Learn Hardcore Croatian: Sumnja je normalna; međutim, ne želim odustati od učenja jezika. - Doubt is normal; however, I do not want to give up learning the language.

Normalno je sumnjati. – It is normal to doubt.
(normalno here is neuter because the subject is an unspecified situation, like English It is normal…)

Could you also say Normalno je sumnjati instead of Sumnja je normalna? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can, and both are correct, but the focus is a bit different.

Sumnja je normalna.
Literally: Doubt is normal.
You are talking about doubt as a thing and describing it.
Normalno je sumnjati.
Literally: It is normal to doubt.
This is an impersonal construction. You focus more on the action of doubting than on doubt as a noun.

In everyday conversation they often feel almost interchangeable, but:

the first sounds a bit more static, describing a state/quality;
the second sounds more dynamic, describing behavior or an action.

Why is the verb je in the middle: Sumnja je normalna, and not at the beginning like in English (Is doubt normal)?

Croatian does not use verb–first word order for neutral yes/no statements the way English does.

In a normal declarative sentence:

The subject usually comes first: Sumnja
Then the clitic verb je must come in the second position in the clause.
Then the rest of the predicate: normalna

So:

Sumnja je normalna. – neutral statement
Je sumnja normalna? – this would not be a normal yes/no question; it sounds wrong or at least very marked.

For questions, Croatian usually changes intonation or adds a question word, rather than moving je to the front:

Je li sumnja normalna? – Is doubt normal?
Je li to normalno? – Is that normal?

What exactly does međutim mean, and how is it different from ali?

Both are contrast words, but they behave a bit differently.

ali = but (a normal conjunction)
- Joins two clauses with just a comma:
  - Sumnja je normalna, ali ne želim odustati…
međutim = however / nevertheless (an adverbial connector)
- Feels a bit more formal or stronger than ali.
- Often starts a new clause or sentence, similar to English however:
  - Sumnja je normalna; međutim, ne želim odustati…
  - Sumnja je normalna. Međutim, ne želim odustati…

You would not normally connect two full sentences with just a comma and međutim:

✗ Sumnja je normalna, međutim ne želim… – common in speech and informal writing, but many style guides consider this punctuation incorrect or at least sloppy.
✓ Sumnja je normalna; međutim, ne želim…
✓ Sumnja je normalna. Međutim, ne želim…

Why is there a semicolon before međutim? Could I just use a comma or a period?

All three are possible, but they have slightly different styles:

Semicolon (as in the original)
Sumnja je normalna; međutim, ne želim odustati…
- Shows a stronger break than a comma.
- Still keeps both clauses closely connected.
- Very similar to English use of the semicolon + however.
Period
Sumnja je normalna. Međutim, ne želim odustati…
- Two clearly separate sentences.
- Also common and perfectly correct.
Comma
Sumnja je normalna, ali ne želim odustati…
- If you switch to ali, a simple comma is completely normal.
- With međutim, a comma alone is less stylistically ideal in formal writing, though people often do it.

So:

For međutim, prefer semicolon or period.
For ali, use a comma.

Why is there a comma after međutim?

Because međutim is used as a sentence connector at the beginning of the clause.

In Croatian, when such adverbs start the sentence (similar to English however, therefore, meanwhile), they are usually followed by a comma:

Međutim, ne želim odustati…
Zato, neću to učiniti.
Ipak, nastavit ću.

If međutim appears mid-sentence inside a clause, commas may or may not be used, depending on pause and style, but in initial position like here, the comma is standard.

Where is the word I in the Croatian sentence …ne želim odustati od učenja jezika?

It is implied by the verb form and normally not written.

želim = I want
The ending -im shows 1st person singular present tense.

So:

ne želim odustati… = I do not want to give up…

You could add ja:

Ja ne želim odustati od učenja jezika.

But ja is usually only added for emphasis or contrast, for example:

Ja ne želim odustati, ali ti možeš, ako želiš.
I don’t want to give up, but you can, if you want.

Why is it ne želim odustati and not something like ne želim da odustanem?

Both exist, but they are not quite the same.

ne želim odustati
- odustati is an infinitive (to give up).
- Structure: ne želim
  - infinitive.
- Very direct and common: I don’t want to give up.
ne želim da odustanem
- odustanem is a finite verb (1st person singular, present).
- da introduces a subordinate clause:
  - literally: I don’t want that I give up.
- Also correct, but it sounds a bit heavier and more clause-like.

