Hello & goodbye
Greet people and say goodbye, casually and politely.
Greet a friend or a neighbour at any time of day, and say goodbye the right way to each.
21 words12 sentences
Every morning Ana meets two neighbours on the stairs of her building in Belgrade: Marica, her friend from the flat next door, and gospođa Danica from across the landing. Marica gets a quick "hi", and gospođa Danica gets a polite "good morning". By the end of this lesson you can do both, in German and in Serbian.
Hello, by the time of day
works with anyone at any hour, and it is on the casual side in both languages. For people you don't know well, greet by the clock:
- until mid-morning;
- for the rest of the day;
- once it gets dark.
is only for bedtime.
| English | German | Serbian |
|---|---|---|
| hello | Hallo | ZdravoЗдраво |
| good morning | Guten Morgen | Dobro jutroДобро јутро |
| good afternoon (any time from late morning) | Guten Tag | Dobar danДобар дан |
| good evening | Guten Abend | Dobro večeДобро вече |
| good night | Gute Nacht | Laku noćЛаку ноћ |
In Zürich you'll hear , and in Luxembourg all day long. The dashed labels in the table show these regional forms.
Practice · Greetings in German
Tap a word and its partner — English, German or Serbian. German & Serbian
Goodbye
is for anyone you would greet with "good morning". With friends it is . Serbian ćaoћао comes from Italian ciao and says hello as well. fits everyone.
| English | German | Serbian |
|---|---|---|
| goodbyeformal | Auf Wiedersehen | DoviđenjaДовиђења |
| byeinformal | Tschüss | ĆaoЋао |
| see you (soon)informal | Bis bald | Vidimo seВидимо се |
Practice · Greetings in Serbian
Tap a word and its partner — English, German or Serbian. German & Serbian
Please and thank you
| English | German | Serbian |
|---|---|---|
| please | Bitte | MolimМолим |
| thank you | Danke | HvalaХвала |
| you're welcome | Gern geschehen | Nema na čemuНема на чему |
| yes | Ja | DaДа |
| no | Nein | NeНе |
| excuse me (to get attention or say sorry) | Entschuldigung | IzviniteИзвините |
| okay | alles klar | važiважи |
| welcome | Willkommen! | Dobro došli!Добро дошли! |
| good luck | Viel Glück! | Srećno!Срећно! |
Practice · Flashcards
Recall, flip, grade yourself. Feeds your reviews. German & Serbian
Du or Sie, ti or vi
Ana and Marica say ti to each other, and both say vi to gospođa Danica. German draws the same line with du and Sie, and puts a title before the surname:
| English | German | Serbian |
|---|---|---|
| you (to a friend)informal | du | tiти |
| you (polite)formal | Sie | viви |
| Mrs (before a surname)formal | dieFraupl. Frauen | gospođaгоспођаf |
| Mr (before a surname)formal | derHerrpl. Herren | gospodinгосподинm |
Grammar · Friendly and polite “you”
A friendly and a polite "you" in both languages, who gets which, and what each one does to the verb.
German
German has three words for you. is one person you know well, ihr is two or more of them, and is the polite form, for one person or a whole group.
| one person | several | |
|---|---|---|
| friendly | du | ihr |
| polite | Sie | Sie |
- du is for family, friends and children. Young people and students say du to each other from the first minute.
- Sie is for other adults: neighbours, shop staff, strangers. Colleagues stay on Sie until one of them offers du, usually the older or more senior one. When you're unsure, say Sie.
Sie always has a capital S, and so do Ihnen and Ihr when they mean you and your. It takes the verb form of they:
- Wie heißt du? / Wie heißen Sie?
- Wie geht es dir? / Wie geht es Ihnen?
- Entschuldigung! suits anyone; Entschuldigen Sie! is the polite version.
With Sie goes or and the surname: Guten Tag, Frau Popović! Guten Morgen, Herr Keller! Frau is right for every grown woman, married or not. First names come with du. Goodbyes follow suit: Tschüss with du, Auf Wiedersehen with Sie.
Serbian
Serbian says to one person you know well and to everyone else. Vi is really you all: the plain plural for any group, friends included, and the polite form for one person.
