A ringing telephone freezes the scene and Serbian asks exactly which action was still unfolding at that moment.
In this video lessons you can simply practice translating sample sentences with the verbs in the imperfective aspect from English into Serbian.Once you feel more confident, you can do the tasks yourself!
Imperfective - Perfective pairs of Verbs mentioned in this video
- ČITATI - proČITATI >>> to be reading - to read
- SLUŠATI - odSLUŠATI / poSLUŠATI >>> to be listening - to listen to
- SPAVATI - odSPAVATI >>> to be sleeping - to sleep
- PLESATI - odPLESATI / zaPLESATI >>> to be dancing - to dance
- RADITI - uRADITI >>> to be working - to work
- GLEDATI - odGLEDATI >>> to be watching - to watch
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What Was Happening When the Bell Rang?
Serbian Aspect with Games - What were you doing? is expanded here through Combining past activity and aspect in a guessing game. Start with the original post, then use the new material to notice form, meaning and the situation in which a Serbian speaker would naturally choose it.
Five Scenes Frozen in the Middle
For active practice, change one meaningful detail in each model while preserving the target structure. Say the altered line aloud, write it in the other Serbian script and explain what changed. This turns the focus of Serbian Aspect with Games - What were you doing? into language you can retrieve independently.
Guess the Ongoing Past Action
| Latin script | Cyrillic script | English |
|---|---|---|
| Čitala sam kada je nestala struja. | Читала сам када је нестала струја. | I was reading when the power went out. |
| Dok je kuvao, neko je pokucao. | Док је кувао, неко је покуцао. | While he was cooking, someone knocked. |
| Igrali smo karte kad si nas pozvao. | Играли смо карте кад си нас позвао. | We were playing cards when you called us. |
| Ana je trčala dok je počinjala kiša. | Ана је трчала док је почињала киша. | Ana was running as the rain was beginning. |
| Šta ste radili kada se film završio? | Шта сте радили када се филм завршио? | What were you doing when the film ended? |
Read these five sentences horizontally to compare Latin, Cyrillic and English. Then read only the Serbian columns vertically. Every example belongs specifically to the subject of Serbian Aspect with Games - What were you doing?, so keep that context when you adapt it.
Complete the Game with the Right Aspect
Complete this active-recall test for Serbian Aspect with Games - What were you doing? without copying the table. Accuracy of Serbian endings, Cyrillic letters and Latin diacritics all count.
- I was reading when the power went out.
- While he was cooking, someone knocked.
- We were playing cards when you called us.
- Ana was running as the rain was beginning.
- What were you doing when the film ended?
Answers for Serbian Aspect with Games - What were you doing?
- Čitala sam kada je nestala struja.
Читала сам када је нестала струја. - Dok je kuvao, neko je pokucao.
Док је кувао, неко је покуцао. - Igrali smo karte kad si nas pozvao.
Играли смо карте кад си нас позвао. - Ana je trčala dok je počinjala kiša.
Ана је трчала док је почињала киша. - Šta ste radili kada se film završio?
Шта сте радили када се филм завршио?