The Verb 'Biti' (To Be) in Present Tense
Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds
The verb 'biti' (to be) is the foundation of Croatian; remember that it has both long and short forms.
- Use the short form (e.g., 'sam') for standard sentences: 'Ja sam student.'
- Use the long form (e.g., 'jesam') for emphasis or starting a sentence: 'Jesam, ja sam tu.'
- The negative form adds 'ni-' to the short form: 'Nisam student.'
Present Tense of 'Biti'
| Person | Short Form | Negative | Long Form |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Ja (I)
|
sam
|
nisam
|
jesam
|
|
Ti (You)
|
si
|
nisi
|
jesi
|
|
On/Ona/Ono (He/She/It)
|
je
|
nije
|
jest
|
|
Mi (We)
|
smo
|
nismo
|
jesmo
|
|
Vi (You pl.)
|
ste
|
niste
|
jeste
|
|
Oni/One/Ona (They)
|
su
|
nisu
|
jesu
|
Meanings
The verb 'biti' functions as the copula, linking a subject to its state, identity, or location.
Identity
Defining who someone is.
“Ja sam Marko.”
“Ti si student.”
State of being
Describing a condition or emotion.
“Ja sam umoran.”
“Mi smo gladni.”
Location
Stating where someone or something is.
“Ja sam u Zagrebu.”
“Knjiga je na stolu.”
Reference Table
| Form | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
|
Affirmative
|
Subject + Short Form
|
Ja sam ovdje.
|
|
Negative
|
Subject + Negative Form
|
Ja nisam ovdje.
|
|
Question
|
Short Form + li + Subject
|
Jesi li ti ovdje?
|
|
Emphasis
|
Long Form + Subject
|
Jesam, ja sam ovdje.
|
|
Short Answer
|
Long Form
|
Jesam.
|
|
Negative Answer
|
Negative Long Form
|
Nisam.
|
|
Location
|
Subject + Short Form + Location
|
Mi smo u školi.
|
|
Identity
|
Subject + Short Form + Noun
|
On je učitelj.
|
طيف الرسمية
Ja sam student. (Introduction)
Sam student. (Introduction)
Student sam. (Introduction)
Student sam, brate. (Introduction)
Uses of Biti
Identity
- Ja sam Marko I am Marko
Location
- On je u gradu He is in town
State
- Mi smo sretni We are happy
Short vs Long Forms
Choosing the Form
Is it a standard statement?
Negative Forms
Singular
- • nisam
- • nisi
- • nije
Plural
- • nismo
- • niste
- • nisu
أمثلة حسب المستوى
Ja sam student.
I am a student.
Ti si sretan.
You are happy.
Ona je ovdje.
She is here.
Mi smo prijatelji.
We are friends.
Nisam gladan.
I am not hungry.
Jesi li ti umoran?
Are you tired?
Oni nisu kod kuće.
They are not at home.
Jeste li vi spremni?
Are you all ready?
Jesam, ja sam to učinio.
Yes, I did that.
Bili smo u kinu jučer.
We were at the cinema yesterday.
Ona je liječnica.
She is a doctor.
Nije bilo lako.
It was not easy.
Da sam znao, ne bih došao.
If I had known, I wouldn't have come.
Biti ili ne biti, to je pitanje.
To be or not to be, that is the question.
Oni su trebali biti ovdje.
They should have been here.
Nije li to čudno?
Isn't that strange?
Bijaše to davno.
It was a long time ago.
Bio bih sretan da pomognem.
I would be happy to help.
Neka bude kako želiš.
Let it be as you wish.
Bili su primorani otići.
They were forced to leave.
Budeš li došao, vidjet ćeš.
If you come, you will see.
Neka su oni rekli što su rekli.
Let them say what they said.
Bilo bi dobro da se vidimo.
It would be good if we met.
Biti će to povijesni trenutak.
It will be a historic moment.
سهل الخلط
Learners use 'biti' for existence where 'postojati' is better.
Learners forget gender agreement.
Learners don't know when to use the long form 'jest'.
أخطاء شائعة
Ja jesam student.
Ja sam student.
On je umoran.
On je umoran.
