I think I've caught the flu in Serbian
A therapist's office, a patient describes symptoms in Serbian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Добар дан, докторе. Боли ме грло и имам високу температуру.» — Good afternoon, doctor. I have a sore throat and a high fever.; «Од када? И да ли имате још неки симптом?» — Since when? And are there any other symptoms? 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: a therapist's office, a patient describes symptoms. 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.
- Добар дан, докторе. Боли ме грло и имам високу температуру.Dobar dan, doktore. Boli me grlo i imam visoku temperaturu.Good afternoon, doctor. I have a sore throat and a high fever.
- Од када? И да ли имате још неки симптом?Od kada? I da li imate još neki simptom?Since when? And are there any other symptoms?
- Од синоћ. Имам и дрхтавицу и слабост у ногама.Od sinoć. Imam i drhtavicu i slabost u nogama.Since last night. Also chills and weakness in the legs.
- Отворите уста. Крајници су црвени, али то још није ангина.Otvorite usta. Krajnici su crveni, ali to još nije angina.Open your mouth. The tonsils are red, but it's not strep yet.
- Значи, обична прехлада? Да ли је заразно за децу?Znači, obična prehlada? Da li je zarazno za decu?So it's an ordinary cold? Is it contagious for children?
- Грип је заразан прва три дана. Останите код куће и пијте много течности.Grip je zarazan prva tri dana. Ostanite kod kuće i pijte mnogo tečnosti.The flu is contagious for the first three days. Stay home and drink plenty of fluids.
- Треба ли ми упут за лекара специјалисту?Treba li mi uput za lekara specijalistu?Do I need a referral to a specialist?
- Засад не. Отварам вам боловање на пет дана, па дођите на контролу.Zasad ne. Otvaram vam bolovanje na pet dana, pa dođite na kontrolu.Not yet. I'm giving you five days of sick leave; then come in for an examination.
Lines one by one
| Serbian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Добар дан, докторе. Боли ме грло и имам високу температуру. | Dobar dan, doktore. Boli me grlo i imam visoku temperaturu. | Good afternoon, doctor. I have a sore throat and a high fever. |
| Од када? И да ли имате још неки симптом? | Od kada? I da li imate još neki simptom? | Since when? And are there any other symptoms? |
| Од синоћ. Имам и дрхтавицу и слабост у ногама. | Od sinoć. Imam i drhtavicu i slabost u nogama. | Since last night. Also chills and weakness in the legs. |
| Отворите уста. Крајници су црвени, али то још није ангина. | Otvorite usta. Krajnici su crveni, ali to još nije angina. | Open your mouth. The tonsils are red, but it's not strep yet. |
| Значи, обична прехлада? Да ли је заразно за децу? | Znači, obična prehlada? Da li je zarazno za decu? | So it's an ordinary cold? Is it contagious for children? |
| Грип је заразан прва три дана. Останите код куће и пијте много течности. | Grip je zarazan prva tri dana. Ostanite kod kuće i pijte mnogo tečnosti. | The flu is contagious for the first three days. Stay home and drink plenty of fluids. |
| Треба ли ми упут за лекара специјалисту? | Treba li mi uput za lekara specijalistu? | Do I need a referral to a specialist? |
| