Ako sutra bude imala temperaturu, moja kći će izostati s nastave.

After ako (if), Croatian normally does not use će + infinitive the way English uses will in some contexts.

So instead of:

• Ako će imati temperaturu... ❌

Croatian uses:

• Ako bude imala temperaturu... ✅

This is the usual way to express a future condition after ako. The form bude imala is often called future II. In sentences like this, it means something like if she has / if she ends up having tomorrow.

So the pattern is:

• Ako + future II, main clause in future I

Here:

• Ako sutra bude imala temperaturu = if she has a fever tomorrow
• moja kći će izostati s nastave = my daughter will miss class / be absent from school

Bude imala is made up of:

• bude = a form of biti (to be)
• imala = the past participle of imati (to have), agreeing with a feminine subject

Because the subject is moja kći (my daughter), the participle is feminine singular:

• masculine: imao
• feminine: imala
• neuter: imalo

So:

• on bude imao
• ona bude imala
• ono bude imalo

This form is used especially in subordinate clauses referring to the future, such as after:

• ako = if
• kad = when
• čim = as soon as

Because in this construction, Croatian does not use an infinitive after bude.

In the main future, Croatian often uses:

• će izostati

That is:

• će
  • infinitive

But after ako, the future conditional clause uses a different structure:

• bude
  • past participle

So:

• će imati = future I
• bude imala = future II

Since the subject is feminine (kći), the participle must also be feminine:

• imala

Temperaturu is the accusative singular of temperatura.

That is because imati (to have) takes a direct object:

• imati što? = to have what?

So:

• nominative: temperatura
• accusative: temperaturu

In Croatian, the expression imati temperaturu means to have a fever or to have a temperature in the sense of elevated body temperature.

So this is a very normal fixed expression:

• imam temperaturu
• ima temperaturu
• ako bude imala temperaturu

In everyday Croatian, imati temperaturu usually means to have a fever.

Literally, temperatura means temperature, but in this context it normally refers to raised body temperature, just like in some varieties of English people say She has a temperature.

So a learner should understand:

• imati temperaturu = to have a fever / to be running a temperature

The verb izostati often goes with s(a) to mean to be absent from or to miss something.

So:

• izostati s nastave = to be absent from class / miss lessons

Here:

• s = from
• nastave = genitive singular of nastava

The noun nastava means teaching, classes, or instruction, and in this expression it usually refers to school lessons/classes.

So s nastave is literally from class / from lessons.

Because the preposition s/sa here requires the genitive when it means from.

So:

• nastava = nominative
• nastave = genitive

That gives:

• s nastave = from class / from lessons

Do not confuse this with another use of s(a) meaning with, which can take the instrumental:

• sa sestrom = with my sister

Here, though, the meaning is from, so the genitive is used:

• izostati s nastave

This is about aspect, which is very important in Croatian.

• izostati = perfective
• izostajati = imperfective

In this sentence, the speaker is talking about one future result:

• if she has a fever tomorrow, she will miss class

That is a single completed event, so the perfective verb izostati is natural.

Very roughly:

• izostati = miss / fail to attend (one event, viewed as complete)
• izostajati = be missing habitually / keep being absent

So here:

• će izostati = she will miss / be absent

In Croatian future I, the auxiliary ću, ćeš, će, ćemo, ćete, će is often written separately before the infinitive:

• će izostati

This is completely normal.

Croatian also has a pattern where the auxiliary can attach after certain forms, but with a full noun subject like moja kći, the separate form is what you usually expect:

• Moja kći će izostati...

Compare:

• Izostat će. = She will be absent.
  Here the auxiliary comes after the infinitive stem in standard spelling.

But in your sentence, moja kći će izostati is the straightforward standard order.

Yes, Croatian often leaves subjects out because the verb form already gives information about the person and number.

So you could say:

• Ako sutra bude imala temperaturu, izostat će s nastave.

That would still be natural if it is already clear who she is.

But moja kći is included here for clarity or emphasis:

• moja kći će izostati s nastave

Croatian uses explicit subject pronouns or nouns when needed for:

• clarity
• contrast
• emphasis

Yes, kći means daughter, and it is a normal word, but learners often notice that it looks unusual.

Its nominative singular is:

• kći

It is somewhat irregular in form compared with many more transparent feminine nouns like žena or sestra. That is one reason learners often find it memorable.

In this sentence, it is in the nominative because it is the subject:

• moja kći

Also note that moja agrees with kći in feminine singular.

A rough pronunciation guide is:

• kći ≈ kchee

More precisely:

• ć is a soft sound, somewhat like a very soft ch/t sound
• the final i is pronounced

English does not have an exact equivalent, so learners often approximate it at first. The important thing is not to pronounce it like k-tee or k-see.

Yes. Croatian word order is fairly flexible, although not random.

The sentence:

• Ako sutra bude imala temperaturu, moja kći će izostati s nastave.

could also appear in slightly different orders depending on emphasis, for example:

• Moja kći će izostati s nastave ako sutra bude imala temperaturu.
• Ako bude sutra imala temperaturu, moja kći će izostati s nastave.

These versions are all understandable, but the original sounds very natural and neutral.

Croatian often places time words like sutra in different positions depending on rhythm and emphasis.

Yes, in real-life speech you may hear present tense after ako:

• Ako sutra ima temperaturu...

This can sound natural in conversation.

However, ako sutra bude imala temperaturu is a very clear and standard way to express a future condition. It is especially useful for learners because it shows the normal grammar pattern after ako for future situations.

So:

• ako sutra bude imala temperaturu = more explicitly future-oriented
• ako sutra ima temperaturu = also possible in everyday usage, depending on context and style

Yes. This sentence is a very useful model for a common Croatian structure:

• Ako + future condition, result in the future

In your sentence:

• Ako sutra bude imala temperaturu = condition
• moja kći će izostati s nastave = result

This is one of the most important patterns to learn for talking about future possibilities:

• Ako bude padala kiša, ostat ćemo kod kuće.
• Ako budeš imao vremena, nazovi me.

So the original sentence is a great example of how Croatian handles if + future differently from English.