U zoološkom vrtu ne smijemo hraniti životinje.

At the zoo, we must not feed the animals.

Breakdown of U zoološkom vrtu ne smijemo hraniti životinje.

• ne: not
• u: at
• smjeti: to be allowed to
• životinja: animal

Questions & Answers about U zoološkom vrtu ne smijemo hraniti životinje.

Why is it u zoološkom vrtu and not u zoološki vrt?

Because u can take different cases depending on meaning:

• u + accusative = movement into something
  
  • Idemo u zoološki vrt. = We are going to the zoo.
• u + locative = being in a place
  
  • U zoološkom vrtu... = In the zoo...

In this sentence, there is no movement. It describes a rule that applies in the zoo, so Croatian uses the locative.

That is why:

• zoološki vrt → dictionary form
• u zoološkom vrtu → locative singular

Why does zoološki become zoološkom?

Because adjectives must agree with the noun they describe in:

• gender
• number
• case

Here, vrt is:

• masculine
• singular
• locative

So the adjective zoološki also has to be masculine singular locative:

• zoološki vrt = nominative
• u zoološkom vrtu = locative

So both words change together.