Learn Hardcore Croatian: Liječnica kaže da moja alergija nije opasna, ali da ne smijem ignorirati kašalj i kihanje. - The doctor says that my allergy is not dangerous, but that I must not ignore the cough and sneezing.

liječnik – male doctor (medical doctor)
liječnica – female doctor (medical doctor)
doktor / doktorica – can mean either a medical doctor or someone with a PhD, depending on context, and is slightly more informal in everyday speech for “doctor”.

In this sentence, Liječnica kaže… means The (female) doctor says…. If the doctor were male, you would say Liječnik kaže….

Why is it kaže and not something like a past tense form (e.g. “said”)?

Kaže is the present tense of kazati (“to say, to tell”):

ja kažem – I say
ti kažeš – you say
on/ona kaže – he/she says

Croatian often uses the present tense to report what someone has (just) told you, especially in storytelling or when the information feels current/relevant:

Liječnica kaže da… = “The doctor says that…” / “The doctor is saying that…”

You could also use a past form, for example:

Liječnica je rekla da… – “The doctor said that…”

Both are correct; the original just presents it as a current, valid statement.

What is the role of da in kaže da moja alergija nije opasna…?

Here da means “that”, introducing a subordinate clause (reported speech):

Liječnica kaže da moja alergija nije opasna
→ “The doctor says that my allergy is not dangerous.”

This pattern is very common after verbs like reći, kazati, misliti, vjerovati:

Mislim da je kasno. – I think (that) it is late.
Vjerujem da će doći. – I believe (that) he/she will come.

So da is the standard conjunction for English that in reported statements.

Why is there a second da after ali: “…nije opasna, ali da ne smijem…”? Is it necessary?

The second da is optional repetition of the same type of clause:

Liječnica kaže da moja alergija nije opasna, ali da ne smijem ignorirati…

Literally: “The doctor says that my allergy is not dangerous, but that I must not ignore…”

You could also say, more simply:

Liječnica kaže da moja alergija nije opasna, ali ne smijem ignorirati kašalj i kihanje.

Both are correct. Repeating da keeps the structure parallel and can sound a bit more formal or careful; omitting it sounds slightly more natural in everyday speech.

Why is it moja alergija, not moj alergija?

Possessive adjectives like moj (“my”) must agree in gender, number and case with the noun they modify.

alergija is a feminine singular noun.
The correct feminine singular form of moj is moja.

Basic nominative forms:

masculine: moj prijatelj – my (male) friend
feminine: moja alergija – my allergy
neuter: moje dijete – my child

So moja alergija is the only correct choice in this sentence.

Why is it nije opasna and not nije opasno?

The adjective must agree with the noun it describes:

alergija – feminine singular
opasan, opasna, opasno – dangerous (masc., fem., neut.)

Because the subject is alergija (feminine), the adjective must also be feminine:

Alergija je opasna. – The allergy is dangerous.
Alergija nije opasna. – The allergy is not dangerous.

Opasno (neuter) is used either with neuter nouns or in an impersonal sense:

To je opasno. – That is dangerous.
Opasno je voziti brzo. – It is dangerous to drive fast.

But with alergija, you must use opasna.

What exactly does ne smijem mean here? Is it “I can’t” or “I mustn’t”?

Smjeti means “to be allowed (to)”, so ne smijem literally means “I am not allowed to”.

In practice, ne smijem ignorirati is best understood as:

“I must not ignore”
“I’m not allowed to ignore”

This is stronger than just “I can’t ignore” in the sense of ability.

Compare:

Ne mogu ignorirati kašalj. – I can’t ignore the cough (I’m not able to).
Ne smijem ignorirati kašalj. – I must not / I am not allowed to ignore the cough (it would be wrong or dangerous).

In health advice, ne smijem is the normal way to express a prohibition or strong warning.

Why is the negative ne placed before smijem and not before ignorirati?

In Croatian, the main verbal negation ne normally comes directly in front of the finite verb (the conjugated verb):

Smijem ignorirati kašalj. – I am allowed to ignore the cough.
Ne smijem ignorirati kašalj. – I am not allowed to ignore the cough.

Ne smijem ignorirati negates the permission itself, not the action in a weird way.
Putting ne in front of the infinitive would be unusual and would sound wrong:

✗ Smijem ne ignorirati kašalj – this is not how you express it in Croatian.

So the correct pattern is always: ne + (conjugated verb).

Is ignorirati used the same way as English “to ignore”?

Mostly yes: ignorirati is a straightforward loan from international vocabulary and means “to ignore (deliberately pay no attention to)”.

Ignoriram simptome. – I ignore the symptoms.

In many cases, Croatians might also use zanemariti (“to neglect, disregard”):

Ne smiješ zanemariti kašalj. – You must not neglect the cough.

In this medical context, ignorirati is completely natural and easily understood, especially in more formal or educational language.

What are kašalj and kihanje grammatically (gender, type of word)?

Both are nouns:

kašalj – “cough” (noun, masculine singular)
- infinitive verb: kašljati – to cough
kihanje – “sneezing” (noun, neuter singular, from a verbal noun form)
- infinitive verb: kihati – to sneeze

In the sentence, they are direct objects of ignorirati:

…ne smijem ignorirati kašalj i kihanje.
→ “…I must not ignore (the) cough and (the) sneezing.”

Why is it kašalj i kihanje and not something like “coughing and sneezing” as verbs?

Croatian often uses nouns where English might use -ing verb forms.

English:

“I must not ignore coughing and sneezing.”

Croatian (nouns):

Ne smijem ignorirati kašalj i kihanje.

You could also use verbal nouns or infinitives:

Ne smijem ignorirati kašljanje i kihanje.
(both are verbal nouns)

Both versions are understandable. Kašalj i kihanje is slightly more neutral and common; kašljanje i kihanje emphasizes the ongoing actions a bit more.

Why is there a comma before ali: “…nije opasna, ali da ne smijem…”?

In Croatian, you typically put a comma before the conjunction ali (“but”) when it connects two clauses:

…moja alergija nije opasna, ali ne smijem ignorirati…

Each side has its own verb (nije, smijem), so they are full clauses, and a comma is required.

Similarly:

Volim kavu, ali ne pijem je navečer. – I like coffee, but I don’t drink it in the evening.

If ali were connecting only small parts of the same clause (e.g. two adjectives without repeating a verb), the comma might be omitted, but in sentences like this one, the comma is standard.