Advice about moving in Slovenian
Two friends in a café; one has been offered a job in another city in Slovenian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Ponudili so mi službo v Mariboru.» — I’ve been offered a job in Maribor.; «Na tvojem mestu bi natančno premislil.» — In your place I would think it over carefully. 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: two friends in a café; one has been offered a job in another city. 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.
- Ponudili so mi službo v Mariboru.I’ve been offered a job in Maribor.
- Na tvojem mestu bi natančno premislil.In your place I would think it over carefully.
- Plača je boljša, a selitev je draga.The salary is better, but the move is expensive.
- Če bi ostal tu, bi imel manj stresa.If you stayed here, you would have less stress.
- Najverjetneje bom sprejel, vsaj poskusiti se splača.Most likely I’ll agree; it’s worth trying at least.
- Tudi če ne bo šlo, se lahko vrneš.Even if it doesn’t work out, you’ll be able to come back.
- Če sem iskren, me je malo strah.Honestly, I’m a little scared.
- Odloči se do petka. V vsakem primeru te podpiram.Decide by Friday. Either way, I support you.
Lines one by one
| Slovenian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Ponudili so mi službo v Mariboru. | — | I’ve been offered a job in Maribor. |
| Na tvojem mestu bi natančno premislil. | — | In your place I would think it over carefully. |
| Plača je boljša, a selitev je draga. | — | The salary is better, but the move is expensive. |
| Če bi ostal tu, bi imel manj stresa. | — | If you stayed here, you would have less stress. |
| Najverjetneje bom sprejel, vsaj poskusiti se splača. | — | Most likely I’ll agree; it’s worth trying at least. |
| Tudi če ne bo šlo, se lahko vrneš. | — | Even if it doesn’t work out, you’ll be able to come back. |
| Če sem iskren, me je malo strah. | — | Honestly, I’m a little scared. |
| Odloči se do petka. V vsakem primeru te podpiram. | — | Decide by Friday. Either way, I support you. |
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?
“Ponudili so mi službo v Mariboru.” — I’ve been offered a job in Maribor.. 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.