Serbian modal and irregular verbs

In this lesson, we will start from the irregular basic verbs BITI – to be, IMATI – to have, and IĆI – to go, and then we will learn the modal verbs.

Important basic Serbian irregular verbs

The verb BITI – to be

This is the most irregular verb in Serbian, as well as in all languages. It also has its own negative form (particle “ni” instead of “ne” and placed together with a verb). Just memorize the conjugation of this verb.

BITI – to be.

Ja sam	I am	Ja nisam	I am not
Ti si	You are (singular)	Ti nisi	You aren’t
On, ona je	He, she is	On, ona nije	He, she isn’t
Mi smo	We are	Mi nismo	We aren’t
Vi ste	You are (plural)	Vi niste	You aren’t
Oni, one, ona su	They are	Oni, one, ona nisu	They aren’t

The long form of BITI, and its interrogative form:

Ja jesam	I am	Jesam li …?
Ti jesi	You are (singular)	Jesi li …?
On, ona jeste	He, she is	Je li …?
Mi jesmo	We are	Jesmo li …?
Vi jeste	You are (plural)	Jeste li …?
Oni, one, ona jesu	They are	Jesu li …?

This form is used to say expressions like „Yes, I am“, „Yes, he is“, and „Yes, it is“, i.e. when we have to emphasize the meaning of TO BE:

Jesi li tu? – Jesam – Are you here? – I am.

Je li ona tu? – Jeste – Is she here? – She is.

The verb IMATI – to have

This verb has its own negative form.

IMATI – to have

Ja imam	I have	Ja nemam	I don’t have
Ti imaš	You have	Ti nemaš	You don’t have
On, ona ima	He, She has	On, ona nema	He, she doesn’t have
Mi imamo	We have	Mi nemamo	We don’t have
Vi imate	You have	Vi nemate	You don’t have
Oni, one, ona imaju	They have	Oni, one, ona nemaju	They don’t have

Ići – to go

Ja idem	I go
Ti ideš	You go
On, ona ide	He, she goes
Mi idemo	We go
Vi idete	You go
Oni, ona, one idu	They go

Serbian modal verbs

In case you don’t know what modal verbs are, these are the verbs “can, must/have to, to want, to love, to wish, to need (this one will be considered later)”. These verbs are usually accompanied by a second verb because they usually can’t describe an action alone. Some of these verbs are irregular and have their own form of conjugation beyond the rules.

In the Serbian language, when we use a verb with a modal verb (for example “I want to do, I must go, I can sleep”), we have to use the construction “DA + verb”. Look at the formula:

Conjugated verb + particle DA + verb conjugated with the same pronoun

For example Ja moram da idem (not Ja moram ići) – I have to go. This rule is used most often with modal verbs, so let’s learn them now. More examples are at the bottom of the lesson.

The verb HTETI – to want

We will need this verb to form the future tense, and also we will learn negation in the Serbian language. This verb is irregular in the Serbian language, and it also has its own negative form.

HTETI – to want

Ja hoću	I want	Ja neću	I don’t want
Ti hoćeš	You want	Ti nećeš	You don’t want
On, ona hoće	He, she wants	On, ona neće	He, she doesn’t want
Mi hoćemo	We want	Mi nećemo	We don’t want
Vi hoćete	You want	Vi nećete	You don’t want
Oni, one, ona hoće	They want	Oni, one, ona neće	They don’t want

Serbian verb MOĆI – can, may

Just memorize its conjugation.

MOĆI – can, may

Ja mogu	I can
Ti možeš	You can
On, Ona može	He, She can
Mi možemo	We can
Vi možete	You can
Oni, One, Ona mogu	They can

Serbian verb UMETI – can/know how to

Ja umem	I can
Ti umeš	You can
On, Ona ume	He, She can
Mi umemo	We can
Vi umete	You can
Oni, One, Ona umeju	They can

The difference between MOĆI and UMETI is that the first one is about being able to do something, and the second one is about knowing how to do something.

Serbian verb MORATI – must/to have to

This verb is regular (2^nd conjugation).

MORATI – must/to have to

Ja moram	I must
Ti moraš	You must
On, Ona mora	He, She must
Mi moramo	We must
Vi morate	You must
Oni, One, Ona moraju	They must

Other modal verbs

There are other modal verbs that are regular and don’t require a wide explanation:

Voleti  – to love/ to like

Želeti – to wish

And there is the verb Trebati – to need, that requires a special explanation and will be considered later.

Examples

Šta hoćeš da radiš sutra? – What do you want to do tomorrow? (sutra – tomorrow)

Moramo da idemo sada – We have to go now (sada – now)

Da li oni vole da studiraju? – Do they love to study? (studirati – to study)

Da li umete da koristite ovu stvar? – Do you know how to use this thing? (koristiti – to use, stvar – thing)

Želim da učim srpski jezik – I wish to learn the Serbian language (učiti – to learn, jezik – language)

Je li on mlad? – Is he young? (mlad – young)

Ti si direktor? – Jesam – Are you a director? – (Yes), I am

Veoma je lepo ovde! – Jeste! – It is very beautiful here! – (Yes), it is! (lepo – beautiful, ovde – here, veoma – very)

Ona neće da kaže – She doesn’t want to say

Mislim da imamo dosta novca – I think that we have enough money (dosta – enough, novac – money)

Moja prijateljica nema kartu – My friend (female) doesn’t have a ticket (prijateljica – friend (female), prijatelj – friend (male), karta – ticket)