Sve dok juha ne bude gotova, naribat ću još malo sira i složiti tanjure na stol.

Here sve dok means until or up to the moment when.

Croatian dok by itself can mean either while or until, depending on context. Adding sve makes the until meaning clearer and a bit more emphatic.

So:

• dok = while / until
• sve dok = until, definitely focusing on the endpoint

In this sentence, Sve dok juha ne bude gotova means until the soup is ready.

This is a very common Croatian pattern.

After dok or sve dok, Croatian often uses ne even when English would not use a negative word:

• Čekaj dok ne dođem. = Wait until I come.
• Ostat ću ovdje dok ne završiš. = I’ll stay here until you finish.

So ne here does not translate as normal sentence negation. It is part of the structure meaning until.

A good way to think about it is: the action continues up to the point when the soup becomes ready.

Because Croatian usually handles future time differently in subordinate clauses like this one.

In English, you say until the soup is ready, not until the soup will be ready. Croatian works similarly: after words like dok, kad, čim, Croatian normally does not use će in the subordinate clause.

So instead of something like:

• dok juha će biti gotova — not natural here

you get:

• dok juha ne bude gotova

This bude is the normal future-oriented form in this kind of clause. For a learner, the practical rule is:

• after dok / kad / čim
  • future meaning, expect forms like bude, not će biti

Because gotov is an adjective, and it has to agree with juha.

Juha is:

• feminine
• singular
• nominative

So the adjective must also be feminine singular nominative:

• masculine: gotov
• feminine: gotova
• neuter: gotovo

Compare:

• Ručak je gotov. = The lunch is ready.
• Juha je gotova. = The soup is ready.
• Jelo je gotovo. = The dish/meal is ready.

This is the future tense.

The verb is naribati = to grate. Croatian future I is formed with a clitic form of htjeti:

• ću, ćeš, će, ćemo, ćete, će

When the auxiliary comes after the infinitive, the final -i of the infinitive is dropped:

• pisati → pisat ću
• napraviti → napravit ću
• naribati → naribat ću

So naribat ću simply means I will grate.

If the auxiliary comes first, the full infinitive stays:

• Ja ću naribati još malo sira.

Both are normal.

Because one auxiliary can cover both coordinated verbs.

So:

• naribat ću još malo sira i složiti tanjure na stol

means:

• I will grate a bit more cheese and set the plates on the table

The ću belongs to both naribat and složiti.

This is very common in Croatian when the same subject is doing two future actions. Repeating the auxiliary is possible, but unnecessary:

• Naribat ću još malo sira i složit ću tanjure na stol.

That sounds more marked or a bit heavier. The version with only one ću is smoother.

Because malo requires the genitive.

In Croatian, quantity words such as:

• malo = a little
• puno = a lot
• dosta = enough / quite a lot

are usually followed by a noun in the genitive.

So:

• sir = cheese
• sira = of cheese / cheese in the genitive form

Therefore:

• malo sira = a little cheese
• još malo sira = a little more cheese

This is a very important pattern to remember.

Because tanjure is the accusative plural, and here plates is the direct object of složiti.

• nominative plural: tanjuri = plates
• accusative plural: tanjure

Compare:

• Tanjuri su na stolu. = The plates are on the table.
  Here tanjuri is the subject.

• Složiti tanjure na stol. = To arrange/set the plates on the table.
  Here tanjure is the object.

Because Croatian uses different cases depending on whether you mean movement toward a place or location in a place.

With na:

• na + accusative = onto / to
• na + locative = on

Here the plates are being moved onto the table, so you need the accusative:

• na stol = onto the table

If you were just describing where they already are, you would use the locative:

• na stolu = on the table

Compare:

• Stavljam tanjure na stol. = I’m putting the plates on the table.
• Tanjuri su na stolu. = The plates are on the table.

Because the speaker is talking about two complete, one-time actions.

• naribati = grate up / grate completely
• složiti = arrange / set out completely

Perfective verbs are very common when talking about future actions that are viewed as finished tasks.

So the sentence sounds like:

• I’ll grate some more cheese
• I’ll set out the plates

both as completed actions to do while waiting.

If you used imperfective verbs, the meaning would shift more toward the process or ongoing activity:

• ribati = to be grating / grate in an ongoing way
• slagati = to be arranging / arranging repeatedly

That would sound different.

Not necessarily.

Složiti often has the broad sense of put in order, arrange, set out, or place neatly. In this sentence, složiti tanjure na stol most naturally means something like:

• set the plates on the table
• put the plates out on the table
• arrange the plates on the table

It does not have to mean making one pile or stack. The exact nuance depends on context.

Because the sentence starts with a subordinate time clause:

• Sve dok juha ne bude gotova

and then moves to the main clause:

• naribat ću još malo sira i složiti tanjure na stol

In Croatian, when a subordinate clause comes first, it is normally separated from the main clause by a comma.

Yes. Croatian word order is fairly flexible.

This sentence begins with the time clause because it sets the scene first: until the soup is ready...

You could also place that clause later:

• Naribat ću još malo sira i složiti tanjure na stol dok juha ne bude gotova.

That is still understandable and natural. The original version just gives slightly more emphasis to the waiting period.