In this particular sentence, ne želim odustati is simpler and more natural.

What does odustati od mean, and why is učenja jezika in the genitive case?

odustati od means to give up (on) something, to abandon something.

The preposition od always takes the genitive case.
So whatever you give up from will be in genitive.

Here:

odustati od čega? – from what?
od učenja jezika – from learning the language

Breaking it down:

učenje – learning (verbal noun)
genitive of učenje is učenja
jezika is genitive singular of jezik (language)

So step by step:

učiti jezik – to learn a language
učenje jezika – learning of a language
od učenja jezika – from learning a language (genitive because of od)
odustati od učenja jezika – to give up (from) learning the language

Why is it od učenja jezika (a noun phrase) and not an infinitive like odustati učiti jezik?

Because in standard Croatian odustati od is followed by a noun / noun phrase, not a bare infinitive.

So the pattern is:

odustati od + noun (in genitive)

Examples:

odustati od posla – to give up the job
odustati od plana – to give up the plan
odustati od učenja jezika – to give up language learning

To express an action there, Croatian uses a verbal noun:

učiti → učenje
čitati → čitanje
raditi → rad

So you nominalize the verb (turn it into a noun) and then put it in genitive after od.

✗ odustati učiti jezik is not standard.

Why is jezika used and not jezik? How do I know this is singular genitive and not plural nominative?

Form jezika can be:

genitive singular of jezik (one language)
or nominative plural of jezik (languages)

In od učenja jezika, context and grammar tell us it must be genitive singular:

od requires genitive case.
učenja čega? jezika. – learning of what? language (genitive).
If it were nominative plural (languages), it would need to be the subject of some verb, which it isn’t here.

So here:

jezika = of (a/the) language (genitive singular), not languages.

To avoid ambiguity, you can specify:

od učenja hrvatskog jezika – from learning Croatian
od učenja stranih jezika – from learning foreign languages (here jezika is genitive plural, clearly marked by stranih).

What exactly is učenja? Is it a verb form?

učenja is not a verb form; it is a noun derived from the verb učiti.

Verb: učiti – to learn / to study
Verbal noun: učenje – learning, study
Genitive singular of učenje: učenja

So:

učenje jezika – learning (of) language
od učenja jezika – from learning (of) language (genitive after od)

You can think of it as similar to English:

to learn → learning
to study → study / studying

Croatian very often uses such verbal nouns where English might prefer just an infinitive.

How do you pronounce sumnja? That mnj cluster looks difficult.

sumnja is pronounced approximately like:

[súm-nya] or even closer [súm-ɲa] (with a palatal nj sound)

Tips:

The word has two syllables: sum-nja.
nj in Croatian is a single sound (like Spanish ñ):
- nja ≈ nya in English canyon.
The n in spelling reflects the morphology (it comes from sumnjati), but when speaking, most learners can think simply:
- say sum
  - nya → sumnja.

Stress is on the first syllable: SÚM-nja.

Why is it ne želim, with ne before the verb? Could I say something like želim ne odustati?

The normal, unmarked way to negate a verb in Croatian is to put ne immediately before the finite verb:

želim – I want
ne želim – I do not want

So:

ne želim odustati – I do not want to give up

You can technically say želim ne odustati, but:

it sounds unusual and quite marked;
it is closer to English I want not to give up, where the focus is on not giving up, not on not wanting.

In everyday speech and writing, you will almost always see ne želim + infinitive for I don’t want to….

Could I replace međutim with ali in this sentence? Would anything change?

Yes, and the meaning would stay essentially the same, just with a tiny stylistic shift.

Original:

Sumnja je normalna; međutim, ne želim odustati od učenja jezika.

With ali:

Sumnja je normalna, ali ne želim odustati od učenja jezika.

Differences:

ali is more neutral and common in everyday speech.
međutim is a bit more formal and sounds closer to English however.
Punctuation: with ali, use a comma, not a semicolon.

Is the word order ne želim odustati od učenja jezika fixed, or can I move parts around?

Croatian word order is relatively flexible, so you can move parts for emphasis, while keeping grammar the same.

All of these are grammatical (but differ in focus):

Ne želim odustati od učenja jezika. – neutral.
Od učenja jezika ne želim odustati. – emphasizes from language learning.
Odustati od učenja jezika ne želim. – strong emphasis on I really don’t want to give up.

The original order is the most neutral and the best choice for learners.