Nemoj se sramiti pitati ako nešto ne razumiješ.

Yes. Nemoj is a very common way to make a negative command in Croatian.

So:

• nemoj + infinitive = don’t + verb (when speaking to one person)
• nemojte + infinitive = don’t + verb (to more than one person, or formal you)

In this sentence:

• Nemoj se sramiti = Don’t be ashamed

This construction is extremely common in everyday Croatian.

Both can exist, but nemoj + infinitive is one of the most natural and frequent ways to form a negative imperative.

So these are close in meaning:

• Nemoj se sramiti pitati.
• Ne srami se pitati.

The first one often sounds a bit more standard and common in speech for this kind of instruction.

A learner should recognize:

• nemoj + infinitive = a standard negative command
• ne + imperative form = also possible in some cases, but less broadly useful as a beginner pattern

So nemoj se sramiti is a very good structure to learn.

Se is a reflexive particle. Some Croatian verbs regularly appear with it, and sramiti se is one of them.

So the verb is not just sramiti here, but:

• sramiti se = to be ashamed

You should learn it as a whole unit, just like:

• bojati se = to be afraid
• nadati se = to hope
• smijati se = to laugh

In this sentence:

• se goes with sramiti
• nemoj se sramiti = don’t be ashamed

Not in the way an English speaker would normally think of it. In this sentence, sramiti se means to be ashamed or to feel embarrassed.

So:

• sramim se = I’m ashamed / I feel embarrassed
• ne srami se = don’t be ashamed

Even if the structure looks reflexive, the best way to understand it is simply as a fixed verb meaning be ashamed.

Because Croatian often uses one verb followed by another infinitive, just like English does.

Here:

• sramiti se = to be ashamed
• pitati = to ask

So:

• sramiti se pitati = to be ashamed to ask

That is directly parallel to English:

• Don’t be afraid to ask
• Don’t hesitate to ask
• Don’t be ashamed to ask

So the structure is normal:

• Nemoj se sramiti pitati = Don’t be ashamed to ask

Because after nemoj and after sramiti se, Croatian uses the infinitive.

Compare:

• pitati = to ask
• pitaš = you ask / you are asking

Here the meaning is not you ask, but to ask:

• Nemoj se sramiti pitati = Don’t be ashamed to ask

So pitati must be in the infinitive.

It means:

• ako = if
• nešto = something
• ne razumiješ = you do not understand

So literally:

• if you do not understand something

In natural English, that often becomes:

• if there’s something you don’t understand
• if you don’t understand something

Both are good translations.

Because nešto means something, while ništa means nothing.

So these are different:

• ako nešto ne razumiješ = if there is something you don’t understand
• ako ništa ne razumiješ = if you understand nothing

The sentence is talking about one unclear thing, not total lack of understanding.

That is why nešto is the correct word here.

No. This is just normal negation of the verb:

• razumiješ = you understand
• ne razumiješ = you don’t understand

The word nešto is not negative. It means something, so there is no double negative here.

A real Croatian double negative would be something like:

• Ništa ne razumijem. = I understand nothing.

That is normal in Croatian. But your sentence does not contain that pattern.

Razumiješ is:

• 2nd person singular
• present tense
• from the verb razumjeti / razumijeti = to understand

So:

• ja razumijem = I understand
• ti razumiješ = you understand

With negation:

• ti ne razumiješ = you don’t understand

That matches the implied subject you in the command:

• Nemoj... ako nešto ne razumiješ.
• Don’t... if you don’t understand something.

So the whole sentence is addressed to one person.

There are two clues:

1. Nemoj is singular.
2. razumiješ is also singular, meaning you understand when speaking to one person.

If you wanted to say it to more than one person, or formally, you would say:

• Nemojte se sramiti pitati ako nešto ne razumijete.

So:

• nemoj / razumiješ = singular informal you
• nemojte / razumijete = plural or formal you

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

The given sentence:

• Nemoj se sramiti pitati ako nešto ne razumiješ.

is very natural.

You may also hear slight variations, for example:

• Ako nešto ne razumiješ, nemoj se sramiti pitati.

This puts the if clause first:

• If you don’t understand something, don’t be ashamed to ask.

The reflexive particle se usually stays close to the verb phrase, and the original version is a very standard, natural order.

They are very close, and in many contexts both can mean to ask.

• pitati = to ask
• upitati = to ask (often a bit more bounded/completed in aspect)

In a sentence like this, pitati is the most neutral and natural choice.

So:

• Nemoj se sramiti pitati sounds very normal.

A learner does not need to worry too much here; just remember that pitati is the basic verb to ask.

A fairly literal translation is:

• Don’t be ashamed to ask if you don’t understand something.

A very natural English version is:

• Don’t be afraid to ask if there’s something you don’t understand.

The Croatian sentence specifically uses the idea of being ashamed/embarrassed, but in English we often translate that more freely depending on context.

Yes. Stidjeti se is another verb meaning to be ashamed / to feel shy or embarrassed.

So:

• Nemoj se sramiti pitati.
• Nemoj se stidjeti pitati.

Both are possible and natural.

Very roughly:

• sramiti se can suggest feeling ashamed or embarrassed
• stidjeti se can feel a bit closer to being shy/embarrassed

But in a sentence like this, the practical meaning is very similar: don’t hesitate out of embarrassment; ask.

A very useful chunk is:

• Nemoj se sramiti + infinitive

For example:

• Nemoj se sramiti pitati. = Don’t be ashamed to ask.
• Nemoj se sramiti reći. = Don’t be ashamed to say it.
• Nemoj se sramiti tražiti pomoć. = Don’t be ashamed to ask for help.

Another useful chunk is:

• ako nešto ne razumiješ = if there’s something you don’t understand

Learning these as chunks will help you sound natural much faster.