Breakdown of Ako nastane svađa, pokušamo naći kompromis.
ako
if
naći
to find
pokušati
to try
nastati
to arise
Questions & Answers about Ako nastane svađa, pokušamo naći kompromis.
Why does the sentence start with ako?
Ako means if. It introduces a condition:
- Ako nastane svađa = If an argument breaks out
- pokušamo naći kompromis = we try / we’ll try to find a compromise
So the whole sentence is built as a standard if-clause + main clause pattern.
Why is it nastane and not something like nastaje?
Nastane is from nastati, a perfective verb. In Croatian, perfective verbs often describe a single completed event, such as:
- an argument breaks out
- something suddenly arises
By contrast, nastaje is from the imperfective use and suggests something ongoing or habitual, more like is arising / comes into being.
In a sentence with ako, Croatian very often uses the present tense of a perfective verb to talk about a future possible event:
- Ako nastane svađa... = If an argument breaks out...
So even though the form looks present, the meaning is often future/conditional in English.
What case is svađa in?