Cjelina 2: Priroda i društvo
🔗 2 | 3 | Gramatika: Dativ
The Dative case
The Dative case might seem tricky because the rules on when to use it are not very straightforward. Fortunately, the noun and adjective endings for the Dative case are identical to those used in the Locative, so you only have to learn them once. The Dative is most commonly used without prepositions as an indirect object:
- Marko će pomoći prijatelju. (Marko will help his friend.)
- Luka će poslati profesoru e-mail. (Luka will send an email to his professor.)
- Maja će reći prijateljici istinu. (Maja will tell the truth to her friend.)
Personal Pronouns
Personal pronouns in the Dative case have stressed and unstressed forms. The unstressed form will always be placed between the verb and direct object. For example: Pripremam joj juhu. (I am preparing a soup for her.). The stressed form will be placed at the beginning or at the end of the sentence. It serves to emphasize the information. For example: Njoj ću pokloniti knjigu. (I will give her a book.)
| Nominative | Dative – stressed form | Dative – unstressed form | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| ja | meni | mi | to me |
| ti | tebi | ti | to you |
| on/ono | njemu | mu | to him |
| ona | njoj | joj | to her |
| mi | nama | nam | to us |
| vi | vama | vam | to you (all) |
| oni/one/ona | njima | im | to them |
Verbs with the Dative case
The following verbs in Croatian are often used with indirect objects (to whom? for whom?) in the Dative case, as well as with direct objects in the Accusative case.
| Verb | Indirect object | Direct object | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| pisati | meni | to write me an email | |
| slati | mi | poruku | to send me a message |
| pomagati | tebi | u poslu | to help you with work |
| dati | ti | poklon | to give you a gift |
| kazati | njoj | istinu | to tell her the truth |
| reći | joj | istinu | to say her the truth |
Reflexive verbs with Dative pronouns
Unstressed form: verb + pronoun + se
| Verb | Pronoun in Dative | Reflexive pronoun | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| divim | mu | se | I admire him |
| nadam | mu | se | I hope for him* |
Stressed form: pronoun + se + verb
| Verb | Pronoun in Dative | Reflexive pronoun | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| Njemu | se | divim | I admire him |
| Njemu | se | nadam | I hope for him* |
I hope for him ( meaning: I hope he will come).
