Serbian Verbs

Welcome to the 10th lesson about verbs in Serbian. We will first learn about the present tense, followed by the past tense, and future tense. We will also analyze some grammar rules, and finally practice how to ask for direction in Serbian.

Verbs are used to express an action (I swim) or a state of being (I am). The present tense in Serbian conveys a situation or event in the present time. Here are some examples:

Present Tense - Serbian - Pronunciation
I speak English говорим енглески [guovorim yengulyeski]
you speak French говорите француски [guovoritye frantzooski]
he speaks German говори немачки [guovori nyemachki]
she speaks Italian говори италијански [guovori italiјanski]
we speak Arabic говоримо арапски [guovorimo arapski]
they speak Chinese говоре кинески [guovorye kinyeski]

The past tense in Serbian conveys a situation or event in the past time. Here are some examples:

Past Tense - Serbian - Pronunciation
I visited France посетио сам француску [posyetio sam frantzooskoo]
you visited Italy посетили сте италију [posyetili stye italiјoo]
he visited Morocco посетио је мароко [posyetio јye maroko]
she visited China посетила је кину [posyetila јye kinoo]
we visited Mexico посетили смо мексико [posyetili smo myeksiko]
they visited Kenya посетили су кенију [posyetili soo kyeniјoo]

The future tense in Serbian conveys a situation or event which is anticipated to happen in the future. Here are some examples:

Future Tense - Serbian - Pronunciation
I will drink milk ја ћу пити млеко [јa ćoo piti mlyeko]
you will drink coffee ти/ви ћеш/ћете да пијеш/пијете кафу [ti/vi ćyesh/ćyetye da piјyesh/piјyetye kafoo]
he will drink tea он ће да пије чај [on ćye da piјye chaј]
she will drink water она ће да пије воду [ona ćye da piјye vodoo]
we will drink apple juice ми ћемо да пијемо сок од јабуке [mi ćyemo da piјyemo sok od јabookye]
they will drink tea они ће да пију чај [oni ćye da piјoo chaј]

Now let's take a break and refresh our vocabulary by learning the body parts.

ear уво [oovo]

eye око [oko]

mouth уста [oosta]

nose нос [nos]

hair коса [kosa]

face лице [litzye]

head глава [gulava]

heart срце [srtzye]

hand шака [shaka]

fingers прсти [prsti]

leg нога [nogua]

feet ноге [noguye]

Travel Phrases in Serbian

Imagine yourself in some Serbian speaking country. The following travel phrases are highly important and can help you avoid misunderstanding. Try to memorize them and practice!

English - Serbian - Pronunciation
Can you help me? можете ли ми помоћи? [moʐyetye li mi pomoći?]
Can I help you? могу ли вам помоћи? [moguoo li vam pomoći?]
Where is the airport? где је аеродром? [gudye јye ayerodrom?]
Go straight иди право [idi pravo]
Then онда [onda]
Turn left скрени лево [skryeni lyevo]
Turn right скрени десно [skryeni dyesno]

I hope this lesson about the verbs in Serbian was not hard for you. Please check out our main menu here for more lessons: homepage. To see the full menu, you can also click on the "Menu" icon on the left side.