Čim čujemo zvono na vratima, mama otvara vrata.

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Breakdown of Čim čujemo zvono na vratima, mama otvara vrata.

• vrata: door
• čuti: to hear
• čim: as soon as

Questions & Answers about Čim čujemo zvono na vratima, mama otvara vrata.

What does čim mean here?

Čim means as soon as. It introduces a subordinate clause and shows that one action happens immediately after another.

So:

Čim čujemo zvono na vratima, mama otvara vrata.
= As soon as we hear the doorbell, Mom opens the door.

It is stronger and more immediate than just kad in many contexts.

How is čim different from kad?

Both can sometimes be translated as when, but they are not exactly the same.

• čim = as soon as, with a sense of immediacy
• kad = when, more general

So:

• Čim čujemo zvono... = As soon as we hear the bell...
• Kad čujemo zvono... = When we hear the bell...

In this sentence, čim emphasizes that Mom opens the door right away.

Why is there no separate word for we in čujemo?