Running a conversation

Lesson opening

This is the first part of the lesson. The rest, the exercises and the reviews are in the app.

Running a conversation: taking the floor, listening, asking again, wrapping up

The lesson “Linking words” taught you to stitch a text together: međutim, dakle, s druge strane link sentences and paragraphs. Live conversation rests on another layer of words, the ones that steer not the thought but the exchange itself: who is speaking now, whether anyone is listening, whether you may cut in, what to do when you missed something, and how to get out of a conversation without slamming it shut.

These words do not translate neatly, yet you hear them in every turn: they are what tells a Serb you speak the language rather than recite it.

Taking the floor, holding it, handing it over

First skill: breaking into someone’s talk without seeming rude. Serbian has ready-made openers; say them before your point.

In order: “Sorry to interrupt…”, “Just one thing”, “Can I add something?”, “Let me add one more thing…”, “Oh, and…”; “Just a moment, let me finish”, “Hang on, I haven’t finished”, “Wait till I’ve finished”; “And you?”, “What do you think?”, “Go ahead”, “Go on”. Izvoli and Reci are the usual ways to give someone the floor; to a person you address formally, say Izvolite, Recite. In Da dodam još nešto…, da with the present works like English “let me…”. Samo malo “just a moment” is from “Particles & modal words”; a woman says nisam završila.

Filling a pause: pa, ovaj, znači, kao

While you search for a word, do not go quiet, or the other person will decide you have finished and take the floor. English fills the gap with well, um, so, I mean, like; Serbian has its own set.

If the word will not come, say so out loud and the turn stays yours: kako se to kaže… “how do you say it…”, kako se zove… “what’s it called…”, Samo malo, setiću se. “Just a sec, it’ll come to me.” Still nothing? Describe the thing in other words, as “Mediation & relaying” showed you.

Add ma “oh, come on” from the lesson “Particles & modal words”. Dose matters more than the list: one or two per turn sound alive, but the same word in every sentence becomes a verbal tic, and “znači, ovaj, kao…” in every line sounds like parody. Everyone says pa and ovaj; kao is casual and young, much like English like; in a formal conversation (see “Formal vs informal register”) you drop them. Parenthetical znači, u stvari, naravno are set off by commas.

Cheat sheet

The cheat sheet — everything essential from the lesson on one page. In the app it opens at any time.

Running a conversation

Izvoli “go ahead” (formal Izvolite); nego at the start of a turn = “anyway, by the way”; Gde smo ono stali? = “Where were we?”

Pause fillers

One or two per turn; drop them in formal speech. Word won’t come: kako se to kaže…, Samo malo, setiću se. Parenthetical znači, u stvari, naravno take commas.

Listening and asking again

• aha, mhm, da, da: “I hear you, go on”
• jeste, tako je, upravo tako: agreement
• naravno, svakako: of course; razumem, jasno: I see
• stvarno?, ozbiljno?, ma nemoj!: surprise
• Molim?, Kako, molim?: sorry? (Šta? only among friends; never “Žao mi je?”)
• Možeš li da ponoviš?: say that again?; Možeš li malo sporije?: a bit slower?
• Kako misliš?, Šta si hteo da kažeš?: what do you mean?

A listener who gives no signals throws the speaker off. To agree, say jeste: Bilo je skupo. — Jeste. “It was expensive.” “It was, yes.”

Correcting yourself

• to jest (tj.): that is; odnosno: or rather
• u stvari: actually, in fact (often opens an objection)
• hoću da kažem: what I mean is; kako da kažem: how shall I put it; mislim: I mean
• bolje rečeno: or, to put it better; Nisam se dobro izrazio.: I didn’t put that well (woman: izrazila)

Softening

Cushions: nekako “somehow, kind of”, malo “a bit”, iskreno “honestly”, u principu “in principle”.