The question through li and da li
Intonation alone can carry a question. The exact form puts the particle li right after the verb: Imate li vode? For example: “Да ли је далеко?” — Is it far?. A rule from the Serbian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
Intonation alone can carry a question. The exact form puts the particle li right after the verb: Imate li vode?
In conversation you will more often hear da li at the front of the sentence. Nothing has to move for it: Da li razumeš?
Both are correct everywhere. Start with the second one — there is nothing in it to get wrong.
By example
- Да ли је далеко?Da li je daleko?Is it far?
- Имате ли воде?Imate li vode?Do you have water?
- Да ли разумеш?Da li razumeš?Do you understand?
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
Li vs da li in Serbian?
Intonation alone can carry a question. The exact form puts the particle li right after the verb: Imate li vode?
Govorite li or da li govorite?
In conversation you will more often hear da li at the front of the sentence. Nothing has to move for it: Da li razumeš?
How to ask a question in Serbian?
Both are correct everywhere. Start with the second one — there is nothing in it to get wrong.
Is li needed if the intonation is there?
Both are correct everywhere. Start with the second one — there is nothing in it to get wrong.
What does it look like in an example sentence Serbian?
“Да ли је далеко?” (Da li je daleko?) — Is it far?. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.