Ne mogu naći odvijač u ladici.

not

Breakdown of Ne mogu naći odvijač u ladici.

• u: in
• moći: to be able to
• naći: to find

Questions & Answers about Ne mogu naći odvijač u ladici.

Why is it ne mogu and not ne mogu with the verb in a different form (like an infinitive)?

Ne mogu literally means I can’t / I’m not able to and it behaves like a modal verb. In Croatian, modal verbs such as moći (can/be able) are followed by an infinitive: mogu naći = I can find.
So Ne mogu naći = I can’t find.
You don’t conjugate the second verb (naći)—it stays in the infinitive.

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What is the dictionary form of mogu and how is it conjugated here?

The dictionary form is moći (to be able/can).
mogu is 1st person singular present: (ja) mogu = I can.
With negation: (ja) ne mogu = I can’t.
Croatian often drops the pronoun ja because the verb ending already shows the person.

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Why is the negation ne separate (two words: ne mogu) instead of one word?