Questions & Answers about Večeras kuham juhu na štednjaku.
Croatian usually drops subject pronouns because the verb ending shows the person.
- The verb kuham is 1st person singular of kuhati (to cook).
- The -m ending tells you the subject is “I” (ja).
So Večeras kuham juhu na štednjaku literally has an implied subject:
- (Ja) kuham = I cook / I am cooking
You could say Ja večeras kuham juhu na štednjaku, but it’s only used: - for emphasis (Ja, a ne ti, kuham…)
- or in contrasts.
In normal, neutral speech, you omit ja.
Grammatically, kuham is present tense of kuhati (to cook).
But in Croatian (as in English “I’m cooking tonight”), present tense + a future time expression often refers to the near future.
- Večeras kuham juhu.
= This evening I’m cooking soup / I’m going to cook soup this evening.
If you want a more clearly future form, especially for a one‑time completed action, you’d normally use a perfective verb:
- Večeras ću skuhati juhu.
= I will cook (and finish cooking) soup this evening.
Summary:
- kuham (imperfective): focuses on the ongoing activity (I’ll be cooking).
- ću skuhati (future + perfective): focuses on the result/completion (the soup will get cooked).
The infinitive is kuhati (to cook). Present tense:
- ja kuham – I cook / I am cooking
- ti kuhaš – you (sg., informal) cook
- on/ona/ono kuha – he/she/it cooks
- mi kuhamo – we cook
- vi kuhate – you (pl. or formal) cook
- oni/one/ona kuhaju – they cook
In this sentence we use kuham (1st person singular).
The base form is juha (soup), a feminine noun ending in -a.
In Večeras kuham juhu na štednjaku, juhu is the direct object of kuham (“I’m cooking what?” → soup), so it’s in the accusative singular.
For most feminine -a nouns:
- Nominative (subject): juha – The soup is hot. (Juha je vruća.)
- Accusative (object): juhu – I’m cooking soup. (Kuham juhu.)
So the change -a → -u marks the accusative (object) form.
The noun is štednjak (stove), a masculine noun.
In na štednjaku, it is in the locative singular.
Masculine nouns often have -u (or -e) in the locative:
- Nominative: štednjak – The stove is new. (Štednjak je nov.)
- Locative (with “on/at the stove”): na štednjaku
Typical pattern:
- Nominative: stol (table), grad (city), štednjak (stove)
- Locative: na stolu (on the table), u gradu (in the city), na štednjaku (on the stove)
So štednjaku = “on/at the stove” because na + static location → locative case.
The preposition na can take locative or accusative, depending on meaning:
- na + locative = location, no movement (where?)
- na štednjaku – on the stove (already there, not moving)
- na + accusative = motion towards, direction (to where?)
- Stavljam lonac na štednjak. – I’m putting the pot onto the stove.
In Večeras kuham juhu na štednjaku, there is no movement implied; you’re just stating where you cook – on the stove – so locative (štednjaku) is used.
The choice of na vs u is mostly about how speakers conceptualize the location:
na = on a surface / on top of something:
- na stolu – on the table
- na šalteru – at the counter
- na štednjaku – on the stove (on its cooking surface)
u = inside something / in an enclosed space:
- u loncu – in the pot
- u pećnici – in the oven
- u kući – in the house
Cooking on a stove is seen as doing it on the surface, so Croatian uses na štednjaku, not u štednjaku.
Croatian word order is relatively flexible; you can move parts for emphasis or style.
All of these are grammatically possible:
- Večeras kuham juhu na štednjaku. – neutral, time first.
- Kuham večeras juhu na štednjaku. – slight emphasis on I’m cooking (not doing something else) tonight.
- Večeras na štednjaku kuham juhu. – a bit more dramatic / stylized; focusing on tonight and on the stove.
- Juhu večeras kuham na štednjaku. – strong emphasis on the soup (contrast or correction).
The default, most natural neutral order for “Tonight I’m cooking soup on the stove” is what you have: Večeras kuham juhu na štednjaku.
večeras = this evening / tonight (refers specifically to this coming evening)
- Večeras idem u kino. – I’m going to the cinema tonight.
večer = evening (the noun itself)
- Volim mirnu večer. – I like a quiet evening.
noćas = tonight, but usually with a focus on the night-time, often later, after you’d normally go to bed
- Noćas nisam spavao. – I didn’t sleep last night / tonight.
For “Tonight I’m cooking soup” → Večeras kuham juhu is the usual choice.
In standard Croatian, juha is the normal word for soup.
- juha od povrća – vegetable soup
- pileća juha – chicken soup
The word supa is:
- common in Serbian, Bosnian, and some Croatian dialects
- understood by Croatian speakers, but in standard Croatian it sounds regional/colloquial or non‑standard.
If you’re aiming for standard Croatian, use juha, not supa.
Key points:
č = like ch in church
- večeras – veh-CHER-as
š = like sh in shoe
- štednjaku – SHTED-nyah-koo
j = like y in yes
- juhu – YOO-hoo
- štednjaku – the sequence nj is like ny in canyon: SHTED-nyah-koo
kh/ḥ-like h: h is a bit stronger than English h, closer to the German “Bach” sound, especially in kuham.
Approximate whole sentence:
- Večeras kuham juhu na štednjaku.
→ veh-CHER-as KOO-ham YOO-hoo nah SHTED-nyah-koo