Language/Serbian/Vocabulary/Idiomatic-Expressions

Serbian Vocabulary - Idiomatic expressions

Hi Serbian learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will learn some of the most common idiomatic expressions in Serbian. We will look at their literal translations and their figurative meanings.

Introduction

Idiomatic expressions are phrases or sayings that have a figurative meaning different from the literal meaning of the words. They are often used in everyday conversations and can be quite tricky to understand for language learners. To improve your Serbian Vocabulary, you can also use the Polyglot Club website. Find native speakers and ask them any questions!

Idiomatic Expressions

Literal Translations

Here are some of the most common idiomatic expressions in Serbian with their literal translations:

Serbian	Pronunciation	English Translation
Имати много прашања	Imati mnogo prašanja	To have many questions
Да се изгуби као мачка у мајској води	Da se izgubi kao mačka u majskoj vodi	To get lost like a cat in a May rain
Да будеш као мачка на млеку	Da budeš kao mačka na mleku	To be like a cat on cream
Да будеш као мачка на точку	Da budeš kao mačka na točku	To be like a cat on a hot tin roof
Да будеш као мачка на ланци	Da budeš kao mačka na lancima	To be like a cat on a leash

Figurative Meanings

Now let's look at the figurative meanings of these expressions:

Serbian	Figurative Meaning
Имати много прашања	To have many doubts
Да се изгуби као мачка у мајској води	To get lost in a crowd
Да будеш као мачка на млеку	To be very content
Да будеш као мачка на точку	To be very nervous
Да будеш као мачка на ланци	To be very restricted

Dialogue

Let's look at an example dialogue to see how these expressions are used in context:

• Person 1: Да ли имаш много прашања? (Da li imaš mnogo prašanja?) (Do you have many questions?)
• Person 2: Да, имам много прашања. Зато се осећам као мачка на точку. (Da, imam mnogo prašanja. Zato se osećam kao mačka na točku.) (Yes, I have many questions. That's why I feel like a cat on a hot tin roof.)

Conclusion

We have looked at some of the most common idiomatic expressions in Serbian and their figurative meanings. We have also seen an example dialogue to see how they are used in context.

➡ If you have any questions, please ask them in the comments section below.
➡ Feel free to edit this wiki page if you think it can be improved. 😎

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