Serbian language guides
Try a first conversation, learn how the cases work, or get ready to use Serbian in Belgrade and beyond.
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Grammar
- How to say “I like” in Serbian: sviđa mi se, voleti and želim
- How to make a sentence negative in Serbian: ne, nisam and double negatives
- Yes/no questions in Serbian: da li, li and je li
- My, your, our: Serbian possessive adjectives made simple
- Serbian modal verbs: moći, morati, hteti (can, must, want)
- The Serbian imperative: telling someone what to do
- Bigger, biggest: comparatives and superlatives made simple
- How plurals work in Serbian & Montenegrin
- Making adjectives agree: the ending that matches the noun
- “I would…”: the Serbian conditional, minus the fear
- What “se” actually does
- Ići, doći, otići: Serbian verbs of motion made clear
- Why Serbian word order feels backwards (and when it isn't)
- The future tense in Serbian: easier than it looks
- The dative case: giving, telling and “to me”
- Masculine, feminine, neuter: noun gender made simple
- Verbal aspect: the one idea English doesn't have
- The locative case: saying where things are
- Cases aren’t scary: understand them in 3 minutes
- The accusative case, explained simply
- The genitive case: the busiest one, made easy
- The instrumental case: “by” and “with”
- Present tense verbs: patterns you can use
- The past tense (perfekt) without the headache
- Ko, šta, gdje: the question words that get you talking
- No “the”, no “a”: the easiest thing in the grammar
- The vocative: the case for shouting someone's name
Everyday phrases
- Emergencies in Serbian: the phrases you hope you'll never need
- Checking in, without switching to English
- Paying, change and prices: the Serbian money phrases you'll actually use
- Taxis, buses & trains: getting around in Serbian
- Small talk in Serbian: what to say after “zdravo”
- How to order coffee like a local in the Balkans
- Eating out: the phrases you actually need
- Counting in Serbian & Montenegrin: 1 to 100 (and beyond)
Vocabulary
- Supermarket Serbian: the words on every label
- 10 Serbian idioms that make no sense in English
- False friends: Serbian words that trick English speakers
- Family words in Serbian: from majka to zet
- Days, months and dates in Serbian & Montenegrin
- Colours in Serbian & Montenegrin (agreement made simple)
- Weather words in Serbian & Montenegrin
- How to tell the time in Serbian & Montenegrin
- At the doctor's: body parts and the phrases you hope you won't need
Pronunciation & alphabet
Places & travel
Culture & life
- Balkan body language: the gestures that say more than the words
- Draughts, doorways and salt: Balkan superstitions
- Digital nomad in the Balkans? Learn this much of the language
- Making friends in Serbia: the language that opens doors
- Ti or vi? The politeness switch nobody teaches you
- A tasty vocabulary: Serbian & Montenegrin food words
- Coffee, conversation and the Balkan café
- What Montenegrin & Serbian names actually mean
- Moving to Serbia: how much Serbian do you actually need?
- Can you live in Belgrade without Serbian?
- Renting a flat in the Balkans: the phrases you’ll need
- Banks, bills and bureaucracy: survival Serbian for expats
- Slava: the family feast that isn't a birthday
Learning tips & comparisons
- Croatian vs Serbian: the differences that actually show
- How many words do you need to speak Serbian?
- Montenegrin vs Serbian: what's actually different?
- Looking for Serbian on Duolingo? It’s not there. Here’s what is.
- Learn Serbian & Croatian from TV, film and music
- Slavic vs Romance: which is harder for English speakers?
- Serbian vs Russian: Similarities, Differences and Examples
- Best App to Learn Serbian: Gora, Mango, Ling and Anki
- Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, Montenegrin: one language or four?
- How Long Does It Take to Learn Serbian?
- Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian and Montenegrin: the key differences for learners
- Is Serbian hard to learn for English speakers?
- Latin or Cyrillic? Which script to learn first
- 7 mistakes every Serbian beginner makes
- How to start thinking in Serbian (not translating)
- Learn Serbian online for free: what actually works
- Go on, embarrass yourself
- Finding a language exchange partner for Serbian & Croatian