Sorry I'm late in Serbian
Two people agreed to meet at a café; one arrived half an hour late in Serbian. 7 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Извини за кашњење. Пропустио сам аутобус.» — Sorry for being late. I missed the bus.; «Нема везе. Мислио сам да си заборавио.» — It's all right. I thought you had forgotten. 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 people agreed to meet at a café; one arrived half an hour late. 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.
- Извини за кашњење. Пропустио сам аутобус.Izvini za kašnjenje. Propustio sam autobus.Sorry for being late. I missed the bus.
- Нема везе. Мислио сам да си заборавио.Nema veze. Mislio sam da si zaboravio.It's all right. I thought you had forgotten.
- Нисам хтео да чекаш толико. Бринуо сам се.Nisam hteo da čekaš toliko. Brinuo sam se.I didn't want you to wait so long. I was worried.
- Смири се, све је у реду. Јеси ли гладан?Smiri se, sve je u redu. Jesi li gladan?Calm down, it's all right. Are you hungry?
- Јесам. Уморан сам и љут на себе.Jesam. Umoran sam i ljut na sebe.Yes. I'm tired and angry at myself.
- Не брини, дешава се свакоме. Моја грешка је што нисам звао.Ne brini, dešava se svakome. Moja greška je što nisam zvao.Don't worry, it happens to everyone. It's my fault I didn't call.
- Хвала ти. Обећавам да следећи пут нећу каснити.Hvala ti. Obećavam da sledeći put neću kasniti.Thank you. I promise I won't be late next time.
Lines one by one
| Serbian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Извини за кашњење. Пропустио сам аутобус. | Izvini za kašnjenje. Propustio sam autobus. | Sorry for being late. I missed the bus. |
| Нема везе. Мислио сам да си заборавио. | Nema veze. Mislio sam da si zaboravio. | It's all right. I thought you had forgotten. |
| Нисам хтео да чекаш толико. Бринуо сам се. | Nisam hteo da čekaš toliko. Brinuo sam se. | I didn't want you to wait so long. I was worried. |
| Смири се, све је у реду. Јеси ли гладан? | Smiri se, sve je u redu. Jesi li gladan? | Calm down, it's all right. Are you hungry? |
| Јесам. Уморан сам и љут на себе. | Jesam. Umoran sam i ljut na sebe. | Yes. I'm tired and angry at myself. |
| Не брини, дешава се свакоме. Моја грешка је што нисам звао. | Ne brini, dešava se svakome. Moja greška je što nisam zvao. | Don't worry, it happens to everyone. It's my fault I didn't call. |
| Хвала ти. Обећавам да следећи пут нећу каснити. | Hvala ti. Obećavam da sledeći put neću kasniti. | Thank you. I promise I won't be late next time. |
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 Serbian in this situation?
“Извини за кашњење. Пропустио сам аутобус.” (Izvini za kašnjenje. Propustio sam autobus.) — Sorry for being late. I missed the bus.. 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.