Many Croatian students say:
“It’s too difficult!
“I don’t know enough Croatian words!”
“I need to think in my native language and translate.”
The problem with thinking in your native language and translating is that it results in sentences that are not correct in Croatian because the grammar and sentence structure are often different in Croatian and your native language.
Also, it takes too much time to think and translate when you’re in a conversation – leading to pauses, hesitations, and the inability to speak fast and fluently.
Many students believe that thinking in Croatian is something you can only do when you’re at the advanced level – but that’s not true.
Thinking directly in Croatian is a skill that you can practice and develop at any level – and today I’m going to teach you exactly how to do that, step by step. If you practice this, you will succeed.
Step 1 – Thinking in individual Croatian words
For example, when you wake up in the morning, think of words like:
krevet, četkica za zube, kupaonica, jesti, banana, kava, odjeća, cipele
Then when you go to work, think of words like:
automobil, posao, firma, ured, kompjutor, papir, olovka, kolega, šef
During the day, continue to think of the individual Croatian words for everything you see, hear, and do.
Try this exercise – look around you right now and think of all the Croatian words you can. I’d imagine you can think of at least 10 words!
Step 2 – Thinking in complete Croatian sentences
Your next skill to practice is thinking in complete phrases and sentences during the day.
When you’re at lunch, think:
Jedem sendvič.
Moj prijatelj pije kavu.
Ovaj restoran je dobar.
When you’re watching TV, think:
Ova glumica je lijepa.
Novinar ima crnu kosu.
On govori o politici.
It’s OK if the sentences are very simple. The most important part is to practice and develop the habit of thinking in complete sentences in Croatian.
Step 3 – Functional Croatian
Next, you’ll imagine having to use Croatian for everything that you need to do. After every time you speak in your native language, think of how you would say that in Croatian.
For example, how would you buy a train ticket or order a drink in Croatia?
Jednu povratnu kartu do Zagreba, molim.
Sok od naranče s ledom, molim.
This helps develop your Croatian for real-life situations – even though you are only thinking and not speaking.
If during this exercise you don’t know how to say something, check your dictionary later. If you do this kind of “mental practice” regularly, you will develop the ability to use Croatian in any everyday situation.
Step 4 – Narrative Croatian (telling a story or speaking in Croatian for a long time)
It’s best to do this exercise when you have some time – like when you’re waiting in line or taking public transportation. Think of a memory or a story that you would like to tell a Croatian-speaking friend. Then “tell the story” in your head in Croatian. Because you are only thinking, not speaking, you can relax and do your best without all the pressure of a real conversation.
I hope you can see that you don’t need to be super advanced to learn to think in Croatian – you can start today. Try one of the four levels this week:
Thinking in individual words
Thinking in complete sentences
Functional Croatian
Narrative Croatian
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