Računam koliko minuta imamo do sastanka.

Here računam means I’m calculating, I’m figuring out, or I’m working out.

The verb is računati. Depending on context, it can mean:

• to calculate
• to count
• sometimes to reckon
• in other contexts, even to count on / rely on

In Računam koliko minuta imamo do sastanka, the meaning is clearly I’m calculating/figuring out how many minutes we have until the meeting.

Because after koliko in this kind of meaning, Croatian normally uses the genitive plural of the noun.

So:

• minuta = minute (singular)
• minute = minutes (nominative plural, used in some contexts)
• minuta = also the genitive plural

After koliko, you get:

• koliko minuta = how many minutes

This is very common in Croatian:

• koliko ljudi = how many people
• koliko dana = how many days
• koliko knjiga = how many books

So even though English says how many minutes, Croatian uses a structure that literally looks more like how many of minutes.

Imamo is the 1st person plural present tense of imati (to have), so it means we have.

That matches the sentence:

• koliko minuta imamo = how many minutes we have

A quick breakdown:

• imam = I have
• imaš = you have
• ima = he/she/it has
• imamo = we have
• imate = you all / you formal have
• imaju = they have

So the speaker is talking about we, not just I.

In Croatian, subject pronouns are often left out because the verb ending already shows who the subject is.

So:

• imamo already tells you it means we have
• računam already tells you it means I calculate / I’m figuring out

That means the sentence does not need:

• ja računam
• mi imamo

You can add pronouns for emphasis or contrast, for example:

• Ja računam, a ti samo čekaš. = I’m calculating, and you’re just waiting.
• Koliko minuta mi imamo? = How many minutes do we have? (emphatic)

But in a neutral sentence, leaving them out is the most natural choice.

Because the preposition do requires the genitive case.

The noun is:

• sastanak = meeting (nominative singular)

After do, it changes to genitive:

• do sastanka = until the meeting / before the meeting

So:

• sastanak → nominative
• sastanka → genitive

This is a very important pattern in Croatian:

• do kraja = until the end
• do sutra = until tomorrow
• do škole = to the school / as far as the school
• do sastanka = until the meeting

In this sentence, do sastanka expresses the amount of time remaining before the meeting starts.

You could, but it would not mean exactly the same thing.

• do sastanka focuses on the stretch of time up to the meeting
• prije sastanka simply means before the meeting

In this sentence, do sastanka is better because the speaker is calculating how many minutes remain until something happens.

So:

• koliko minuta imamo do sastanka = how many minutes we have until the meeting
• koliko minuta imamo prije sastanka is understandable, but less natural for this exact idea

A useful nuance:

• do often works well when talking about a limit in time
• prije is more general: before

Because here it is an embedded question (also called an indirect question), not a direct question.

Compare:

Direct question

• Koliko minuta imamo do sastanka?
• How many minutes do we have until the meeting?

Embedded question

• Računam koliko minuta imamo do sastanka.
• I’m calculating how many minutes we have until the meeting.

In the full sentence, the main statement is Računam.
The part koliko minuta imamo do sastanka is a subordinate clause inside that statement.

So the whole sentence is a declaration, not a direct question.

Yes. Croatian normally uses the present tense for both:

• I calculate
• I am calculating

It does not have a separate grammatical form like the English present continuous.

So:

• Računam can mean I calculate, I’m calculating, or even I’m figuring out, depending on context.

Here, because it describes something happening now, English naturally translates it as:

• I’m calculating or
• I’m figuring out

This is very common in Croatian:

• Čitam. = I read / I am reading
• Pišem. = I write / I am writing
• Čekamo. = We wait / We are waiting

The given word order is very natural:

• Računam koliko minuta imamo do sastanka.

Croatian word order is fairly flexible, but not all alternatives sound equally natural.

This version works well because it goes:

1. main verb: Računam
2. subordinate clause: koliko minuta imamo do sastanka

You might also hear variations in special contexts for emphasis, but the standard neutral order is the one given.

For example:

• Koliko minuta imamo do sastanka računam is grammatically possible in a poetic or marked context, but it sounds unusual in everyday speech.

So for a learner, the safest and most natural order is:

• Računam koliko minuta imamo do sastanka.

Yes, and this is worth remembering because it can confuse learners.

Računati can mean:

• to calculate
• to count
• to figure out
• to count on / rely on in some expressions

Examples:

• Računam troškove. = I’m calculating the expenses.
• Računam do deset. = I’m counting to ten.
• Računam na tebe. = I’m counting on you.

So the meaning depends a lot on context, and also on whether the verb is followed by something like na:

• računam na tebe = I’m counting on you
• računam koliko minuta... = I’m calculating how many minutes...

It has two parts:

1. Računam
   = I’m calculating / figuring out

2. koliko minuta imamo do sastanka
   = how many minutes we have until the meeting

So the structure is:

• main clause
  • embedded clause

More literally:

• I calculate [how many minutes we have until the meeting].

This is a very common Croatian pattern with verbs of thinking, knowing, asking, checking, and calculating:

• Znam gdje je. = I know where he is.
• Pitam kada dolazi. = I’m asking when he’s coming.
• Provjeravam koliko košta. = I’m checking how much it costs.
• Računam koliko minuta imamo do sastanka. = I’m calculating how many minutes we have until the meeting.