Poklopit ću zdjelicu i staviti je u ormarić da mačka ne dođe do nje.

Both are possible, but they are formed slightly differently in Croatian.

• Poklopit ću = infinitive stem + the future auxiliary ću
• Ću poklopiti is not correct
• The other standard option is poklopit ću or poklopit ću? Actually, the two standard patterns are:
  • poklopit ću
  • poklopiti ću is generally not used in standard language
  • with clitic placement in full future forms, Croatian normally uses the shortened infinitive before ću: poklopit ću

In practice, with many verbs, the final -i of the infinitive drops before ću/ćeš/će...:

• napraviti → napravit ću
• staviti → stavit ću
• poklopiti → poklopit ću

So poklopit ću simply means I will cover/put a cover on.

Because both verbs share the same future auxiliary.

The structure is:

• Poklopit ću zdjelicu
• i staviti je u ormarić

This is like English I will cover the bowl and put it in the cabinet.

In Croatian, when two infinitives are coordinated and have the same subject and same auxiliary, you usually do not repeat the auxiliary:

• Kupit ću kruh i napraviti ručak.
  • I will buy bread and make lunch.

You could repeat it for emphasis, but normally you do not.

Zdjelicu is the accusative singular of zdjelica.

It is in the accusative because it is the direct object of poklopiti:

• poklopiti što? → zdjelicu

So:

• zdjelica = bowl, little bowl
• zdjelicu = the bowl, as the thing being acted on

This is very common in Croatian:

• Vidim kuću. → I see the house.
• Otvaram vrata. → I am opening the door.
• Poklopit ću zdjelicu. → I will cover the bowl.

Here poklopiti means something like:

• to cover
• to put a lid on
• to cover up

With zdjelica, it suggests putting something over the bowl or closing it with a lid.

So it is not just a vague cover in every context; with containers it often means to put a cover/lid on.

Related words:

• poklopac = lid
• poklopiti lonac = to put a lid on the pot
• poklopiti zdjelicu = to cover the bowl

Je here is the unstressed accusative form of ona/it, referring back to zdjelicu.

So:

• staviti je u ormarić
• literally: put it into the cabinet

Because zdjelica is feminine singular, the pronoun is:

• nominative: ona
• accusative: je

So the sentence avoids repeating zdjelicu:

• Poklopit ću zdjelicu i staviti je u ormarić...
• I will cover the bowl and put it in the cabinet...

Because je is a clitic, and Croatian clitics usually go in an early position in the clause.

So Croatian prefers:

• staviti je u ormarić

rather than:

• staviti u ormarić je ✗

Unstressed pronouns like je, ga, ih, mi, ti usually come in a fixed clitic position, not wherever English would put it.

This is one of the big word-order differences between Croatian and English.

Because this sentence expresses motion toward/into something, not location inside it.

Croatian distinguishes:

• u + accusative = movement into
• u + locative = location in

Here the bowl is being moved into the cabinet, so we use the accusative:

• u ormarić = into the cabinet

Compare:

• Stavljam je u ormarić. = I am putting it into the cabinet.
• Ona je u ormariću. = It is in the cabinet.

So:

• ormarić = accusative singular
• ormariću = locative singular

Yes, ormarić means a small cabinet, cupboard, or little storage cabinet.

The ending -ić often gives a diminutive sense, so compared with ormar:

• ormar = wardrobe, closet, cabinet
• ormarić = small cabinet, cupboard

In many everyday contexts, a natural English translation is simply cabinet or cupboard, without needing to translate the diminutive literally.

This da clause expresses purpose: so that the cat doesn’t get to it.

So:

• da = so that / in order that
• mačka ne dođe do nje = the cat does not come/get to it

The whole phrase means:

• I’ll cover the bowl and put it in the cabinet so that the cat can’t get to it.

Croatian very often uses da + a finite verb where English uses so that, in order that, or sometimes even an infinitive-like idea.

Because doći is a perfective verb, and Croatian often uses the present form of a perfective verb in subordinate clauses to refer to a future single completed event.

Here the idea is:

• so that the cat does not manage to get to it

That is a single event, so dođe is natural.

Compare the aspect difference:

• dolaziti = imperfective, repeated/ongoing coming
• doći = perfective, to come/arrive/get there as a completed event

So ne dođe here means something like:

• doesn’t get to it
• won’t reach it

This is very idiomatic in Croatian.

Literally, doći do means to come to or to reach.

But in many contexts it means:

• to get to
• to reach
• to gain access to

So:

• mačka ne dođe do nje
• literally: the cat doesn’t come to it
• naturally: the cat can’t get to it

This expression is very common:

• Ne mogu doći do njega. = I can’t get to him / reach him.
• Djeca su došla do slatkiša. = The children got to the sweets.

After do, Croatian uses the genitive case.

So:

• do + genitive

The pronoun nje is the genitive form of ona here, referring to zdjelica.

Forms to compare:

• nominative: ona
• accusative: je
• genitive: nje

That is why the sentence has both:

• staviti je → accusative object
• do nje → genitive after the preposition do

No, not here.

• je is accusative
• nje is genitive

Since do requires the genitive, you must use nje:

• do nje ✓
• do je ✗

This is a good example of how pronoun forms change depending on case in Croatian.

Because mačka is the subject of the subordinate clause:

• da mačka ne dođe do nje

The cat is the one performing the action of doći, so it stays in the nominative:

• mačka = the cat

Even though it comes after da, it is still just the grammatical subject of that clause.

The basic meaning would stay the same, but some parts are more flexible than others.

This sentence is natural as:

• Poklopit ću zdjelicu i staviti je u ormarić da mačka ne dođe do nje.

You could also hear variants with slightly different emphasis, but clitics must still obey their normal placement rules. For example:

• Zdjelicu ću poklopiti i staviti je u ormarić...

That puts more emphasis on zdjelicu.

But you cannot freely move clitics like ću and je just anywhere. Croatian word order is flexible in some ways, but clitics are one of the less flexible parts.

Yes. The main verbs are perfective:

• poklopiti
• staviti
• doći

Perfective verbs are used because the sentence talks about single, completed actions:

• cover the bowl
• put it in the cabinet
• the cat getting to it as a single possible event

This fits the meaning well. If you used imperfective verbs, the meaning would usually sound more ongoing, repeated, or less bounded.

So the aspect here is very natural for a one-time action and its intended result.