Learn Hardcore Croatian: On govori tečno, ali još ne piše pravilno sve riječi. - He speaks fluently, but he still does not write all the words correctly.

Omit the pronoun when it’s clear from context who you’re talking about.
Keep it for:
- Emphasis/contrast:
  On govori tečno, ali ona ne govori. – He speaks fluently, but she doesn’t.
- Introducing a new subject in a text/conversation.

In your sentence, On is not required grammatically, but it’s perfectly natural, especially in a simple example sentence or when first introducing “he” into the conversation.

What’s the difference between On govori tečno and On tečno govori? Are both correct?

Both are correct, but the focus is slightly different.

On govori tečno.
Neutral word order in writing. Focus is on the fact that he speaks (and does so fluently).
On tečno govori.
Still correct, a bit more emphasis on how he speaks (the fluency). This order is often heard in speech.

In practice, both will be understood simply as “He speaks fluently,” and the difference is subtle.

What exactly does još ne mean, and how is it different from ne još?

još ne + verb = “not yet / still doesn’t” and is the normal pattern inside a sentence.

On još ne piše pravilno…
= He still doesn’t (yet) write all the words correctly.

ne još is used mostly as a short answer, not inside a full clause:

– Jesi li završio? (Have you finished?)
– Ne još. (Not yet.)

So:

Inside a sentence: use još ne + verb
✅ On još ne piše pravilno sve riječi.
As a stand‑alone reply: use Ne još.

Why is ne placed before piše and not before još?

In Croatian, the main negation word ne goes directly before the finite verb:

ne piše – he doesn’t write
ne govori – he doesn’t speak

Other adverbs like još, uvijek, često usually go before the “ne + verb” block:

još ne piše – still doesn’t write
uvijek ne razumije (less usual style) – always doesn’t understand

So the natural order is:

[adverb] + ne + [verb]
➜ još ne piše, not ne još piše.

What tense/aspect are govori and piše? Why not use some other forms?

Both govori (from govoriti) and piše (from pisati) are:

Present tense
Of imperfective verbs

Imperfective verbs describe:

Ongoing actions
Habits
Abilities and general skills

That fits this sentence, which talks about his ability and current skill level in speaking and writing.

Their common perfective partners (used for completed, single actions) would be:

progovoriti – to start speaking / speak up once
napisati – to write (and finish writing) something

Using a perfective like napisati would change the meaning to a completed action, not a general skill:

On još ne može napisati sve riječi pravilno.
He still can’t (successfully) write all the words correctly (as individual completed acts).

What form and case is riječi here, and why does it look this way?

The noun is riječ (word), which is feminine.

Key forms:

Singular nominative: riječ
Plural nominative: riječi
Plural accusative: riječi

In piše sve riječi, riječi is:

Accusative plural feminine = direct object of piše.

The form riječi happens to be the same for nominative and accusative plural.

Also note:

Croatian spelling: riječ – riječi
Serbian spelling: reč – reči

So the ije in riječ / riječi is the standard Croatian form.

Why is the phrase sve riječi at the end? Could I say sve riječi pravilno or pravilno sve riječi?

Croatian word order is relatively flexible. In your sentence:

On govori tečno, ali još ne piše pravilno sve riječi.

A neutral breakdown is:

piše – writes
pravilno – correctly (manner)
sve riječi – all the words (object)

Possible variants (all grammatical):

…ne piše pravilno sve riječi. (neutral, common)
…ne piše sve riječi pravilno. (slight emphasis on all words as a group)
…ne piše sve pravilno riječi. (odd, sounds wrong; object should stay more compact)

Most natural are:

pravilno sve riječi
sve riječi pravilno

The first puts a little more focus on how (correctly), the second on what (all the words), but both are acceptable. In everyday speech, you’ll hear both orders.

What kind of word is tečno here, and how is it related to the adjective?

tečno in govori tečno is an adverb (“fluently”).

It comes from the adjective:

tečan, tečna, tečno – fluent, flowing

The neuter singular form of many adjectives in Croatian is also used as an adverb:

tečan → tečno (neuter) → tečno (adverb)

So:

tečan govor – fluent speech (adjective)
govori tečno – he speaks fluently (adverb)

What about pravilno? Is it also an adverb and how is it formed?

Yes, pravilno in piše pravilno is an adverb meaning “correctly.”

It comes from the adjective:

pravilan, pravilna, pravilno – correct, regular

Patterns:

pravilan zadatak – a correct task (masc. adj.)
pravilna rečenica – a correct sentence (fem. adj.)
pravilno rješenje – a correct solution (neut. adj.)
piše pravilno – he writes correctly (adverb)

Again, the neuter singular form of the adjective is used adverbially.

How do govori and piše conjugate in the present tense?

govoriti – to speak:

ja govorim
ti govoriš
on/ona/ono govori
mi govorimo
vi govorite
oni/one/ona govore

pisati – to write:

ja pišem
ti pišeš
on/ona/ono piše
mi pišemo
vi pišete
oni/one/ona pišu

In your sentence:

On govori – 3rd person singular present
(On) piše – 3rd person singular present

Why is there a comma before ali when English often doesn’t use one before but in short clauses?

In Croatian, the coordinating conjunction ali (but) is normally preceded by a comma, regardless of clause length:

On govori tečno, ali još ne piše pravilno sve riječi.

This is more consistent than in English. When you join two clauses or phrases with ali, you almost always put a comma before it.