Learn Hardcore Croatian: Kad ne razumijem sugovornika, osjetim malu tugu, ali taj osjećaj brzo prođe. - When I do not understand the person I am talking with, I feel a little sadness, but that feeling passes quickly.

Both are correct and natural. The meaning doesn’t change; it’s just a stylistic preference. Many speakers use them interchangeably, sometimes even mixing them in the same conversation.

Why is ne razumijem in the present tense if it means “when I don’t understand (someone I’m talking to)” in general?

Croatian, like English, uses the present tense for general, repeated situations.

Kad ne razumijem sugovornika...
literally: When I do not understand my interlocutor...
meaning: Whenever it happens that I don’t understand the person I’m talking to...

This is called the general present (or gnomic/habitual present). It talks about what usually or regularly happens, not one specific moment in time.

So the present ne razumijem covers:

present time: right now I don’t understand him
and repeated situations: whenever I don’t understand the person I’m talking to

Why is it sugovornika and not sugovornik?

Sugovornik is a masculine noun meaning interlocutor, the person I’m talking to.

In the sentence:

ne razumijem sugovornika

the word sugovornik is the direct object of the verb razumijem (I understand). In Croatian, direct objects are usually in the accusative case.

For a masculine animate noun like sugovornik, the accusative singular form is:

Nominative: sugovornik (subject: the interlocutor speaks)
Accusative: sugovornika (object: I understand the interlocutor)

So:

Razumijem sugovornika. – I understand the interlocutor.
Ne razumijem sugovornika. – I don’t understand the interlocutor.

The -a ending here is simply the accusative singular for a masculine animate noun.

What exactly does sugovornik mean, and is there a more common or simpler word?

Sugovornik literally means the person you’re having a conversation with, interlocutor, or conversation partner.

It’s:

quite common in both spoken and written Croatian,
neutral and a bit more “standard”/polite than just saying čovjek (man) or osoba (person).

Possible alternatives, with slightly different nuances:

osoba s kojom pričam – the person I’m talking to (more descriptive)
druga osoba – the other person (in the conversation)
govornik – speaker (someone who is speaking, e.g., at an event; not the same as sugovornik)

In everyday speech, sugovornik is perfectly normal and not overly formal.

What’s the difference between osjetim and osjećam, and why is osjetim used here?

Both come from the verb osjetiti / osjećati = to feel.

osjećati – imperfective
Focus on an ongoing, repeated, or continuous feeling.
Present: osjećam
osjetiti – perfective
Focus on the moment of beginning or a single, complete act of feeling.
Present: osjetim, but this “present” often has a future or instantaneous flavor: I (suddenly) feel / I will feel.

In your sentence:

osjetim malu tugu = I (suddenly) feel a bit of sadness / I get a little sad.

It describes a single reaction each time the situation happens. The perfective osjetim fits well for that “moment when the feeling appears”.

If you said:

osjećam malu tugu – I feel a little sadness (in general / continuously).

That would sound more like a more lasting or background state, not a short emotional reaction that then prođe (passes).

Why is it malu tugu and not just mala tuga?

Here we have:

mala tuga – a small sadness (nominative, used for the subject)
malu tugu – accusative singular (direct object, used after many verbs like feel).

In the sentence:

osjetim malu tugu

malu tugu is the direct object of osjetim, so it must be in the accusative.

Because tuga (sadness) is feminine:

Nominative: mala tuga (subject)
Accusative: malu tugu (object)

Both words (mala / malu, tuga / tugu) change to show:

case: accusative,
gender: feminine,
number: singular.

Grammatically:

Mala tuga me muči. – A small sadness troubles me. (subject – nominative)
Osjetim malu tugu. – I feel a small sadness. (object – accusative)

Could we say malo tuge instead of malu tugu? Would the meaning change?

Yes, you could say:

osjetim malo tuge

This uses malo + tUGE (genitive singular) and means a little (bit) of sadness.

