Basic Serbian Phrases Everyone Should Know
The reason you are interested in learning basic Serbian phrases is that you probably love Serbian people (or one special person) or their beautiful country…or both. Am I right?
Anyway, I’m sure that you will agree with me that being able to express yourself in a new language and connect with people and cultures you love is a wonderful feeling.
If you are planning to learn Serbian, I encourage you to do it. The best time to start doing so is now. So, let’s start with some basic Serbian phrases.
Greetings And Basics
*Zdravo is an informal greeting that is related to the word “zdravlje“ (Latin Alphabet) or “здравље“ (Cyrillic Script), which means “health”. So when you are say zdravo in Serbian to someone, you are literally wishing them а good health. And for a more formal greeting, you should always say “Dobar dan”.
**If you want to be more polite and formal, you can say “Molim Vas” (Latin Alphabet) or “Молим Вас” (Cyrillic Script).
*** The context behind this phrase in Serbian is “There is nothing for you to thank me for”.
****You will often hear the abbreviated version of this greeting in Serbian, which is ‘bro jutro!, where “do” (from “dobro”) is left out.
“Good night” literally means “have a light night”.
Basic Serbian Phrases: Essentials
*To answer this question you can say:
“Ja govorim srpski samo malo” — “I only speak a little Serbian”
“Da, ja govorim srpski” — “Yes, I speak Serbian ”
“Ne, ja ne govorim srpski ” — “No, I don’t speak it”
“Možete li da ponovite to, molim Vas? –“Could you repeat that, please?” (formal)
“Možeš li da ponoviš to, molim te?” (informal)
Basic Serbian Phrases: Restaurant and bar
Some other useful Serbian phrases for eating out:
“Želeo bih da vidim meni, molim Vas ” –“I’d like to see the menu, please” if you are a man,
“Želela bih da vidim meni, molim Vas” if you are a woman
“Uzeću ovo” –“I’ll take this”
“ Dajte mi to, molim Vas ” — “Give me that (one), please”
Numbers
More Basic Serbian Phrases
Final Thoughts
As you had already seen in this blog post, in the Serbian language many phases and expressions change the suffixes at the end of the word depending on gender and case, which is not the case in English (for example). Also, the Serbian language is rich with synonyms, and so you can say one thing in a few different ways using different words.
So, you can say “Goodbye” using many different phrases that are translated the same in the Serbian language. The two best solutions would be “Dovidjenja” (until I see you again — literal meaning) and “Zbogom” (may God be with you — literal meaning). However, other phrases that can be translated and used in the same situation are “Ćao” (from Italian Ciao), “Pozdrav”, “Vidimo se”, and “Čujemo se”. Most of these words, however, are more casual phrases that you can’t find in a dictionary.
As with any other language, achieving proficiency in the Serbian language requires learning, commitment, and lots of practice, but it can be done! If you are a beginner learner or someone who is thinking about learning Serbian, phrases, and expressions are a good place to start. You can start learning the Serbian language by using language learning apps like Ling App and have fun while you study. This app combines different learning styles — sentence structure, listening, reading, and writing. I am sure it will entertain you and help you keep up the good work.
