži ima puno smeća. – There is a lot of trash on the beach.

Why is it učimo kako reciklirati and not učimo reciklirati or učimo kako da recikliramo? Are they all possible?

All three are possible, but there are small differences in style and nuance:

1. učimo kako reciklirati papir i plastične boce

   • literally: we are learning how to recycle paper and plastic bottles
   • kako reciklirati = how to recycle (kako + infinitive)
   • very natural and common.

2. učimo reciklirati papir i plastične boce

   • literally: we are learning to recycle paper and plastic bottles
   • infinitive directly after učimo.
   • also correct and common; slightly more direct/shorter.

3. učimo kako da recikliramo papir i plastične boce

   • literally: we are learning how we should recycle paper and plastic bottles
   • kako da
     • present tense (recikliramo).
   • grammatically fine, but a bit heavier; can suggest more of a method/rules: how we are to recycle.

In everyday speech, učimo kako reciklirati and učimo reciklirati are the most natural for this sentence.

Can the word order change? For example, can I say Danas skupljamo u parku smeće or U parku danas skupljamo smeće i učimo kako reciklirati…?

Yes. Croatian word order is much more flexible than English. All of these are grammatically possible, but the emphasis changes slightly:

• Danas u parku skupljamo smeće...
  – neutral: Today, in the park, we are collecting trash...

• Danas skupljamo smeće u parku...
  – a bit more focus on what we do today (collect trash), then adding where at the end.

• U parku danas skupljamo smeće...
  – slight emphasis on in the park (as opposed to somewhere else).

• Skupljamo danas u parku smeće...
  – more unusual, can sound marked or poetic; emphasis on the verb or on today.

The original Danas u parku skupljamo smeće i učimo... is natural and neutral. For a learner, it’s good to keep time → place → verb → object as a basic pattern.

Why is there no comma before i in skupljamo smeće i učimo kako reciklirati...?

In Croatian, you do not normally use a comma before i when it simply connects:

• two verbs with the same subject:
  • skupljamo smeće i učimo (we collect and learn)
• or two items in a list:
  • papir i plastične boce (paper and plastic bottles)

You would use a comma before i only in certain more complex situations (e.g. when it connects whole clauses that are long or need separation), but in this sentence no comma is needed or natural:

• Danas u parku skupljamo smeće i učimo kako reciklirati papir i plastične boce. ✔️

What does the conjunction i do in this sentence? Is it the same as English and?

Yes, i is the normal Croatian word for and.

In this sentence it appears twice:

1. skupljamo smeće i učimo kako reciklirati...

   • i connects two actions with the same subject we:
     • we collect trash
     • and we learn how to recycle

2. reciklirati papir i plastične boce

   • i connects two objects:
     • paper
     • and plastic bottles

So i works exactly like and in English here.

What aspect are the verbs skupljamo, učimo, and reciklirati? Does aspect matter in this sentence?

Aspect in Slavic languages is important, and here we have:

• skupljamo – from skupljati (imperfective)
• učimo – from učiti (imperfective)
• reciklirati – usually treated as imperfective in normal usage

Imperfective aspect describes:

• ongoing actions
• repeated actions
• processes (not completed, just happening)

So in this sentence, all actions are seen as ongoing activities today in the park, not as single completed events:

• we are (in the process of) collecting
• we are (in the process of) learning
• we are learning (the general skill of) recycling

Using the imperfective verbs here is exactly what you want to express activities rather than single completed results.

How do you pronounce skupljamo and reciklirati? They look tricky.

Approximate pronunciation (stressed syllables in bold):

• skupljamo → Skoo-plya-mo

  • skup like skoop
  • lj is like lli in million (soft ly sound)
  • stress usually on the first syllable: SKU-plja-mo

• reciklirati → reh‑tsee‑klee‑rah‑tee

  • re like reh
  • ci = tsee
  • kli like klee
  • stress typically on tsee: re‑CI‑kli‑ra‑ti

Croatian pronunciation is generally phonetic: each letter is usually pronounced the same way each time, once you know the sounds.