Learning Croatian #022
Mi, mi, mi, mi
Four ways of using the Croatian word 'mi'
The little Croatian word 'mi' caused me lots of discombobulation because I was unaware of its multiple meanings .....
You read a sentence in Croatian that has in it the word ‘mi’. Easy peasy …. mi means we, doesn’t it.
Oh yeah … is that its only meaning? We novices need to keep an eye open for the traps set by the devious Croatian Language Commmittee.
I know of at least four meanings of the word ‘mi’, which I sumamrise in this video ...
You read a sentence in Croatian that has in it the word ‘mi’. Easy peasy …. mi means we, doesn’t it.
Oh yeah … is that its only meaning? We novices need to keep an eye open for the traps set by the devious Croatian Language Commmittee.
I know of at least four meanings of the word ‘mi’, which I sumamrise in this video ...
Summary
The four ways in which the Croatian word ‘mi’ is used are:
The four ways in which the Croatian word ‘mi’ is used are:
- The personal pronoun meaning we, in nominative case.
- The short form of meni, the dative case of ja, meaning ‘to me’.
- The short form of meni, the dative case of ja, to indicate emotions felt by me.
- The short form of meni, the dative case of ja, to express possession (referred to as the dative-possessive case).
Addendum:
Since producing the video above; I have realised that the word 'mi' is used in at least one more way:
Plače mi se I feel like crying
Spava mi se (I feel like sleeping)
Čita mi se tu knjigu (I feel like reading that book)
This is a little like the third type listed (indicating emotions), but I think that linguists would categorise it differently.
In fact there are two other posts that discuss this type of expression:
I feel like crying
I felt like crying, I will feel like crying
So, my title should have been Mi, mi, mi, mi, mi!
Addendum 2: When we cannot use the dative-possessive case
Imagine that you want to say, in Croatian, ‘My sister gave me a book.’ And that you use the dative-possessive form ‘Sestra mi’.
Then your Croatian sentence might be ‘Sestra mi mi je dala kjnigu.’ Croatians just don’t do that. You just can’t have side-by-side ‘mi’ (dative-possessive, meaning ‘my’) and ‘mi’ (dative, meaning ‘to me’).
The same applies if you wanted to say ‘My sister saw me.’ The Croatian sentence ‘Sestra mi me je vidjela’ is not acceptable.
Generalising, we can’t put the subject of a sentence in dative-possessive form when the verb describing its action is a transitive verb.
Imagine that you want to say, in Croatian, ‘My sister gave me a book.’ And that you use the dative-possessive form ‘Sestra mi’.
Then your Croatian sentence might be ‘Sestra mi mi je dala kjnigu.’ Croatians just don’t do that. You just can’t have side-by-side ‘mi’ (dative-possessive, meaning ‘my’) and ‘mi’ (dative, meaning ‘to me’).
The same applies if you wanted to say ‘My sister saw me.’ The Croatian sentence ‘Sestra mi me je vidjela’ is not acceptable.
Generalising, we can’t put the subject of a sentence in dative-possessive form when the verb describing its action is a transitive verb.
Those of us learning Croatian need to be familiar enough with the language in everyday use to know immediately the appropriate meaning, without contemplation and stroking one's chin - while the interlocutor has moved on two sentences.
Getting there!
Do you want to test yourself?
In the audioclip below are 14 sentences, each of which has the word 'mi'. Do you understand them? Some are a challenge to me.
The start button below has the label Download File. This is misleading. The audio file will not download into your computer directory. You will just access the file from the cloud.
In the audioclip below are 14 sentences, each of which has the word 'mi'. Do you understand them? Some are a challenge to me.
The start button below has the label Download File. This is misleading. The audio file will not download into your computer directory. You will just access the file from the cloud.
And to check ......
1. Svi mi ćemo sutra ići u Zagreb. We will all go tomorrow to Zagreb.
2. Hoćeš li mi kupiti sladoled? Will you buy me an ice cream?
3. Bit će mi drago kad dođemo kući. I will be pleased when we come home.
4. Brat mi ima prijateljicu. My brother has a girlfriend.
5. Baš mi je važno da ste mi to pokazali. It is really important to me that you showed me that.
6. Nije mi važno da mi je sat pokvaren. It is not important to me that my watch is broken.
7. Čini mi se da mu se mi ne sviđamo. It seems to me that he doesn't like us.
8. Šeta mi se dugo. I feel like (going for) a long walk.
9. Nismo mi pojeli kolače. We didn’t eat the cakes.
10. Teško mi je hodati toliko dugo. It is difficult for me to walk so far.
11. Sestra mi je izašla van. My sister went out.
12. Fali mi Miro. I miss Miro.
13. Ova košulja mi ne paše. This shirt doesn’t suit me.
14. Ne čita mi se ta knjiga. I don’t feel like reading that book.
How did you go? Some were a challenge to me.
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AHA! Learning Croatian with Bob
Correspondence: bobby.bucat@gmail.com
Correspondence: bobby.bucat@gmail.com