Moving day in Slovenian
The yard of an old house, a truck and boxes in Slovenian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Vse škatle so zapakirane. Kdaj pride tovornjak?» — All the boxes are packed. When will the truck arrive?; «Čez pol ure. Selitvena delavca sta že na poti.» — In half an hour. Two movers are already on the way. Every line can be played right on the page. The conversation is predictable: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: the yard of an old house, a truck and boxes. The conversation is short and predictable — which is exactly what makes it good for a first try: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
- Vse škatle so zapakirane. Kdaj pride tovornjak?All the boxes are packed. When will the truck arrive?
- Čez pol ure. Selitvena delavca sta že na poti.In half an hour. Two movers are already on the way.
- Pohištvo pustiva tu ali ga vzameva s sabo?Do we leave the furniture here or take it with us?
- Novo stanovanje je opremljeno, zato vzameva samo kavč.The new apartment is furnished, so we’ll only take the sofa.
- Prav. Si sporočil novi naslov na upravno enoto?Okay. Did you report the new address to the administration?
- Še ne. Najprej moram sporočiti stanje števca.Not yet. First I have to report the meter reading.
- Sosedu vrni vrtalnik, drugače ga bova pozabila.Return the drill to the neighbor, or the two of us will forget about it.
- Že sem mu ga vrnil. Zvečer bova razpakirala kuhinjo.I already returned it to him. In the evening the two of us will unpack the kitchen.
Lines one by one
| Slovenian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Vse škatle so zapakirane. Kdaj pride tovornjak? | — | All the boxes are packed. When will the truck arrive? |
| Čez pol ure. Selitvena delavca sta že na poti. | — | In half an hour. Two movers are already on the way. |
| Pohištvo pustiva tu ali ga vzameva s sabo? | — | Do we leave the furniture here or take it with us? |
| Novo stanovanje je opremljeno, zato vzameva samo kavč. | — | The new apartment is furnished, so we’ll only take the sofa. |
| Prav. Si sporočil novi naslov na upravno enoto? | — | Okay. Did you report the new address to the administration? |
| Še ne. Najprej moram sporočiti stanje števca. | — | Not yet. First I have to report the meter reading. |
| Sosedu vrni vrtalnik, drugače ga bova pozabila. | — | Return the drill to the neighbor, or the two of us will forget about it. |
| Že sem mu ga vrnil. Zvečer bova razpakirala kuhinjo. | — | I already returned it to him. In the evening the two of us will unpack the kitchen. |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and it gets in the way badly. It is one of the most reliably measured findings in the entire field.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Slovenian in this situation?
“Vse škatle so zapakirane. Kdaj pride tovornjak?” — All the boxes are packed. When will the truck arrive?. The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.