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Na ogradu stavljamo mali plakat za naš mali festival.

Na ogradu stavljamo mali plakat za naš mali festival.
We put a small poster on the fence for our little festival.

Breakdown of Na ogradu stavljamo mali plakat za naš mali festival.

mali
small
na
on
za
for
naš
our
stavljati
to put
ograda
fence
plakat
poster
festival
festival
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Questions & Answers about Na ogradu stavljamo mali plakat za naš mali festival.

Why is it na ogradu and not na ogradi or just na ograda?

The preposition na can use two cases:

  • Accusative: movement onto/onto something
  • Locative: location (where something already is)

In the sentence, the poster is being moved onto the fence, so we use accusative:

  • ograda (fence), feminine singular
    • Nominative: ograda (the fence – subject form)
    • Accusative: ogradu (onto the fence)

So:

  • na ogradu = onto the fence (movement, direction)
  • na ogradi = on the fence (location, no movement)

That’s why it must be na ogradu here, not na ogradi, and not na ograda (you never use the nominative after na in this kind of phrase).

Can I also say Stavljamo mali plakat na ogradu? Is the word order important?

Yes, you can say:

  • Stavljamo mali plakat na ogradu.

Croatian word order is relatively flexible. Both:

  • Na ogradu stavljamo mali plakat…
  • Stavljamo mali plakat na ogradu…

are correct and natural.

The difference is mostly in emphasis:

  • Na ogradu stavljamo… – slightly emphasizes the place (on the fence).
  • Stavljamo mali plakat na ogradu… – more neutral; typical SVO-style order from an English point of view.

Grammatically, both are fine. Context and what you want to emphasize decide the order.

What is the infinitive of stavljamo, and what does its form tell me?

Stavljamo is:

  • Person/number: 1st person plural (we)
  • Tense: present
  • Aspect: imperfective
  • Verb: stavljati (to put, to place – ongoing/habitual)

So:

  • Infinitive: stavljati
  • stavljamo = we are putting / we put (right now or habitually)

Croatian has aspect pairs:

  • Imperfective: stavljati (ongoing, repeated)
  • Perfective: staviti (a single, completed act: to put once)

Examples:

  • Sada stavljamo plakat na ogradu. – We are putting the poster on the fence (right now, in progress).
  • Stavit ćemo plakat na ogradu. – We will put the poster on the fence (one completed future action).
Why is it mali plakat and not malo plakat or something else?

Plakat is:

  • Gender: masculine
  • Number: singular
  • Case: accusative (object of stavljamo)

The adjective mali (small) must agree with plakat in:

  • gender (masculine),
  • number (singular),
  • case (accusative).

For a masculine inanimate noun in the accusative singular, the adjective form is the same as the nominative: mali.

So:

  • Nominative: mali plakat (a small poster – subject)
  • Accusative inanimate: mali plakat (we put a small poster)

Forms like malo plakat would be wrong; malo is the neuter form (for neuter nouns like malo dijete – small child).

Why don’t we see any case ending change on plakat? Isn’t it also in the accusative?

Yes, plakat is also in the accusative, but for many masculine inanimate nouns, the:

  • nominative singular = accusative singular

Declension for plakat (masculine, inanimate):

  • Nominative: plakat
  • Accusative: plakat

So in:

  • stavljamo mali plakat

both mali and plakat are in the accusative singular masculine inanimate, but you only see the case clearly on the adjective in other contexts; for the noun itself the form happens to be the same as the nominative.

What does za do in za naš mali festival, and which case does it require?

Za usually means for, and it requires the accusative case.

So:

  • festival (masculine singular noun)
  • In accusative singular (inanimate), it stays festival
  • The whole phrase is in the accusative: za naš mali festival = for our small festival.

If you changed the case, for example genitive (našeg malog festivala), it would sound like of our small festival, which doesn’t fit after za in this meaning.

So the pattern is:

  • za + accusative: za naš mali festival
Why is it naš mali festival, not just mali festival? Is naš like “the”?

Naš means our (possessive pronoun), not the.

