Learn Hardcore Croatian: Na sastanku mirno raspravljamo o našem planu. - At the meeting we calmly discuss our plan.

na is used for:
- events and activities:
  - na sastanku – at the meeting
  - na koncertu – at the concert
  - na predavanju – at the lecture
  - na poslu – at work
- surfaces: na stolu – on the table
u is used for:
- enclosed spaces, interiors, cities, countries:
  - u kući – in the house
  - u uredu – in the office
  - u Zagrebu – in Zagreb

A meeting (sastanak) is treated like an event, so you say na sastanku (at the meeting), not u sastanku.

What case is sastanku, and how is it formed from the base form sastanak?

The base (dictionary) form is sastanak (meeting), nominative singular.

In na sastanku, the noun sastanku is in the locative singular case:

The preposition na
- a stationary location (on/at something) requires the locative case.
The declension of sastanak (masculine, hard stem) is:
- Nominative (who? what?): sastanak – the meeting
- Genitive (of?): sastanka
- Dative (to/for?): sastanku
- Accusative (whom/what?): sastanak
- Locative (about/on/at): sastanku
- Instrumental (with/by): sastankom

Dative and locative singular have the same form sastanku, but here it’s locative because it comes after na expressing location: na sastanku = at the meeting.

Compare:

Idemo na sastanak. – We are going to the meeting. (motion → na
- accusative)
Smo na sastanku. – We are at the meeting. (location → na
- locative)

Does Na sastanku mean “at the meeting” or “at a meeting”? How do you say “a” and “the” in Croatian?

Croatian has no articles (no direct words for a/an or the). So na sastanku can mean either:

at the meeting
at a meeting

The exact meaning depends on context, not on a specific word.

To be more precise, Croatians often use demonstratives (this/that) instead of articles:

na tom sastanku – at that meeting
na ovom sastanku – at this meeting
na nekakvom sastanku – at some (kind of) meeting

But in normal conversation, plain na sastanku is usually enough, just like English often says at the meeting when both speakers know which meeting is meant.

What exactly does mirno mean, and why is it mirno and not miran?

mirno is an adverb meaning calmly, peacefully.

It comes from the adjective miran (calm):

miran čovjek – a calm man (adjective, masculine)
mirna žena – a calm woman (adjective, feminine)
mirno dijete – a calm child (adjective, neuter)

In Croatian, many adverbs are formed from the neuter singular form of the adjective:

brz, brza, brzo → brzo – fast → quickly
glasan, glasna, glasno → glasno – loud → loudly
miran, mirna, mirno → mirno – calm → calmly

So:

miran sastanak – a calm meeting (adjective)
mirno raspravljamo – we discuss calmly (adverb modifying the verb)

That’s why it’s mirno, not miran, in this sentence.

Where can mirno go in the sentence? Is the word order flexible?

Yes, Croatian word order is fairly flexible, especially for adverbs like mirno. Some common options:

Na sastanku mirno raspravljamo o našem planu.
(Your original; fairly neutral.)
Na sastanku raspravljamo mirno o našem planu.
Slight extra emphasis on mirno (we do it calmly, not heatedly).
Mirno raspravljamo o našem planu na sastanku.
Emphasis a bit more on mirno raspravljamo as a whole.
Mirno na sastanku raspravljamo o našem planu.
Also possible, but a bit less common-sounding.

General rule: adverbs often stand before the verb (mirno raspravljamo), but they can move to change what is emphasized. For a learner, the safest and most natural position is directly before the verb.

What form is raspravljamo? Which verb is it from and how is it conjugated?

raspravljamo is:

present tense
1st person plural (“we”)
from the verb raspravljati (to discuss, debate)

Basic present-tense conjugation of raspravljati:

ja raspravljam – I discuss
ti raspravljaš – you discuss (singular, informal)
on/ona/ono raspravlja – he/she/it discusses
mi raspravljamo – we discuss
vi raspravljate – you discuss (plural or formal)
oni/one/ona raspravljaju – they discuss

So raspravljamo literally means we discuss or we are discussing. It is an imperfective verb, which is used for ongoing, repeated, or general actions.

Is there a difference between raspravljamo, razgovaramo, and pričamo?

Yes, all three can be translated as some kind of talking, but they have different nuances:

raspravljati – to discuss, debate
- Often more formal or structured.
- Typically about a topic, question, or problem.
- Na sastanku raspravljamo o našem planu. – At the meeting, we discuss our plan.
razgovarati – to talk, have a conversation
- Neutral, general conversation.
- Can be formal or informal.
- Na sastanku razgovaramo o našem planu. – At the meeting, we talk about our plan.
pričati – to talk, tell stories, narrate
- Often more informal, chatty, or narrative.
- Frequently used with stories, experiences:
  - pričati priču – to tell a story
  - pričati o putovanju – to talk/tell about the trip

In your sentence, raspravljamo suggests a serious, perhaps systematic discussion of the plan, not just a casual chat.

