Questions & Answers about Ovaj mali stan nam je dovoljan.
Why does ovaj mean this here, and why does it end in -aj?
Ovaj is the masculine singular nominative form of this.
It matches stan because stan is:
- masculine
- singular
- nominative (the subject of the sentence)
So:
- ovaj stan = this apartment
- ova kuća = this house (feminine)
- ovo selo = this village (neuter)
The ending changes because Croatian demonstratives agree with the noun in gender, number, and case.
Why is it mali stan and not some other form of mali?
Mali is an adjective, and adjectives in Croatian must agree with the noun they describe.
Here, stan is:
- masculine
- singular
- nominative
So the adjective also appears in the masculine singular nominative form:
- mali stan = small apartment
Compare:
- mala kuća = small house
- malo selo = small village
What exactly does stan mean?