Breakdown of Što je nadmorska visina veća, to je vreme hladnije.
biti
to be
velik
big
vreme
weather
hladan
cold
Questions & Answers about Što je nadmorska visina veća, to je vreme hladnije.
What does the što ..., to ... pattern mean here?
It is a fixed Serbian pattern used to show a proportional relationship:
- Što je X veći/veća/veće, to je Y veći/veća/veće
- English: the more / the bigger / the higher X is, the more / the bigger / the higher Y is
So here, što and to do not mean their usual dictionary meanings like what or that. Together, they form the equivalent of English the ..., the ... in sentences like:
- The higher the altitude, the colder the weather.
Why is veća used?
Veća is the comparative form of velika / veliko / velik in the sense of greater / bigger.
It agrees with nadmorska visina, which is:
- feminine
- singular
- nominative
So:
- visina = height, altitude
- veća visina = greater altitude
In the sentence, veća is a predicate adjective after je, so literally:
- nadmorska visina je veća = the altitude is greater
Why is it veća and not viša?
That is a very natural question, because English often says .