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Easy Croaan (rev. 47b) / 57 Whose, What Thing and What Like 331 / 600
57 Whose, What Thing and What Like
There are two questions that look quite different in English:
Whose is this book?
What is this book like?
However, they are quite similar in Croatian, since both use question-words that are
really adjectives:
čiji whose
kakav (kakv-) what... like / what kind
The questions above look like this in Croatian:
Čija N je ova knjiga N ? Whose is this book?
Kakva N je ova knjiga N ? What is this book like?
Bear in mind that both words change in case, gender and number as any other
adjectives: you can ask questions whose or what...like not only for subjects, but for
any noun in a sentence:
Čiju knjigu A čitaš? Whose book do you read?
You would answer with a possessive adjective, in the right case, matching the case
of the question-word (obviously, the accusative case here), number (singular) and
gender (feminine):
— Aninu A . Ana’s.
— Tvoju A . Yours.
You can ask questions of type whose X is that. The word to is always in singular then
(recall to su moje knjige):
Čija knjiga N je to N ? Whose book is that?
Čija N je to N knjiga N ? (an alternative word order)
— Moja N . Mine.
With kakav (kakv-), it’s possible to ask two kinds of questions – about kind and
impression.
To ask about impressions, use the verb biti (je² +) be. An answer is basically an
adjective standing for a subjective experience:
Kakva N je ta knjiga N ? What is that book like?
— Malo dosadna N . A bit boring.
It’s also possible to ask about kind – then the noun we’re asking is usually placed
immediately after the question-word:
Kakvu knjigu A čitaš? What kind of book are you reading?
— Ljubavnu A . A romance book. (lit. ‘Love.’)