Ispred hotela je mali bazen, ali voda u bazenu je hladna.

In front of the hotel there is a small pool, but the water in the pool is cold.

Breakdown of Ispred hotela je mali bazen, ali voda u bazenu je hladna.

• biti: to be
• voda: water
• u: in
• ali: but

Questions & Answers about Ispred hotela je mali bazen, ali voda u bazenu je hladna.

Why is it hotela and not hotel after ispred?

Because ispred (in front of) requires the genitive case.

• dictionary form: hotel
• after ispred: hotela

So:

• ispred hotela = in front of the hotel

This is very common in Serbian: many prepositions force a certain case, and ispred takes the genitive.

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What exactly does ispred mean, and how is it different from pred?

Ispred means in front of.

Pred usually means before or in front of, but it is used differently and takes a different case.

Compare:

• ispred hotela = in front of the hotel
• pred hotelom = also in front of the hotel, but with a slightly different structure

For learners, ispred + genitive is often the easiest and most direct way to say physical position in front of something.

So in this sentence, ispred hotela is completely natural.

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Why is it u bazenu and not u bazen?

Because changes case depending on meaning.