Breakdown of Bez obzira na to što je benzin skuplji, ponekad ipak idemo autom do jezera.
Questions & Answers about Bez obzira na to što je benzin skuplji, ponekad ipak idemo autom do jezera.
As a whole, bez obzira na to što means regardless of the fact that, even though, or despite the fact that.
In this sentence, it introduces a contrast:
- Bez obzira na to što je benzin skuplji = Even though petrol is more expensive
- ponekad ipak idemo autom do jezera = we still sometimes go to the lake by car
It is a fairly common Croatian way to express concession, similar to English although / even though.
Bez obzira na is a fixed expression meaning regardless of. After it, Croatian often adds to što when a whole clause follows.
So:
- bez obzira na to što je benzin skuplji
literally works like:
- regardless of that fact that petrol is more expensive
The to points forward to the clause introduced by što.
In everyday speech, some people do say bez obzira što, but bez obzira na to što is clearer and more standard in careful usage.
Yes, very often you can.
For example:
- Iako je benzin skuplji, ponekad ipak idemo autom do jezera.
This means almost the same thing: Although petrol is more expensive, we still sometimes go to the lake by car.
The difference is mostly stylistic:
- iako = simpler, very common, direct
- bez obzira na to što = a bit heavier, more formal, more like regardless of the fact that
Both are correct here.
Here što is introducing a subordinate clause. In this sentence, it is not really the English what. It is closer to that in the fact that...
So:
- to što je benzin skuplji = the fact that petrol is more expensive
That is why translating word by word can be misleading. In this structure, što is functioning as a conjunction-like word introducing the clause.
Skuplji is the comparative form of skup = expensive.
So:
- skup = expensive
- skuplji = more expensive
Croatian usually forms this comparative as a single word, not with a separate word like English more.
Examples:
- velik → veći = big → bigger
- jeftin → jeftiniji = cheap → cheaper
- skup → skuplji = expensive → more expensive
So benzin je skuplji means petrol is more expensive.
Because the sentence does not actually say what petrol is more expensive than. It just says it is more expensive, with the comparison understood from context.
English can do the same:
- Petrol is more expensive.
Croatian also allows that:
- Benzin je skuplji.
If you wanted to say what it is compared with, you would add it:
- Benzin je skuplji nego prije. = Petrol is more expensive than before.
- Benzin je skuplji od dizela. = Petrol is more expensive than diesel.
Autom is the instrumental singular of auto.
Croatian often uses the instrumental case without a preposition to express the means of transport:
- ići autom = to go by car
- ići vlakom = to go by train
- ići autobusom = to go by bus
- ići avionom = to go by plane
So idemo autom literally means something like we go using a car, but in natural English it is simply we go by car.
Because autom and s autom mean different things.
- ići autom = to go by car
- ići s autom is generally not the normal way to say that
The preposition s(a) usually means with, not by. So s autom would sound like with the car, not by car.
For transport, Croatian normally uses the bare instrumental:
- Putujemo autom. = We travel by car.
Jezera is genitive singular, because the preposition do takes the genitive.
- do = to / up to / as far as
So:
- do jezera = to the lake
This is a very common pattern:
- do grada = to the town/city
- do škole = to the school
- do kuće = to the house/home
Here it emphasizes destination.
Both can be possible in Croatian, but they are not always identical in feel.
- do jezera = to the lake, often meaning to the area of the lake / as far as the lake
- na jezero = to the lake, often more like onto / to the lake as a destination for an outing
In many everyday contexts, both can sound natural. But do jezera is very common when talking about movement toward a place.
So this sentence is perfectly natural as:
- idemo autom do jezera
Ipak means still, nevertheless, or all the same.
It strengthens the contrast:
- petrol is more expensive
- but still we sometimes go by car
Without ipak, the sentence would still be correct:
- Bez obzira na to što je benzin skuplji, ponekad idemo autom do jezera.
But with ipak, the idea of despite that, we still do it becomes more explicit.
Ponekad means sometimes, and ipak means still / nevertheless.
Together:
- ponekad ipak idemo = we still sometimes go
The word order is natural, but Croatian word order is fairly flexible. The speaker puts adverbs in places that sound natural or emphasize certain parts.
This sentence sounds smooth and neutral:
- ponekad ipak idemo autom do jezera
Other orders are possible, but they may shift emphasis slightly:
- ipak ponekad idemo autom do jezera
- idemo ipak ponekad autom do jezera
A learner should mainly remember that Croatian word order is more flexible than English, especially with short adverbs like ipak.
Because the first part is a subordinate clause:
- Bez obzira na to što je benzin skuplji
and the second part is the main clause:
- ponekad ipak idemo autom do jezera
Croatian normally separates this kind of introductory subordinate clause with a comma, just like English often does with Although... , ...
Idemo means we go / we are going, and the ending -mo already shows that the subject is we.
That is why Croatian usually does not need the pronoun mi.
So:
- idemo = we go
- mi idemo = we go, but with extra emphasis on we
Croatian often leaves subject pronouns out unless they are needed for contrast, emphasis, or clarity.
Yes. Benzin is the normal Croatian word for petrol / gasoline.
For an English speaker, the main thing to remember is:
- British English: petrol
- American English: gas / gasoline
- Croatian: benzin
So benzin je skuplji means petrol/gas is more expensive.
Most naturally, it sounds like a general or repeated situation, not one single trip.
That comes mainly from:
- ponekad = sometimes
- idemo = present tense, often used for regular or repeated actions
So the sense is:
- Even though petrol is more expensive, we still sometimes go to the lake by car.
If the speaker meant one specific occasion, Croatian would usually give more context.