Korijen tog starog stabla ide ispod staze, pa ćemo morati paziti.

Because korijen is the noun being talked about, and tog starog stabla means of that old tree.

After korijen (root), Croatian uses the genitive case for the thing the root belongs to:

• korijen stabla = the root of the tree
• korijen tog starog stabla = the root of that old tree

So:

• to staro stablo = that old tree (nominative)
• tog starog stabla = of that old tree (genitive)

All three words change because they belong together:

• tog = genitive of taj
• starog = genitive of star
• stabla = genitive of stablo

It is genitive singular.

Here is the breakdown:

• to stablo = that tree → nominative singular
• tog stabla = of that tree → genitive singular

Since stablo is a neuter singular noun, the adjective and determiner agree with it:

• to staro stablo = nominative
• tog starog stabla = genitive

This is very common in Croatian when one noun is connected to another with an of meaning.

Because ispod normally takes the genitive case.

So:

• staza = nominative
• staze = genitive singular

That means:

• ispod staze = under/beneath the path

Other prepositions also often require genitive, so this is a pattern worth learning.

Yes, ići / ide usually means to go / goes, but in Croatian it is also used more broadly for things that run, extend, or pass in a certain direction.

So in this sentence, korijen ... ide ispod staze means something like:

• the root goes under the path
• the root runs beneath the path
• the root extends under the path

This sounds natural in Croatian.

Because morati (must / have to) is itself a verb, and it is being put into the future.

Croatian future is often made with:

• the present of htjeti as a clitic: ću, ćeš, će, ćemo, ćete, će
• plus the infinitive

So:

• morati = to have to
• ćemo morati = we will have to

Then another infinitive follows:

• ćemo morati paziti = we will have to be careful / pay attention

So the structure is: future auxiliary + infinitive + infinitive

Because after morati, Croatian normally uses the infinitive.

Examples:

• Moram ići. = I have to go.
• Moramo čekati. = We have to wait.
• Morat ćemo paziti. / Ćemo morati paziti. = We will have to be careful.

So paziti stays in the infinitive because it depends on morati.

Here paziti means something like:

• be careful
• watch out
• pay attention

It does not always need a direct object. In this sentence, it is understood generally: we’ll have to be careful.

Compare:

• Pazi! = Careful! / Watch out!
• Paziti na djecu = to watch the children
• Paziti na korijenje = to watch out for roots

So here it is being used in a broad, intransitive sense.

Pa here means something like:

• so
• therefore
• and so
• which means

It connects the first idea to the consequence:

• Korijen ... ide ispod staze, pa ćemo morati paziti.
• The root goes under the path, so we’ll have to be careful.

In everyday Croatian, pa is extremely common and can have several shades of meaning depending on context.

Because Croatian does not have articles like English a/an/the.

So Croatian simply says:

• korijen = root / the root
• staza = path / the path
• stablo = tree / the tree

Whether English uses a or the depends on context and meaning, not on a separate Croatian word.

Because the adjective must agree with stabla in gender, number, and case.

Since stabla is:

• neuter
• singular
• genitive

the adjective also takes the matching genitive singular form:

• staro stablo = nominative singular
• starog stabla = genitive singular

And the demonstrative does the same:

• to stablo
• tog stabla

So tog starog stabla is a fully matching phrase.

They are related, but not always identical in feeling.

• drvo can mean tree or wood
• stablo usually refers more specifically to the tree as a trunk/plant structure, especially in a more physical or descriptive sense

In a sentence about a root of a tree, stablo sounds very natural. It focuses on the actual tree as an object in the ground.

You may hear both in different contexts, but korijen stabla is a very normal combination.

Yes, Croatian word order is fairly flexible, although some versions sound more natural than others.

The given sentence:

• Korijen tog starog stabla ide ispod staze, pa ćemo morati paziti.

A different but still natural order could be:

• Ispod staze ide korijen tog starog stabla, pa ćemo morati paziti.

However, the original version is clear and neutral. Croatian often changes word order for:

• emphasis
• style
• rhythm
• what is already known vs. new information

So word order matters, but not as rigidly as in English.

Yes. Both are possible, but morat ćemo paziti is usually the more standard and natural written order.

You will often see:

• Morat ćemo paziti. = We will have to be careful.

This happens because the future auxiliary can attach in a way that produces this common pattern.

So:

• ćemo morati paziti
• morat ćemo paziti

Both express the same meaning, but the second is usually preferred in standard usage.

Yes, korijen is singular: root.

If you wanted the plural roots, you would usually use:

• korijeni

Example:

• Korijeni tog starog stabla idu ispod staze.
• The roots of that old tree go under the path.

Notice that the verb also changes:

• korijen ide = singular
• korijeni idu = plural

So the sentence is specifically talking about one root or one root as the relevant thing being discussed.