Svaki vikend učimo hrvatski u parku.

Every weekend we study Croatian in the park.

Breakdown of Svaki vikend učimo hrvatski u parku.

• u: in
• hrvatski: Croatian
• park: park
• učiti: to study
• vikend: weekend
• svaki: each

Questions & Answers about Svaki vikend učimo hrvatski u parku.

What does svaki mean, and why does it have the ending -i?

Svaki means “every / each”. It is an adjective and must agree with the noun vikend in:

• gender – vikend is masculine
• number – singular
• case – here it functions as an expression of time in the accusative

For masculine singular in this pattern, the form is svaki. So you get svaki vikend = every weekend.

Is svaki vikend the subject of the sentence?

No. The subject is “we”, which is not written but is contained in the verb form učimo.

• Svaki vikend is an adverbial phrase of time = every weekend
• It tells you when something happens, not who is doing it.

So the structure is roughly: (We) every weekend study Croatian in the park.

Could I also say svakog vikenda instead of svaki vikend? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can also say:

• Svaki vikend učimo hrvatski u parku.
• Svakog vikenda učimo hrvatski u parku.

Both are correct and very common. The difference is mainly in case:

• svaki vikend – accusative used as a time expression
• svakog vikenda – genitive used as a time expression

In practice, they mean almost the same: every weekend. Many speakers use them interchangeably; svakog vikenda can sound a bit more “careful” or “formal” in some contexts, but both are fine.

Where is the word “we” in the Croatian sentence?

Croatian usually doesn’t need personal subject pronouns (ja, ti, on, mi, etc.) because the verb ending shows the person and number.

• učimo = we learn / we are learning (1st person plural)

So mi učimo hrvatski u parku is possible, but normally you just say učimo hrvatski u parku, and everyone knows it means “we” from the form -imo.

What verb form is učimo, and what is the infinitive?

Učimo is:

• present tense
• 1st person plural (we)
• of the verb učiti = to learn / to study

Basic present-tense forms of učiti are:

• ja učim – I learn
• ti učiš – you learn (sg.)
• on/ona/ono uči – he/she/it learns
• mi učimo – we learn
• vi učite – you learn (pl./formal)
• oni/one/ona uče – they learn

Why is the present tense (učimo) used if this is a repeated action like “every weekend”?

In Croatian, the present tense is also used for habitual, repeated actions, not only for actions happening right now.

So učimo hrvatski can mean:

• We are learning Croatian (now).
• We learn / study Croatian (regularly).

The phrase svaki vikend (every weekend) tells you it is a regular habit, not just something happening at this moment, but the tense is still present.

What exactly does hrvatski mean here, and why isn’t it capitalized like “Croatian” in English?

Here hrvatski means “Croatian (language)”.

• Literally, it is an adjective: Croatian.
• In this sentence, it stands for the fuller phrase hrvatski jezik = Croatian language, but the noun jezik is omitted because it’s obvious from context.

About capitalization:

• In Croatian, names of languages are not capitalized.
• So you write hrvatski, engleski, njemački, etc., with a small letter, even though in English you write Croatian, English, German with capital letters.

Why is the form hrvatski used (and not something like hrvatskog)? What case is it?

Hrvatski is in the accusative masculine singular form, because:

• It refers to an implied masculine noun (hrvatski [jezik]).
• It is the direct object of the verb učimo – we study what? → hrvatski (jezik).

For adjectives referring to an inanimate masculine noun in the accusative, the form is the same as the nominative:

• nominative: hrvatski jezik
• accusative: učimo hrvatski (jezik)

If it were an animate masculine noun, the accusative would look like the genitive (e.g. vidim hrvatskog prijatelja – I see a Croatian friend).

Why is it u parku and not u park? What case is parku?

U parku uses:

• the preposition u = in
• plus the locative case of park, which is parku

In Croatian:

• u
  • accusative = motion into something
    
    • Idemo u park. – We are going to the park.
• u
  • locative = being inside / at a place
    
    • Učimo u parku. – We are in the park (and we study there).

Since the sentence describes where the studying happens (not movement), you use u parku (locative), not u park (accusative).

Could I say na parku instead of u parku?

Normally, no. With park, the usual preposition for “in the park” is u:

• u parku = in the park

The preposition na is used with other types of places, e.g.:

• na trgu – in the square
• na plaži – on the beach
• na igralištu – on the playground

So for this sentence, učimo hrvatski u parku is the natural choice.

Can the word order be changed, for example U parku svaki vikend učimo hrvatski? Does it change the meaning?

Yes, Croatian word order is flexible, and you can move parts of the sentence to change emphasis, but the basic meaning stays the same. For example:

• Svaki vikend učimo hrvatski u parku.
  – neutral: focusing on every weekend as the time.
• U parku svaki vikend učimo hrvatski.
  – initial focus on in the park (location).
• Hrvatski učimo u parku svaki vikend.
  – emphasizes Croatian (as opposed to some other language).

All are grammatically correct; what changes is mostly what you highlight first in the sentence.