Trčeći, vežbajući: one action inside another
Movement almost always happens alongside another action: ran and watched, stretched and talked. Serbian ties the two together with a verb form in -ći. For example: “Трчећи поред реке, слушам подкаст о спорту” — Running along the river, I listen to a sports podcast. A rule from the Serbian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
Movement almost always happens alongside another action: ran and watched, stretched and talked. Serbian ties the two together with a verb form in -ći.
It is made from the they-form plus -ći: trče → trčeći, vežbaju → vežbajući, nose → noseći, idu → idući. One form for every person and both numbers, and it never changes.
For the past there is a form in -vši: uraditi → uradivši, doći → došavši. It is bookish; in speech people say kad sam uradio. The negative goes in front: ne rekavši ništa.
The condition is strict, and English shares it: both actions belong to the same person. Trčeći, slušam muziku — I run and I listen. "Approaching the house, the rain started" is wrong in both languages.
Table
| the verb | they-form | the -ći form | in English |
|---|---|---|---|
| trčati | trče | trčeći | running |
| vežbati | vežbaju | vežbajući | training |
| nositi | nose | noseći | carrying |
| ići | idu | idući | going |
| gledati | gledaju | gledajući | looking |
| doći | — | došavši | having come |
| uraditi | — | uradivši | having done |
| reći | — | rekavši | having said |
By example
- Трчећи поред реке, слушам подкаст о спортуTrčeći pored reke, slušam podkast o sportuRunning along the river, I listen to a sports podcast
- Вежбајући сваки дан, брзо је вратио издржљивостVežbajući svaki dan, brzo je vratio izdržljivostTraining every day, he quickly got his stamina back
- Отишао је из сале не рекавши ништа тренеруOtišao je iz sale ne rekavši ništa treneruHe left the gym without saying anything to the coach
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
Trčeći vs rekavši?
Movement almost always happens alongside another action: ran and watched, stretched and talked. Serbian ties the two together with a verb form in -ći.
-ći or -vši: which Serbian participle?
It is made from the they-form plus -ći: trče → trčeći, vežbaju → vežbajući, nose → noseći, idu → idući. One form for every person and both numbers, and it never changes.
How to say running and having said in Serbian?
For the past there is a form in -vši: uraditi → uradivši, doći → došavši. It is bookish; in speech people say kad sam uradio. The negative goes in front: ne rekavši ništa.
When Serbian uses -vši and not -ći?
The condition is strict, and English shares it: both actions belong to the same person. Trčeći, slušam muziku — I run and I listen. "Approaching the house, the rain started" is wrong in both languages.
How to say he left without saying anything in Serbian?
The condition is strict, and English shares it: both actions belong to the same person. Trčeći, slušam muziku — I run and I listen. "Approaching the house, the rain started" is wrong in both languages.
What does it look like in an example sentence Serbian?
“Трчећи поред реке, слушам подкаст о спорту” (Trčeći pored reke, slušam podkast o sportu) — Running along the river, I listen to a sports podcast. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.