Dragi prijatelju, srećan rođendan: the calling form and how to congratulate
You speak TO a person in a different form from the one you use ABOUT them. That is the calling form, and you hear it in every toast and every letter. For example: “Драги пријатељу, срећан ти рођендан и све најбоље” — Dear friend, happy birthday and all the best. A rule from the Serbian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
You speak TO a person in a different form from the one you use ABOUT them. That is the calling form, and you hear it in every toast and every letter.
Masculine words after a hard stem take -e: drug → druže, brat → brate, gost → goste. After a soft stem they take -u: prijatelj → prijatelju, muž → mužu. Names in -o do not move: Marko → Marko.
Feminine words in -a take -o: Ana → Ano, majka → majko, gospođa → gospođo. Neuter words and every plural stay put: dete → dete, ljudi → ljudi.
The adjective goes along with the noun: dragi prijatelju, poštovani goste. You congratulate with čestitati: čestitam ti rođendan. And the wish itself is srećan in front of the occasion: Srećan rođendan!
Table
| the word | the calling form | how it is used | in English |
|---|---|---|---|
| drug | druže | zdravo, druže | hi, friend |
| brat | brate | brate moj | my dear brother |
| gost | goste | poštovani goste | dear guest |
| prijatelj | prijatelju | dragi prijatelju | dear friend |
| Ana | Ano | Ano, dođi | Ana, come here |
| majka | majko | majko moja | mother of mine |
| gospođa | gospođo | gospođo Marić | Mrs. Marić |
| dete | dete | dete moje | my child |
By example
- Драги пријатељу, срећан ти рођендан и све најбољеDragi prijatelju, srećan ti rođendan i sve najboljeDear friend, happy birthday and all the best
- Поштовани госте, изволите за стоPoštovani goste, izvolite za stoDear guest, please come to the table
- Честитам вам славу, нека вам је са срећомČestitam vam slavu, neka vam je sa srećomHappy patron saint day to your household — may it bring you luck
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
Dragi prijatelju, srećan rođendan: how does it work in Serbian?
You speak TO a person in a different form from the one you use ABOUT them. That is the calling form, and you hear it in every toast and every letter.
What does it look like in an example sentence Serbian?
“Драги пријатељу, срећан ти рођендан и све најбоље” (Dragi prijatelju, srećan ti rođendan i sve najbolje) — Dear friend, happy birthday and all the best. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.