- ti is for family, friends and children, and young people say ti to each other straight away.
- vi is for adults you don't know well, older neighbours, shop and café staff. Keep it until the other person offers ti.
With vi the verb goes into the plural, even for one person, and so do the little polite words:
| to a friend | polite |
|---|---|
| Kako si?Како си? | Kako ste?Како сте? |
| Kako se zoveš?Како се зовеш? | Kako se zovete?Како се зовете? |
| Izvini!Извини! | Izvinite!Извините! |
| Izvoli!Изволи! | Izvolite!Изволите! |
| molim teмолим те | molim vasмолим вас |
| hvala tiхвала ти | hvala vamхвала вам |
In dialogue the polite vi has a small v, like any other word. In letters, emails and messages to one person, a capital ViВи (VasВас, VamВам) is a courtesy.
With vi goes or and the surname. When you speak to the person, the title changes its ending: Dobro jutro, gospođo Popović!Добро јутро, госпођо Поповић! Dobar dan, gospodine!Добар дан, господине! This is the vocative, the form for calling someone; lesson 3.1 explains it.
Both at once
Both languages have a friendly and a polite you, and they draw the line in the same place. What differs is the form they borrow: German takes they, Sie sind, and Serbian takes you all, vi steви сте. Luxembourgish goes the Serbian way with . German writes its polite you with a capital every time; Serbian keeps the capital for letters. In both, start polite and let the other person offer du or ti.
Watch out
- German: keep the verb with its pronoun. Sie heißt Ana means she is called Ana; the polite you needs Heißen Sie Ana?
- German: a small sie is she or they. The polite you keeps its capital wherever it stands.
- Serbian: vi takes the plural verb even for one person: Kako ste, gospođo Popović?Како сте, госпођо Поповић?, never Kako si?Како си? to her.
- Serbian: say gospođoгоспођо when you speak to her, but gospođa Popovićгоспођа Поповић when you talk about her.
- Both: don't switch to du or ti on your own; wait until it's offered.
On the stairs
It's seven in the morning. Ana and Marica are on their way out when gospođa Danica opens her door with her shopping basket.
Read · On the stairs
- Marica
Guten Morgen, Ana!
Dobro jutro, Ana!Добро јутро, Ана!
- Ana
Hallo, Marica!
Zdravo, Marice!Здраво, Марице!
- Danica
Guten Morgen!
Dobro jutro!Добро јутро!
- Ana
Guten Morgen, Frau Popović!
Dobro jutro, gospođo Popović!Добро јутро, госпођо Поповић!
- Danica
Entschuldigung, bitte.
Izvinite, molim vas.Извините, молим вас.
- Marica
Bitte!
Izvolite!Изволите!
- Danica
Danke! Auf Wiedersehen!
Hvala! Doviđenja!Хвала! Довиђења!
- Marica
Tschüss, Ana! Bis bald!
Ćao, Ana! Vidimo se!Ћао, Ана! Видимо се!
Practice · Read & answer
A short text or dialogue, then questions. German & Serbian
Put it together
Good morning, Ana!
Guten Morgen, Ana!
Dobro jutro, Ana!Добро јутро, Ана!
Good morning, Mrs Popović!
Guten Morgen, Frau Popović!
Dobro jutro, gospođo Popović!Добро јутро, госпођо Поповић!
Gospođa becomes gospođo when you speak to her. A woman's surname in -ić never changes.
Excuse me, please.
Entschuldigung, bitte.
Izvinite, molim vas.Извините, молим вас.
Molim vas is the polite "please", to someone you call vi; to a friend it is molim te.
Yes, please.
Ja, bitte.
Da, molim.Да, молим.
No, thank you.
Nein, danke.
Ne, hvala.Не, хвала.
Thanks, bye!
Danke, tschüss!
Hvala, ćao!Хвала, ћао!
Goodbye, see you soon!
Auf Wiedersehen, bis bald!
Doviđenja, vidimo se!Довиђења, видимо се!
Practice · Hear it, write it
Hear a sentence, write it down. Latin or Cyrillic. German & Serbian
Lesson quiz
12 quick questions across everything in this lesson, in German and Serbian. Finish it to mark the lesson done and add its words to your reviews.