Croatian doesn’t have definite or indefinite articles (the, a, an). To express possession, you use possessive pronouns:

  • moj – my
  • tvoj – your (singular)
  • njegov – his
  • njezin / njen – her
  • naš – our
  • vaš – your (plural or formal)
  • njihov – their

So:

  • mali festival – a small festival
  • naš mali festival – our small festival

Naš declines and agrees with festival in gender, number, and case. Here:

  • Gender: masculine
  • Number: singular
  • Case: accusative (after za)
  • Form: naš (same as nominative for masculine inanimate accusative)
Why is naš mali festival not našeg malog festivala?

Because of za. As mentioned, za requires the accusative case.

Let’s compare:

  • Accusative (needed after za):
    • za naš mali festival – for our small festival
  • Genitive:
    • našeg malog festivala – of our small festival

If you said:

  • na ogradu stavljamo mali plakat našeg malog festivala

that would sound like:

  • we’re putting a small poster of our small festival on the fence

which suggests the festival owns the poster (not wrong in all contexts, but different). With za, the intended meaning is clearly for the event, so za naš mali festival is the natural choice.

Can I say na ogradi stavljamo mali plakat instead of na ogradu stavljamo?

Grammatically, yes, but the meaning changes:

  • na ogradu stavljamo – we’re putting it onto the fence (movement, goal).
  • na ogradi stavljamo – literally: on the fence we are putting…, which focuses on the fence as the place where we (the people) are located while doing the action, not the direction of the object.

In practice, to express “we are putting the poster on the fence,” you say:

  • Na ogradu stavljamo mali plakat.

Na ogradi is typically used to describe something that is already on the fence:

  • Na ogradi visi plakat. – A poster is hanging on the fence.
  • Na ogradi piše “Zabranjen prolaz”. – On the fence it says “No entry”.
Why is mali repeated: mali plakat and naš mali festival? Is that normal?

Yes, that repetition is natural in Croatian if the speaker wants to emphasize that both are small:

  • the poster is small
  • the festival is small

Stylistically, you could avoid repetition and say:

  • Na ogradu stavljamo plakat za naš mali festival.
    (We’re putting a poster for our small festival on the fence.)

Both versions are correct. Repeating mali is completely acceptable and can add a casual, friendly tone.

How would the sentence change if there were several posters instead of one?

You would need the plural:

  • plakat (N sg) → plakati (N pl)
  • Accusative plural (masculine inanimate): plakate
  • Adjective plural accusative masculine inanimate: male

So:

  • Na ogradu stavljamo male plakate za naš mali festival.
    = We are putting small posters on the fence for our small festival.

Changes:

  • mali plakat → male plakate
    • mali → male (adjective plural)
    • plakat → plakate (noun accusative plural)
What is the stress and pronunciation of ogradu and stavljamo?

Approximate pronunciation (using English-like hints):

  • ogradu: O-gra-du
    • o as in or but shorter
    • gra with rolled or tapped r
    • stress typically on the first syllable: Ògradu
  • stavljamo: STAV-lya-mo
    • stav like stahv (short a)
    • lj is a palatal sound, like the lli in million
    • stress on the first syllable: STÀvljamo

Croatian stress patterns can vary regionally, but stressing the first syllable as above will sound natural and understandable almost everywhere.

Is plakat the only word for “poster,” or can I use something else?

You’ll often hear both:

  • plakat – very common and standard
  • poster – also used, especially for advertising or decorative posters

In this sentence, both would fit:

  • Na ogradu stavljamo mali plakat za naš mali festival.
  • Na ogradu stavljamo mali poster za naš mali festival.

Plakat is slightly more neutral and common in everyday Croatian; poster feels a bit more international/English-influenced.

Does stavljamo here mean “we are putting (right now)” or “we (generally) put”? How do I know?

By itself, stavljamo in the present tense can mean:

  1. Right now / current action:
    • We’re in the process of putting the poster up.
  2. Habitual / general:
    • We (usually/always) put the poster on the fence for this festival.

Context decides which reading is intended. In isolation, most people would probably interpret:

  • Na ogradu stavljamo mali plakat za naš mali festival.

as something that is happening now or as part of a current plan, unless the wider context clearly makes it habitual:

  • Svake godine na ogradu stavljamo mali plakat za naš mali festival.
    – Every year we put a small poster on the fence for our small festival.