Learn Hardcore Croatian: Vidimo se u šest, zar ne?

Vidimo is the 1st person plural present of vidjeti (to see): we see.
Croatian often uses this plural form idiomatically for greetings/farewells, similar to English See you (which also isn’t a full sentence like I will see you).
So Vidimo se is a natural fixed expression meaning See you / We’ll see each other.

What does se do in Vidimo se?

Se is a reflexive/clitic pronoun. With vidjeti, it turns the idea into seeing each other:

Vidimo se = We’ll see each other / See you
Without se, Vidimo would just mean We see (something/someone) and it would feel incomplete here.

Is Vidimo se present tense or future? Why is it used for a future meeting?

It’s present tense in form, but Croatian commonly uses the present for planned/expected near-future events, especially in everyday speech:

Vidimo se u šest. = We’ll see each other at six.
This is similar to English I’m meeting him at six (present continuous for future).

Why is it u šest? What case is used after u?

With time expressions, u + accusative is used to mean at (a specific time):

u šest = at six
Here, šest behaves like an accusative time expression (you won’t see a visible ending change on the numeral).

Is u šest missing a word like sati (o’clock)?

Yes, u šest (sati) is common. Sati is often omitted in casual speech because the meaning is clear:

Vidimo se u šest. = See you at six.
If you want to be explicit, you can say u šest sati.

How would I say at 6:30 or at 6:15 in the same pattern?

Common options include:

u šest i trideset / u 6:30 (often spoken like u šest i trideset)
u šest i petnaest / u 6:15
In everyday Croatian, people also use:
u pola sedam = at 6:30 (literally half to seven)
u četvrt do sedam = 6:45 (regional/colloquial)
But your sentence structure stays the same: Vidimo se u ...

What does zar ne? mean grammatically, and why add it?

Zar ne? is a very common tag question meaning ..., right? / ..., isn’t that so?
It signals you expect agreement or confirmation:

Vidimo se u šest, zar ne? = We’re meeting at six, right?

Is zar ne? formal or informal? Are there alternatives?

Zar ne? is neutral and widely used. Alternatives include:

jel’ (je li) tako? = is that so? / right?
je l’ da? = right? (very common in speech)
OK? is also used colloquially.
For a more formal confirmation you might use a full question: Je li to u šest? (Is it at six?)

Why is there a comma before zar ne?

Because zar ne is a tag appended to the main clause, it’s typically set off with a comma in writing:

Vidimo se u šest, zar ne?
In casual texting, people may skip punctuation, but in standard writing the comma is expected.

What’s the natural word order? Could it be U šest se vidimo?

Yes. Croatian word order is flexible and changes emphasis:

Vidimo se u šest. = neutral, most common
U šest se vidimo. = emphasizes the time (At six, we’ll see each other)
U šest vidimo se. is possible but less natural because clitics like se usually come early (second position tendency).

How do you answer zar ne? naturally?

Typical replies:

Da. / Da, naravno. = Yes / Yes, of course.
Tako je. = That’s right.
Ne. followed by a correction: Ne, u sedam. = No, at seven.

Is there a more formal version of Vidimo se?

A slightly more formal/explicit option is:

Vidjet ćemo se u šest. = We will see each other at six.
But Vidimo se u šest is still perfectly polite and very common in both informal and many neutral situations.