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

Croatian usually omits subject pronouns (like I, you, we) because the verb ending already shows the person and number.

raspravljamo can only mean we discuss.
So adding mi (“we”) is normally unnecessary.

Compare:

Mirno raspravljamo o našem planu. – We calmly discuss our plan.
Mi mirno raspravljamo o našem planu. – We calmly discuss our plan. (extra emphasis on we)

The version with mi is used:

for emphasis (We do it, not them), or
for contrast.

For a neutral statement, leaving out the pronoun (as in your sentence) is the most natural choice.

Why do we say o našem planu and not o naš plan?

In Croatian, prepositions always require a specific case, and the noun (and any adjectives) must change form accordingly.

The preposition o (about) always takes the locative case:
- o planu – about the plan
- o problemu – about the problem
- o knjizi – about the book

The possessive adjective naš (our) must agree in case, number, and gender with the noun it modifies. Since plan is:

masculine,
singular,
locative (because of o),

it becomes:

o našem planu – about our plan

So:

o naš plan is ungrammatical
o našem planu is correct: adjective (našem) and noun (planu) both in locative singular masculine.

What case are našem and planu in, and how do they agree?

Both našem and planu are in the locative singular masculine.

plan is a masculine noun.
With o (“about”), you need locative: o planu.
The possessive adjective naš must match plan in:
- gender (masculine),
- number (singular),
- case (locative).

So:

Nominative: naš plan – our plan
Genitive: našeg plana – of our plan
Dative/Locative: našem planu – to/at/about our plan
Accusative: naš plan
Instrumental: našim planom

Examples with other genders/numbers:

o našoj ideji – about our idea (feminine, locative singular)
o našem poslu – about our job/work (masculine, locative singular)
o našim planovima – about our plans (plural, locative plural)

In your sentence, o našem planu shows correct agreement: both words are locative singular masculine.

Can I say Na sastanku mirno raspravljamo naš plan without o?

Grammatically, you can say raspravljati + accusative object, and you will see sentences like:

Sabor raspravlja prijedlog zakona. – The Parliament is debating the draft law.

This is more common in formal contexts (parliamentary sessions, official procedures). It sounds like “to debate a proposal” in a technical sense.

In everyday speech, especially with people simply “discussing” something, the more natural and common pattern is:

raspravljati o + locative
- raspravljamo o našem planu – we are discussing our plan

So:

Na sastanku mirno raspravljamo naš plan.
– possible, but sounds formal/technical and a bit unusual in casual speech.

For normal, conversational Croatian, stick with:

Na sastanku mirno raspravljamo o našem planu.

What is the perfective partner of raspravljamo, and how would I say “We will discuss our plan (and finish)”?

The common perfective partner of raspravljati is raspraviti.

raspravljati – imperfective: to be discussing, to discuss (ongoing, habitual)
raspraviti – perfective: to discuss something and bring it to some kind of conclusion

To say We will discuss our plan (and get it done/finish the discussion), you can say:

Raspravit ćemo naš plan.
– We will discuss our plan (implies finishing it).

You can also add o + locative, but with perfective you more often see the direct object:

Raspravit ćemo plan na sutrašnjem sastanku.
– We will discuss the plan at tomorrow’s meeting.

Compare:

Svaki tjedan raspravljamo o našem planu.
– Every week we (keep) discuss(ing) our plan. (imperfective, repeated action)
Sutra ćemo raspraviti naš plan.
– Tomorrow we will (properly) discuss our plan. (perfective, completed action)

Should it be raspravljamo or raspravljamo se? What’s the difference?

Both forms exist, but they don’t mean exactly the same thing.

raspravljati (without se) – to discuss something, to debate a topic
- Usually followed by o + locative or a direct object:
  - raspravljamo o planu – we are discussing the plan
  - raspravljamo plan – we are debating the plan (more formal)
raspravljati se – a reflexive form; often means:
- to argue, have a dispute, quarrel (especially if context is negative)
- or “to debate among ourselves,” but with a stronger sense of back-and-forth disagreement

Examples:

Cijeli dan se raspravljaju.
– They’ve been arguing all day.
Raspravljamo se oko sitnica.
– We argue about trivial things.

In your sentence:

Na sastanku mirno raspravljamo o našem planu.
– At the meeting, we calmly discuss our plan. (neutral, appropriate)

If you said:

Na sastanku se mirno raspravljamo o našem planu.

it might sound like: We are having a calm argument/debate among ourselves about our plan — still not wrong, but it puts more focus on people arguing with each other rather than simply working through a topic. For a neutral “We calmly discuss our plan,” raspravljamo (without se) is the best choice.