Sam ja student?
Jesam li ja student?
Ja student.
Ja sam student.
Nisam li ja sretan?
Nisam li ja sretan?
Jesi umoran?
Jesi li umoran?
Oni su ne gladni.
Oni nisu gladni.
Biti sam sretan.
Sretan sam.
Jesam umoran.
Umoran sam.
Oni su biti tu.
Oni će biti tu.
Bija sam tu.
Bio sam tu.
Je on tu?
Je li on tu?
Biti će lijepo.
Bit će lijepo.
أنماط الجُمل
Ja sam ___.
___ si u Zagrebu?
Mi nismo ___.
___ bi bilo super.
Real World Usage
Ja sam putnik.
Sam u gradu.
Ja sam visoko motiviran.
Ja sam za pizzu.
Jeste li spremni?
Drago mi je.
Drop the Pronoun
Enclitic Placement
Emphasis
Gender Matters
Smart Tips
Drop the pronoun 'Ja' or 'Ti' when the context is clear.
Keep the enclitic 'biti' in the second position of the sentence.
Use the long form 'jesam' to show strong agreement or emphasis.
Use the full pronoun for clarity and politeness.
النطق
Enclitic stress
Short forms like 'sam' are unstressed and lean on the previous word.
Long form stress
Long forms like 'jesam' carry their own stress.
Statement
Ja sam tu. ↘
Falling intonation for facts.
Question
Jesi li tu? ↗
Rising intonation for yes/no questions.
احفظها
وسيلة تذكّر
Remember the 'S' sounds: Sam, Si, Smo, Ste, Su. They all start with S!
ربط بصري
Imagine a 'Biti' robot that has different batteries. The small batteries (sam, si, je) are for everyday walking, and the big, glowing batteries (jesam, jesi, jest) are for when he needs to show off his power.
Rhyme
Sam, si, je, smo, ste, su, Croatian 'to be' is easy for you!
Story
I am (sam) at the cafe. You are (si) there too. He is (je) late. We are (smo) waiting. You all are (ste) hungry. They are (su) finally here.
Word Web
تحدٍّ
Write 5 sentences about yourself using 'Ja sam...' and 5 about your friends using 'Oni su...'.
ملاحظات ثقافية
The use of 'biti' is strictly regulated in formal writing.
Locals often use 'bija' instead of 'bio'.
Casual speech often drops the subject pronoun entirely.
The verb 'biti' comes from Proto-Slavic *byti.
بدايات محادثة
Kako si?
Jesi li gladan?
Gdje si sada?
Tko je tvoj najbolji prijatelj?
مواضيع للكتابة اليومية
أخطاء شائعة
Test Yourself
Ja ___ student.
Mi ___ gladni.
Find and fix the mistake:
Sam ja sretan?
Arrange the words in the correct order:
All words placed
Click words above to build the sentence
They are here.
Answer starts with: Oni...
Match each item on the left with its pair on the right:
Ja
Build a negative sentence.
Score: /8
تمارين تطبيقية
8 exercisesJa ___ student.
Mi ___ gladni.
Find and fix the mistake:
Sam ja sretan?
u / sam / Zagrebu / Ja
They are here.
Ti
Ja
Build a negative sentence.
Score: /8
الأسئلة الشائعة (8)
Yes, in most cases, the verb form makes it clear who the subject is.
It is an enclitic, meaning it attaches to other words to save space.
Use it for emphasis or when you need to start a sentence with the verb.
Yes, all negative forms start with 'ni-'.
The verb itself doesn't, but the adjectives used with it do.
Use 'li' after the short form: 'Jesi li...?'
Yes, it is used to form the future tense: 'Bit ću'.
Yes, some regions use 'bija' instead of 'bio'.
Scaffolded Practice
1
2
3
4
Mastery Progress
Needs Practice
Improving
Strong
Mastered
In Other Languages
ser/estar
Spanish has two verbs; Croatian has one.
sein
German is not an enclitic language.
être
French lacks the enclitic system.
desu/iru/aru
Japanese distinguishes animacy.
kāna
Arabic is a zero-copula language in the present.
shì
Chinese uses different structures for location.
