Ako nađemo veći stan, preselit ćemo se sljedeći mjesec.

If we find a bigger apartment, we will move next month.

Breakdown of Ako nađemo veći stan, preselit ćemo se sljedeći mjesec.

• stan: apartment
• htjeti: will
• veći: bigger
• ako: if

Questions & Answers about Ako nađemo veći stan, preselit ćemo se sljedeći mjesec.

Why is the sentence structured this way?

It has a very common if + result structure:

• Ako nađemo veći stan = the if-clause
• preselit ćemo se sljedeći mjesec = the main/result clause

This is basically the Croatian equivalent of the English first conditional:

• If we find a bigger apartment, we’ll move next month.

So the pattern is:

• Ako + verb, main clause

When the ako clause comes first, it is normally followed by a comma.

Why is nađemo in the present tense, not the future?

Because in Croatian, after ako when talking about a real future possibility, you usually use the present tense, not the future.

So Croatian says:

• Ako nađemo... = literally If we find...

not

• Ako ćemo naći... = not natural here

This is normal Croatian grammar. English also uses present after if in the same kind of sentence:

• If we find..., not If we will find...

So in this sentence, nađemo is present in form, but it refers to a future possibility.

Why is it nađemo and not nalazimo?