Learn Hardcore Croatian: Šef obećava veću plaću ako urednica napravi dobar novi broj časopisa. - The boss promises a higher salary if the female editor makes a good new issue of the magazine.

In the sentence Šef obećava veću plaću..., veću plaću is the direct object of the verb obećava, so it must be in the accusative case.

Nominative: veća plaća (higher salary – as subject)
Accusative: veću plaću (higher salary – as object)

The adjective veću and the noun plaću both change form to match case, gender, and number (feminine singular accusative).

Why is the verb in the present tense (obećava, napravi) when in English we would say “will promise / will make”?

Croatian very often uses the present tense to talk about future situations when there is a time or condition clause.

Šef obećava veću plaću ako urednica napravi...
= The boss will promise a higher salary if the editor makes...

Both actions are in the future, but in Croatian:

the main clause can use present or future,
the if-clause with “ako” almost always uses present, not future.

You would not normally say:
✗ Ako će urednica napraviti... – this sounds wrong or very marked.

So the Croatian present here has a future meaning because of the context with ako.

What is the difference between ako and kad in a sentence like this?

Both can sometimes be translated as if / when, but they have different nuances:

ako = if (a real condition; it might or might not happen)
- Šef obećava veću plaću ako urednica napravi...
  → The boss promises a higher salary if she makes a good new issue. (No guarantee.)
kad = when/whenever (more like a certain or expected situation)
- Šef obećava veću plaću kad urednica napravi...
  → The boss promises a higher salary when(ever) she makes a good new issue. (Assumes it will/can happen.)

Here, ako is more natural because we’re talking about a condition that may or may not be fulfilled.

Why is it napravi (from napraviti) instead of something like radi or pravi?

Croatian distinguishes aspect:

napraviti – perfective: to complete / finish making something.
raditi / praviti – imperfective: to be doing / be making (an ongoing action).

In a conditional sentence, we usually care about the completed result:

the higher salary depends on the editor having produced a good new issue.

So:

Ako urednica napravi dobar novi broj...
= If the editor (successfully) produces / completes a good new issue…

If you said ako urednica radi dobar novi broj, it would sound more like:
“If the editor is working on a good new issue”, which doesn’t fit the intended condition.

Does broj časopisa mean “number of magazines”?

No. In this context, broj časopisa means “issue of a magazine” / “edition of a magazine”.

broj = number, but also issue (of a magazine/newspaper)
časopis = magazine / journal

So:

novi broj časopisa = a new issue of the magazine
dobar novi broj časopisa = a good new issue of the magazine

“Number of magazines” (quantity) would be expressed differently, e.g. broj časopisa koje kupujemo – “the number of magazines that we buy”.

Why is it broj časopisa and not broj časopis?

This is a noun + noun structure where the second noun is in the genitive to show an “of” relationship.

broj (čega?) časopisa – issue of a magazine

Case usage:

broj – accusative singular (direct object of napravi)
časopisa – genitive singular (dependent noun “of the magazine”)

So the pattern is:

broj časopisa, naslov knjige, kraj filma
(issue of a magazine, title of a book, end of a film)

What do Šef and urednica tell us about gender? Could it be šefica?

Šef = boss (grammatically masculine). It can refer to a male boss, or generically to a boss if gender is not specified.
urednica = (female) editor, grammatically feminine (ending in -ica is a common feminine marker: učiteljica, glumica, etc.).

So in this sentence:

The boss is presented as male (or neutral, but grammatically masculine),
The editor is clearly female.

You could also say:

Šefica obećava veću plaću... – The (female) boss promises a higher salary...

Then both šefica and urednica would be feminine.

Which words are in which cases in this sentence?

Šef – nominative singular (subject of the main clause)
obećava – verb (3rd person singular, present)
veću plaću – accusative singular (direct object of obećava)

veću – fem. sg. acc. (adjective)
plaću – fem. sg. acc. (noun)

ako – subordinating conjunction (“if”)

urednica – nominative singular (subject of the subordinate clause)
napravi – verb (3rd person singular, perfective, present)
dobar novi broj – accusative singular (direct object of napravi)

dobar – masc. sg. acc. (adjective)
novi – masc. sg. acc. (adjective)
broj – masc. sg. acc. (noun)

časopisa – genitive singular (depends on broj, “issue of a magazine”)

Can the word order be changed? For example, can the sentence start with Ako urednica napravi...?

Yes. Croatian word order is relatively flexible, especially with clauses.

These are all acceptable and natural, with small differences in emphasis:

Ako urednica napravi dobar novi broj časopisa, šef obećava veću plaću.
→ Focuses first on the condition, then the result.
Šef, ako urednica napravi dobar novi broj časopisa, obećava veću plaću.
→ Inserts the condition as an aside.

You can also move veću plaću for emphasis:

Šef obećava veću plaću ako... (neutral)
Veću plaću šef obećava ako... (emphasizes “a higher salary”)

However, you cannot freely break apart fixed groups like veću plaću or dobar novi broj časopisa; the adjective must stay with the noun.

Why is it veću and not više for “higher / more” pay?

Croatian uses:

veći / veća / veće (comparative of the adjective velik – big)
when it directly modifies a noun:
- veća plaća – a bigger / higher salary
- veći stan – a bigger flat
više (comparative of the adverb puno / mnogo – much, a lot)
when it stands on its own, often without a following noun:
- Želim zarađivati više. – I want to earn more.
- On radi više. – He works more.

So you say:

veću plaću (a higher salary – adjective + noun)
but:
Želim zarađivati više. (I want to earn more.)

What does plaću come from, and is there another word like plata?

Plaću is the accusative singular of plaća (salary, pay):

Nominative: plaća – salary
Accusative: plaću – (a) salary (as object)

There is also plata, which is more common in some regions (especially Serbia, Bosnia, Montenegro). In Croatian usage, plaća is standard and more neutral.

So:

veća plaća / veću plaću – higher salary
povišica – a pay rise (a different word, more like “raise”)

How do you pronounce Šef obećava veću plaću and what’s the difference between č and ć (e.g. plaču vs plaću)?

Rough pronunciation (approximate English-like transcription):

Šef – “shef” (sh as in shoe)
obećava – oh-be-CHA-va (the ć is like a softer “ch”)
veću – VE-chu (again soft “ch”)
plaću – PLA-chu (soft “ch”)

Difference:

č – a hard “ch”, like in “church”.
ć – a softer, more palatal “ch”, often a bit shorter and more “sharp”.

Minimal pair:

plaču (with č) – “they cry”
plaću (with ć) – “salary” (accusative)

So the sentence Šef obećava veću plaću means “The boss promises a higher salary”, not “the boss promises they cry more” – which shows why č vs ć matters in spelling.