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Prije učenja isključim mobitel, tako da mi je koncentracija bolja.

Prije učenja isključim mobitel, tako da mi je koncentracija bolja.
Before studying I switch off my phone, so my concentration is better.
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Questions & Answers about Prije učenja isključim mobitel, tako da mi je koncentracija bolja.

In prije učenja, what exactly is učenja? Why isn’t it učiti or učenje?

Učenja is a noun in the genitive case, not a verb.

  • The verb is učiti = to study.
  • The noun is učenje = studying, study (as an activity).
  • učenja is the genitive singular of učenje = of studying.

The preposition prije (before) always takes the genitive case, so you need:

  • prije + genitive
    • prije posla (before work)
    • prije sastanka (before the meeting)
    • prije učenja (before studying)

So:

  • ❌ prije učiti – wrong (you can’t put the infinitive after prije like this)
  • ❌ prije učenje – wrong case (that’s nominative)
  • ✅ prije učenja – correct (genitive)
Could I also say “Prije nego što učim, isključim mobitel…”? What’s the difference from “prije učenja”?

Yes, you can say that, but there’s a nuance:

  1. Prije učenja isključim mobitel…

    • Uses a noun phrase (učenja = studying).
    • Sounds general and a bit more neutral/compact:
      “Before studying, I switch off my phone.”

  2. Prije nego što učim, isključim mobitel…

    • Uses a full clause (učim = I study).
    • Literally: “Before I study, I switch off my phone.”
    • Slightly more explicit and focuses more on me doing the action.

Both are grammatically correct. In everyday speech both are used; prije učenja is just a little shorter and more “textbook-like.”

What tense/aspect is isključim, and why isn’t it isključujem?

Croatian verbs have aspect: perfective and imperfective.

  • isključiti (present: isključim) – perfective: to switch off (as a complete act)
  • isključivati (present: isključujem) – imperfective: to be switching off / to switch off regularly (emphasizing the process or repetition)

In this sentence:

Prije učenja isključim mobitel…

you’re describing a single, complete action that happens each time you start studying: you finish the act of turning the phone off. Croatian typically uses the perfective present for that kind of “one complete step in a sequence”:

  • Kad dođem kući, istuširam se.
    When I get home, I take a shower (I shower – one complete act).

You could say Prije učenja isključujem mobitel, but it slightly shifts the focus toward the ongoing/repeated activity of switching off the phone. The original sounds more like a clear step in a routine.

Why is it mobitel and not mobitela here? Which case is that?

Mobitel is a masculine inanimate noun.

The pattern for such nouns is:

  • Nominative singular: mobitel – a phone (subject)
  • Accusative singular: mobitel – a phone (object)

In isključim mobitel, mobitel is the direct object, so it must be in the accusative case. For masculine inanimate nouns, nominative and accusative look the same:

  • Vidim stol. (I see a table.)
  • Čitam članak. (I read an article.)
  • Isključim mobitel. (I switch off the phone.)

Mobitela would be the genitive (of a phone), e.g.:

  • bez mobitela (without a phone)
  • boja mobitela (the color of the phone)

So here mobitel (not mobitela) is correct.

Can I say “Isključim mobitel prije učenja” instead? Does the word order change the meaning?

Yes, you can say:

  • Isključim mobitel prije učenja, tako da mi je koncentracija bolja.

The basic meaning stays the same. Both are natural:

  • Prije učenja isključim mobitel…
  • Isključim mobitel prije učenja…

Differences are mostly in emphasis:

  • Starting with Prije učenja highlights the time frame:
    “Before studying, I switch off my phone…”
  • Starting with Isključim mobitel emphasizes the action itself:
    “I switch off my phone before studying…”

In Croatian, word order is quite flexible; you just need to keep the grammatical relations (cases, verb agreement) correct.

Could I replace isključim with ugasim here? Are they the same?

Often they can overlap, but there’s a nuance:

  • isključiti – literally to disconnect, to switch off (from power or from a system)
  • ugasiti – to put out, to extinguish, to turn off (lights, fire, TV, etc.)

Both can be used with devices:

  • isključiti mobitel (turn off / switch off a mobile)
  • ugasiti mobitel (turn off a mobile)

Native speakers will understand both. Isključiti is a bit more “technical / system-related”; ugasiti is very common for lights, TV, computer, etc. In everyday speech, saying ugasim mobitel is also perfectly normal.

What exactly does tako da mean here, and is it “result” (so that) or “purpose” (in order that)?

Tako da can introduce two kinds of clauses:

  1. Result – so, and as a result…
  2. Purpose – so that / in order that…

In the sentence:

…isključim mobitel, tako da mi je koncentracija bolja.

it’s mainly a result:

  • “I switch off my phone, so (as a result) my concentration is better.”

You can see this from the indicative:

  • je koncentracija bolja – is better (plain statement of fact)

If the speaker wanted to stress purpose, you might see:

  • …isključim mobitel, tako da se mogu bolje koncentrirati.
    (…so that I can concentrate better.)

So here tako da is best felt as “so / so that” in a result sense.

Why is there a comma before tako da?

In Croatian, tako da usually starts a separate clause, so it’s common to put a comma before it:

  • Naporno radim, tako da mogu uštedjeti novac.
  • Nisam spavao, tako da sam jako umoran.

In your sentence:

Prije učenja isključim mobitel, tako da mi je koncentracija bolja.

You have:

  1. Main clause: Prije učenja isključim mobitel
  2. Result clause: tako da mi je koncentracija bolja

The comma separates these two clauses, just like in English:
“I switch off my phone before studying, so my concentration is better.”

Why do we say mi je koncentracija bolja? What is the role of mi here?

Mi is the dative of ja (I, me).

Here it’s a dative of interest / possession, often roughly “to me / for me”, but usually not translated directly in English:

  • Meni je hladno. – I’m cold. (literally: To me is cold.)
  • Njemu je dosadno. – He is bored. (lit. To him is boring.)
  • Mi je koncentracija bolja. – My concentration is better (for me).

It marks whose concentration we’re talking about. You could also say:

  • Moja je koncentracija bolja. – My concentration is better.

Both are correct; mi je koncentracija bolja is very natural and conversational. The dative pronoun (mi, ti, mu, joj…) is extremely common in such sentences.

Why is it bolja and not više dobra? How is this comparative formed?

Croatian usually forms comparatives of adjectives synthetically (by changing the word), not with više + adjective.

  • dobar, dobra, dobro – good
  • Comparative base: bolji – better
    • masculine: bolji
    • feminine: bolja
    • neuter: bolje

Koncentracija is a feminine noun, so the adjective must agree:

  • dobra koncentracija
  • bolja koncentracija

So:

  • koncentracija je bolja – the concentration is better

Using više dobra would be ungrammatical here; you say bolja, not više dobra.

(You do use više with some adjectives/adverbs, but not with common ones like dobar → bolji.)

Can I change the word order in mi je koncentracija bolja? For example, say koncentracija mi je bolja?

Yes. Several orders are possible and correct:

  • Mi je koncentracija bolja.
  • Koncentracija mi je bolja.
  • Bolja mi je koncentracija.

All of these mean roughly the same: my concentration is better. The differences are about emphasis:

  • Koncentracija mi je bolja. – neutral, very common.
  • Mi je koncentracija bolja. – puts mi (to me) early; can feel slightly more personal or contrastive in context.
  • Bolja mi je koncentracija. – emphasizes bolja (better).

Croatian word order is relatively flexible because case endings (and agreement) carry most of the grammatical information.