Nuance:

malu tugu – a specific, small sadness, more like a countable “small sadness/emotion”.
malo tuge – some amount of sadness, more like an uncountable substance (a bit of sadness).

Both are natural. The original malu tugu personifies the sadness a bit more, as a distinct small feeling that appears and then passes.

Why is it taj osjećaj and not something like ta osjećaj or to osjećaj?

Osjećaj (feeling) is:

masculine,
singular,
nominative in this sentence (it’s the subject of prođe).

The demonstrative pronoun taj must agree with the noun:

Masculine singular: taj osjećaj – that feeling
Feminine singular: ta knjiga – that book
Neuter singular: to dijete – that child

So we get:

taj osjećaj brzo prođe – that feeling passes quickly.

You cannot say:

ta osjećaj – mismatch: ta is feminine, osjećaj is masculine.
to osjećaj – mismatch: to is neuter.

Taj also clearly refers back to malu tugu (that little sadness), connecting the second part of the sentence to the first: but that feeling passes quickly.

Why is the verb prođe used here, and not something like prolazi?

Both come from the verb pair proći / prolaziti = to pass, to go by.

proći – perfective
Present: prođem, prođeš, prođe...
Focus on completion: the feeling finishes / is over.
prolaziti – imperfective
Present: prolazim, prolaziš, prolazi...
Focus on an ongoing process: the feeling is passing / is in the process of going away.

Your sentence uses:

taj osjećaj brzo prođe – that feeling goes away quickly / passes quickly (completely).

This emphasizes that each time you feel that sadness, it disappears quickly.

If you used prolazi:

taj osjećaj brzo prolazi – that feeling passes quickly (more about the process of it fading, rather than simply the completed fact that it’s gone).
Both are acceptable, but prođe sounds more like it doesn’t last; it’s over quickly.

Can the word order be different, for example taj osjećaj brzo prođe vs. brzo taj osjećaj prođe? Does it change the meaning?

Croatian has relatively flexible word order. All of these are grammatically correct:

taj osjećaj brzo prođe (neutral, most typical here)
brzo taj osjećaj prođe
taj osjećaj prođe brzo

The basic meaning stays the same, but the emphasis can shift:

Taj osjećaj brzo prođe.
Neutral: “That feeling passes quickly.” (slight focus on what passes)
Brzo taj osjećaj prođe.
Puts a bit more emphasis on brzo: Quickly that feeling passes – almost “It’s quick, that feeling passing.”
Taj osjećaj prođe brzo.
Slightly more focus at the end on brzo, similar nuance to English That feeling passes quickly/fast.

In everyday speech, taj osjećaj brzo prođe is the most natural and neutral ordering.

Why is there a comma after kad ne razumijem sugovornika and before ali?

Two things are happening with commas here:

Comma after the “kad” clause
- Kad ne razumijem sugovornika, osjetim malu tugu...
  The part starting with kad is a subordinate clause (when I don’t understand…).
  In Croatian, when such a clause comes first, it is usually followed by a comma.
Comma before ali
- ..., ali taj osjećaj brzo prođe.
  Ali = but. Like in English, you normally put a comma before ali when it connects two clauses:
- Osjetim malu tugu, ali taj osjećaj brzo prođe.
  I feel a little sadness, but that feeling passes quickly.

So the punctuation mirrors English pretty closely:

When I don’t understand the person I’m talking to, I feel a little sadness, but that feeling passes quickly.

Why is there no word for “I” (like ja) in ne razumijem and osjetim?

Croatian is a pro-drop language: subject pronouns (like ja = I, ti = you) are often omitted because the verb ending already shows the person.

Compare:

razumijem – I understand
razumiješ – you (sg.) understand
razumije – he/she/it understands

The -m ending in ne razumijem and osjetim clearly marks first person singular (I), so ja is not needed.

You can add ja for emphasis, for example:

Kad ja ne razumijem sugovornika, osjetim malu tugu...
Almost: When I (in particular) don’t understand the interlocutor...

But in this neutral sentence, leaving ja out is more natural.