How to Use Possessive Pronouns and Adjectives in Croatian

Understanding Possessive Pronouns and Adjectives in Croatian

In Croatian, possessive pronouns and adjectives are used to indicate ownership or relationship, similar to English. However, they agree in gender, number, and case with the noun they refer to, which is a key difference from English.

What Are Possessive Pronouns and Adjectives?

Possessive adjectives describe a noun by showing to whom it belongs, for example, "my book" or "your house." Possessive pronouns replace the noun entirely, such as "mine" or "yours." In Croatian, these forms change depending on the gender (masculine, feminine, neuter), number (singular, plural), and grammatical case of the noun.

Croatian Possessive Adjectives

Croatian possessive adjectives are derived from personal pronouns and indicate possession. They must agree with the noun they modify in gender, number, and case.

Here are the basic possessive adjectives in the nominative singular form:

• my – moj (masculine), moja (feminine), moje (neuter)
• your (singular) – tvoj, tvoja, tvoje
• his – njegov, njegova, njegovo
• her – njezin, njezina, njezino
• our – naš, naša, naše
• your (plural) – vaš, vaša, vaše
• their – njihov, njihova, njihovo

Examples of Possessive Adjectives in Sentences

- Moj pas je velik. (My dog is big.)
- Tvoja knjiga je na stolu. (Your book is on the table.)
- Njegova kuća je lijepa. (His house is beautiful.)

Croatian Possessive Pronouns

Possessive pronouns in Croatian replace the noun and show possession. They also agree in gender, number, and case with the noun they replace.

Examples of possessive pronouns in the nominative singular form include:

• mine – moj, moja, moje
• yours (singular) – tvoj, tvoja, tvoje
• his – njegov, njegova, njegovo
• hers – njezin, njezina, njezino
• ours – naš, naša, naše
• yours (plural) – vaš, vaša, vaše
• theirs – njihov, njihova, njihovo

Note that the forms are the same as possessive adjectives but are used without a following noun.

Examples of Possessive Pronouns in Sentences

- Ova knjiga je moja. (This book is mine.)
- Ta torba je tvoja. (That bag is yours.)
- Kuća je njihova. (The house is theirs.)

Important Grammar Tips

• Possessive pronouns and adjectives must agree with the noun's gender, number, and case.
• In Croatian, the endings change depending on the grammatical case (nominative, accusative, genitive, etc.).
• The masculine form is used for masculine nouns, feminine for feminine nouns, and neuter for neuter nouns.
• Plural forms also exist and follow similar agreement rules.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Using the wrong gender form of the possessive adjective or pronoun.
• Forgetting to match the case of the possessive form with the noun.
• Confusing possessive pronouns with possessive adjectives due to their similar forms.
• Not adjusting the possessive form when the noun is plural or in a different case.

Summary

Mastering possessive pronouns and adjectives in Croatian requires understanding their agreement with gender, number, and case. Practice by identifying the noun's gender and case, then choosing the correct possessive form. This will help you express possession clearly and correctly in Croatian.