Najprije doručkujemo, pa idemo u grad.

to go

Breakdown of Najprije doručkujemo, pa idemo u grad.

• u: to
• grad: city
• doručkovati: to have breakfast
• pa: then
• najprije: first

Questions & Answers about Najprije doručkujemo, pa idemo u grad.

What exactly does najprije mean, and can I just say prvo instead?

Najprije is an adverb meaning first, first of all, before anything else.

You can usually replace it with prvo:

• Najprije doručkujemo, pa idemo u grad.
• Prvo doručkujemo, pa idemo u grad.

Both are correct and very common.

Nuance:

• najprije can sound a bit like “first of all” (slightly more formal/ordered).
• prvo is shorter and very common in everyday speech.

In everyday conversation, prvo might actually be more frequent, but najprije is perfectly normal and natural.

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Why is there no word for “we” in the sentence?

Croatian usually drops subject pronouns (like “I, you, we”) because the verb ending already shows who the subject is.

• doručkujemo = we have breakfast
  
  • -mo ending = 1st person plural (“we”)
• idemo = we go / we are going
  
  • again, -mo = “we”

So:

• Najprije doručkujemo, pa idemo u grad.
  literally: “First have-breakfast-we, then go-we to city.”

You can say Mi najprije doručkujemo… for emphasis (like “We first have breakfast…”), but in neutral sentences, mi is usually left out.

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What is doručkujemo exactly? How is it formed and what tense is it?

Doručkujemo is:

• the present tense
• 1st person plural (“we”)
• of the verb doručkovati – to have breakfast

Rough breakdown:

• noun: doručak – breakfast
• verb: doručkovati – to eat/have breakfast
• present tense stem: doručkuj-
• ending for “we”: -emo

So:

• (mi) doručkujemo = we have breakfast / we are having breakfast

A mini present conjugation:

• (ja) doručkujem – I have breakfast
• (ti) doručkuješ – you have breakfast (singular, informal)
• (on/ona) doručkuje – he/she has breakfast
• (mi) doručkujemo – we have breakfast
• (vi) doručkujete – you have breakfast (plural/formal)
• (oni/one) doručkuju – they have breakfast

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Does Najprije doručkujemo, pa idemo u grad describe the present, the future, or a routine?

It can be any of those, depending on context, just like English “We have breakfast first, then we go to town.”

Possible readings:

1. Routine / habit

   • “First we (usually) have breakfast, then we go to town.”

2. Planned future / schedule (very common)

   • “First we’ll have breakfast, then we’ll go to town.”
     Croatian often uses the present tense for near future plans, especially when the order of actions is clear.

3. A decision / suggestion (“Let’s…”)

   • In context, it can feel like: “Let’s have breakfast first, then (let’s) go to town.”
     This use is very common in 1st person plural: Idemo! = “Let’s go!”

So grammatically it’s present tense, but pragmatically it can talk about now, a routine, or the (near) future.

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What does pa mean here, and how is it different from i, onda, or zatim?

Here pa is a conjunction roughly meaning “and then / and so”.

In this sentence:

• Najprije doručkujemo, pa idemo u grad.
  ≈ “First we have breakfast, and then we go to town.”

Compared:

• i – “and” (just adds another item, neutral)

  • Najprije doručkujemo i idemo u grad.
    Sounds like two actions listed together, the sequence is less emphasized.

• onda / zatim – “then, after that”

  • Najprije doručkujemo, onda idemo u grad.
  • Najprije doručkujemo, zatim idemo u grad.
    Both explicitly mark sequence in time, similar to “then, afterwards”.

• pa – sits somewhere between “and” and “and then”:

  • It connects the clauses
  • It suggests a next step, a consequence, or a natural follow-up
  • Often sounds a bit more colloquial/natural in everyday speech.

In many everyday contexts, pa is the most natural choice for “and then”.

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Why is there a comma before pa? Is it always required?

In your sentence, the comma marks a pause between two clauses:

• Najprije doručkujemo, pa idemo u grad.
  Clause 1: Najprije doručkujemo
  Clause 2: (mi) idemo u grad

With pa joining two full clauses, a comma is very common and stylistically natural.

In practice:

• When pa merely connects two verbs with the same subject, some writers might omit the comma:
  • Najprije doručkujemo pa idemo u grad. – also seen.
• When you want to mark a clear pause or step (as in this example), the comma is usually written, and many learners’ materials will include it.

So:

• In this exact sentence, the comma is standard and good to imitate.
• In more advanced writing, you’ll see both with and without comma, depending on style and the strength of the pause the writer wants.

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Why is it u grad and not u gradu?

Because Croatian uses different cases with u depending on meaning:

• u + accusative = movement into / to a place
• u + locative = location in a place

Here we have movement to the city, so accusative:

• grad → accusative singular: grad (same form as nominative)

So:

• Idemo u grad. – We’re going to (the) city/town. (movement → accusative)
• Smo u gradu. – We are in (the) city/town. (location → locative gradu)

That’s why this sentence uses u grad: it expresses direction / destination.

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What case is grad in u grad, and why no article like “the”?

Grad in u grad is accusative singular (used here for destination / direction).

Croatian does not have articles (a, an, the). So:

• idemo u grad
  can mean:
  • we go to town
  • we go to the city
  • we are going into town

The exact English choice (a / the / no article) depends on context, not on any word in Croatian. The form grad itself does not mark definiteness.

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Can I change the word order, for example Doručkujemo najprije, pa idemo u grad or Najprije idemo u grad, pa doručkujemo?

You can change the order, but it may change the emphasis or meaning.

1. Doručkujemo najprije, pa idemo u grad.

   • Grammatically possible.
   • Slightly marked: it emphasizes “najprije” as an afterthought.
   • The original Najprije doručkujemo… is more natural and neutral.

2. Najprije idemo u grad, pa doručkujemo.

   • Now the order of actions is reversed:
     • First we go to town, then we have breakfast.

In general:

• Time adverbs like najprije, onda, kasnije are very natural at the beginning of the clause:
  • Najprije doručkujemo.
  • Onda idemo u grad.

So it’s best to keep the original order unless you intentionally want to change the sequence or focus.

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Does Najprije doručkujemo, pa idemo u grad sound like a neutral statement, or more like a suggestion (“let’s first…”)?

It can be both, depending on context and tone.

Literally it’s a neutral statement:

• “First we have breakfast, then we go to town.”

But in 1st person plural, Croatian often uses the simple present to express a proposal or decision shared by the speaker:

• Idemo! – “Let’s go!”
• Najprije doručkujemo, pa idemo u grad. – often used as:
  “Let’s have breakfast first, then (let’s) go to town.”

So:

• As a description: it can describe a routine or plan.
• As a suggestion / plan just agreed on: it works like “We’ll first have breakfast, then we’ll go to town / Let’s first have breakfast, then go to town.”

Context (who is speaking to whom, and when) tells you which one is intended.