Learn Hardcore Croatian: Zbog kihanja ostajem kod kuće. - Because of sneezing, I am staying at home.

zbog always takes the genitive case.
The base noun is kihanje (sneezing), a neuter noun formed from the verb kihati (to sneeze).
In the genitive singular, kihanje changes to kihanja.

Pattern (for many neuter nouns in -nje):

Nominative (dictionary form): kihanje – sneezing
Genitive: kihanja – of sneezing / because of sneezing

So zbog kihanja literally means “because of (the) sneezing.”

What exactly does zbog mean, and how is it used?

zbog is a preposition meaning roughly “because of / due to / on account of.”

Usage:

It always takes the genitive case:
- zbog kiše – because of rain
- zbog posla – because of work
- zbog kihanja – because of sneezing

Comparison:

zbog
- noun/gerund:
  Zbog kihanja ostajem kod kuće.
  Because of sneezing, I’m staying at home.
jer / zato što
- full clause:
  Ostajem kod kuće jer kišem.
  Ostajem kod kuće zato što kišem.
  I’m staying at home because I’m sneezing.

So zbog introduces a reason expressed as a noun phrase, not a full sentence.

Why is it kod kuće and not u kući or just kući?

All three exist, but they mean different things.

kod kuće = at home (general location, not out, not at work)
- Ostajem kod kuće. – I’m staying (at) home.
u kući = in the house / inside the building
- Ostajem u kući. – I’m staying in the house (not going outside).
kući (without a preposition) is the dative/locative form of kuća and in practice can also mean (at) home, especially with verbs of motion:
- Idem kući. – I’m going home.
- Less common, but possible contextually: Ostajem kući.

In your sentence, kod kuće is the standard, very natural way to say “at home.”

What does ostajem mean exactly, and what is its infinitive form?

ostajem is:

person: 1st person singular
tense: present
aspect: imperfective
verb: ostajati – to stay, to remain (ongoing / repeated)

So:

ostajati (impf.) – to be staying / to keep staying
ostajem – I stay / I am staying

The perfective partner is ostati:

ostat ću (ostati ću) – I will stay (one-time, completed decision/action)

In your sentence, ostajem focuses on the ongoing state: I’m (staying / remaining) at home.

Does ostajem mean “I am staying” or “I stay”? How do Croatians express the English -ing form?

ostajem can correspond to both:

I am staying at home (right now, current situation)
I stay at home (habitual, though context usually clarifies)

Croatian does not have a special -ing tense. The simple present covers:

present continuous:
- Sada ostajem kod kuće. – I am staying at home now.
present habitual:
- Često ostajem kod kuće. – I often stay at home.

The difference (progressive vs habitual) is shown by context and adverbs, not by verb form.

Can I change the word order to Ostajem kod kuće zbog kihanja? Is that still correct?

Yes, it is correct.

Both:

Zbog kihanja ostajem kod kuće.
Ostajem kod kuće zbog kihanja.

are grammatically fine.

Difference is in emphasis:

Zbog kihanja ostajem kod kuće.
Slightly stronger focus on the reason – Because of the sneezing, (that’s why) I’m staying home.
Ostajem kod kuće zbog kihanja.
More neutral, starting with the action – I’m staying home because of the sneezing.

In everyday speech, both are natural.

Could I say Zato što kišem, ostajem kod kuće instead? What’s the difference from Zbog kihanja?

Yes, that sentence is grammatically correct:

Zato što kišem, ostajem kod kuće.
Because I’m sneezing, I’m staying at home.

Differences:

Structure
- Zbog kihanja = preposition + noun (gerund): because of sneezing
- zato što kišem = conjunction + full clause: because I am sneezing
Style
- Zbog kihanja sounds a bit more compact and neutral, like a simple statement of cause.
- Zato što kišem sounds more explicit and personal, because it uses “I sneeze” as a full clause.
Typical usage
- Both can be used in normal conversation.
- zbog + noun is very common with health/work reasons:
  - Zbog prehlade ostajem kod kuće.
  - Zbog temperature ne dolazim.

Why is there no word for “the” in kod kuće?

Croatian has no articles (no “a/an/the”).

kuća = house / home
kod kuće can mean “at home / at the house / at my home” depending on context.

Definiteness (whether it’s “a house” or “the house”) is:

implied by context
sometimes clarified with possessives:
- kod moje kuće – at my house
- kod tvoje kuće – at your house

But generally, Croatian simply doesn’t mark the difference between “a” and “the” in the noun form.

Is kihanje a noun or a verb? How is it formed from kihati?

In this context, kihanje is a noun, not a verb.

Verb: kihati – to sneeze
Verbal noun: kihanje – sneezing

Pattern:

Many Croatian verbs form a verbal noun with -nje:
- čitati – to read → čitanje – reading
- pisati – to write → pisanje – writing
- kihati – to sneeze → kihanje – sneezing

Then it declines like a normal neuter noun:

Nominative: kihanje – sneezing
Genitive: kihanja – of sneezing (used after zbog)

So zbog kihanja is literally “because of (the) sneezing.”

How would I say “I will stay at home because of sneezing” in Croatian?

Most natural future version:

Ostat ću kod kuće zbog kihanja.

Breakdown:

ostati – perfective verb “to stay (once, as a completed decision)”
ostat ću – I will stay
kod kuće – at home
zbog kihanja – because of sneezing

You could also say:

Ostat ću kod kuće jer kišem.
Ostat ću kod kuće zato što kišem.

But your original structure with zbog kihanja is perfectly fine in the future too.

How do you pronounce kuće, and what’s the difference between ć and č?

kuće is pronounced roughly like “KOO-cheh”, but with a softer “ch” sound.

Difference:

č – a harder, fuller “ch”, like English ch in “chocolate”.
ć – a softer, more palatal “ch”, tongue slightly higher and closer to the palate; somewhere between t and ch.

Minimal pair:

kuče (with č) – would sound like KOO-che with a hard ch (not a common word)
kuće (with ć) – houses, genitive singular kuće (of the house), or nominative plural kuće (houses)

In kod kuće, kuće is genitive singular of kuća.

Is there any comma missing in Zbog kihanja ostajem kod kuće?

No comma is needed here.

Zbog kihanja is just a prepositional phrase, not a full subordinate clause.
Croatian normally does not separate such a short prepositional phrase from the main clause with a comma.

You would use a comma if you had a full subordinate clause:

Zato što kišem, ostajem kod kuće.
Kad kišem, ostajem kod kuće.

But with zbog + noun, no comma is standard:

Zbog posla ne mogu doći.
Zbog kihanja ostajem kod kuće.

Is the whole sentence Zbog kihanja ostajem kod kuće natural and common in Croatian?

Yes, it is natural, clear, and idiomatic.

Possible contexts:

Text message to a friend:
Ne dolazim danas, zbog kihanja ostajem kod kuće.
Calling work:
Danas ću ostati kod kuće zbog kihanja i prehlade.

You might add more detail (e.g. prehlada – a cold, gripa – flu, alergija – allergy), but the basic structure “Zbog X ostajem kod kuće.” is very common and sounds completely normal.