Večeras ću telefonirati baki.

In Croatian, short unstressed words called clitics usually go in second position in the sentence or clause. The future auxiliary ću is one of these clitics.

So in Večeras ću telefonirati baki, the first element is Večeras (tonight / this evening), and ću comes right after it.

That is why you get:

Večeras ću telefonirati baki.

and not normally:

Večeras telefonirati ću baki.

Ću telefonirati is the 1st person singular future tense: I will call / I will be phoning.

It is made from:

• ću = I will
• telefonirati = to telephone / to call

So the structure is:

ću + infinitive = future tense

In this sentence, the subject I is understood from ću, so Croatian does not need a separate word for I.

Croatian often drops subject pronouns when they are clear from the verb form.

Here, ću already tells you the subject is I, so ja is unnecessary.

• Večeras ću telefonirati baki. = Tonight I’ll call grandma.
• Ja ću večeras telefonirati baki. = also possible, but ja adds emphasis, like I will call grandma.

So the version without ja is the most neutral and natural.

Because telefonirati takes the dative case for the person you are calling.

The base form is:

• baka = grandmother / grandma

In the dative singular, it becomes:

• baki = to grandma

So:

• telefonirati baki = to phone grandma

This is different from English, where grandma stays the same.

Some Croatian verbs require objects in cases other than the accusative. Telefonirati is one of them: it typically goes with the dative, meaning roughly to telephone someone.

So Croatian says:

• telefonirati baki = literally telephone to grandma

That is why baki is in the dative.

This is just something you need to learn with the verb:

• telefonirati kome? = to phone whom?
• pisati kome = to write to someone
• pomagati kome = to help someone

Yes. That is also a correct future form.

Croatian has two common ways to form this future:

• ću telefonirati
• telefonirat ću

When the auxiliary comes after the infinitive, the infinitive usually drops the final -i in writing:

• telefonirati → telefonirat ću

So these are both correct:

• Večeras ću telefonirati baki.
• Večeras ću baki telefonirati.
• Telefonirat ću baki večeras.

The sentence you were given follows the very common pattern where the clitic ću stays in second position.

Večeras can mean both tonight and this evening, depending on context.

It refers to the evening of the current day. In many English translations, tonight sounds the most natural:

• Večeras ću telefonirati baki. = I’ll call grandma tonight.

But this evening can also fit in some contexts.

Yes. Croatian word order is fairly flexible, though not completely free. The sentence can be rearranged depending on what you want to emphasize.

For example:

• Večeras ću telefonirati baki. = neutral, with tonight first
• Baki ću telefonirati večeras. = emphasis on grandma
• Ja ću večeras telefonirati baki. = emphasis on I
• Večeras ću baki telefonirati. = also possible

What usually stays important is the placement of the clitic ću, which tends to remain in second position.

The dictionary form is baka.

That is the nominative singular form, the one you would find in a dictionary. In this sentence it changes to baki because the verb requires the dative singular.

So:

• baka = nominative
• baki = dative singular

Yes, another very common verb is nazvati.

There is a useful difference:

• telefonirati komu = to phone someone, with dative
• nazvati koga = to call someone, with accusative

So you can say:

• Večeras ću telefonirati baki.
• Večeras ću nazvati baku.

Both can mean I’ll call grandma tonight, but the grammar changes:

• baki after telefonirati
• baku after nazvati

A learner should remember each verb together with the case it uses.

Telefonirati is generally imperfective. It describes the activity of making a phone call, not necessarily a single completed result.

That is why a perfective verb like nazvati is often used when you want to stress a single completed call:

• Večeras ću nazvati baku. = I’ll give grandma a call tonight.

But Večeras ću telefonirati baki is still completely natural and grammatical. It suggests the action of phoning grandma rather than strongly focusing on completion.

You can usually make it a question just with intonation in speech, or with a question mark in writing:

• Večeras ćeš telefonirati baki? = Will you call grandma tonight?

If you want to keep the same person:

• Večeras ću telefonirati baki? would only work in special contexts, like repeating in surprise: I’ll call grandma tonight?

For a normal yes/no question in 1st person, Croatian more often uses context or a fuller structure, for example:

• Hoću li večeras telefonirati baki? = Will I call grandma tonight? / Am I going to call grandma tonight?

Because here baki is functioning as the dative singular of baka, required by telefonirati.

Croatian endings can look similar across different forms, so context matters. In this sentence, after the verb telefonirati, the natural reading is dative:

• telefonirati baki = to phone grandma

So even if English uses just grandma, Croatian marks the relationship with case.

Yes, it is natural and correct.

A native speaker might also say:

• Večeras ću nazvati baku.
• Telefonirat ću baki večeras.
• Večeras zovem baku. (using present tense with future meaning in casual speech, depending on context)

But the given sentence is a good standard example of:

• future tense
• clitic placement
• a verb that takes the dative case