Questions & Answers about Kad je zrak hladan, držim usta zatvorena.
Why is it kad and not kada?
Both kad and kada mean when.
- kad is shorter and very common in everyday speech
- kada is slightly more formal or a bit more emphatic
So both of these are fine:
- Kad je zrak hladan, držim usta zatvorena.
- Kada je zrak hladan, držim usta zatvorena.
In normal conversation, kad is extremely natural.
Why is it Kad je zrak hladan and not Kad zrak je hladan?
Because je is a clitic form of biti (to be), and Croatian clitics usually go in the second position in their clause.
So the natural order is:
- Kad je zrak hladan
not:
- Kad zrak je hladan
This is a very common Croatian pattern. English speakers often expect the verb to stay after the subject, but Croatian clitics follow different placement rules.
Why is there no word for the in zrak?