Questions & Answers about Ispunit ću obrazac sutra u uredu.
Why is the future written as Ispunit ću? What does ću mean?
Croatian commonly forms the future with the auxiliary ću (from htjeti = to want, grammaticalized into a future marker) plus the infinitive (or a special shortened form of the infinitive).
So Ispunit ću literally corresponds to I will fill out.
Why is it Ispunit ću and not Ispuniti ću?
With ću/ćeš/će…, Croatian often uses a shortened infinitive form (sometimes called the “future stem”) where the final -i is dropped:
- ispuniti → ispunit ću
Both ispunit ću and ispuniti ću may be heard, but ispunit ću is the standard, most natural written form.
Can the word order change? For example: Sutra ću ispuniti obrazac u uredu.
Yes. Word order is flexible, and different orders change emphasis/focus. All of these are natural:
- Ispunit ću obrazac sutra u uredu. (neutral; starts with the action)
- Sutra ću ispuniti obrazac u uredu. (emphasizes tomorrow)
- U uredu ću sutra ispuniti obrazac. (emphasizes in the office)
A key rule: the clitic ću usually goes in the “second position” of the clause (after the first stressed element), which is why Sutra ću… and U uredu ću… are common.