Ne volim kad djeca lijepe žvakaću gumu ispod stola.

In Croatian, ne is the normal negative particle, and it usually stands separately before the verb.

• volim = I like / I love
• ne volim = I don’t like

So this is the regular way to negate the verb. A few forms are exceptions and are written together, such as nemam, nisam, and neću.

Here kad means when or whenever.

So Ne volim kad... is the natural Croatian way to say I don’t like it when...

Yes, you can also say kada. The difference is mostly style:

• kad = more common and conversational
• kada = a bit more formal or written

In this sentence, kad sounds completely natural.

Croatian does not need a separate it here.

English often says:

• I don’t like it when children...

But Croatian simply says:

• Ne volim kad djeca...

That is the normal idiomatic structure. The idea of it is understood, so nothing extra is needed.

Because djeca means children, so it refers to more than one person.

The singular is:

• dijete = child

The plural is:

• djeca = children

This is an irregular plural, so it does not look like a typical plural to an English speaker, but it still takes plural agreement:

• djeca lijepe = children stick
• not djeca lijepi

No. Here lijepe is a verb, not an adjective.

It comes from lijepiti, which means:

• to stick
• to glue
• to paste

So:

• djeca lijepe žvakaću gumu = the children stick chewing gum

This can confuse learners because Croatian also has:

• lijep = beautiful / nice

They look similar, but they are different words.

Because this phrase is the direct object of the verb lijepe, so it must be in the accusative case.

The basic dictionary form is:

• žvakaća guma = chewing gum

In the accusative singular, it becomes:

• žvakaću gumu

Both words change because the adjective must agree with the noun.

So:

• žvakaća guma = nominative
• žvakaću gumu = accusative

This is very normal in Croatian.

Because the preposition ispod requires the genitive case.

The noun is:

• stol = table

After ispod, it becomes:

• stola

So:

• ispod stola = under the table

This is a standard case rule:

• ispod
  • genitive

Ispod means under / underneath / below, and it works very well here because the gum is being stuck to the underside of the table.

• ispod stola suggests underneath the table
• pod stolom usually means under the table as a location

Both can translate as under the table, but ispod stola is especially natural when you mean the lower side/underside area.

Because the sentence talks about a general habit or repeated behavior, not one specific completed event.

So the meaning is like:

• I don’t like when children stick chewing gum under the table
• I don’t like it when children do that

Croatian uses the present tense here very naturally for this kind of general statement.

Also, lijepiti is an imperfective verb, which fits repeated or ongoing action. If you used a perfective verb such as zalijepiti, it would sound more like one completed act.

No, Croatian word order is fairly flexible, but the original order is the most neutral and natural:

• Ne volim kad djeca lijepe žvakaću gumu ispod stola.

You can move parts around for emphasis, but that changes the focus and may sound less neutral. For a learner, the original order is the safest one to use.

Because Croatian does not have articles.

So Croatian does not normally use words equivalent to a and the before nouns. Whether something is definite or indefinite is understood from context.

That is why you simply get:

• djeca = children / the children
• stola = table / the table, depending on context

English must choose a or the, but Croatian usually does not.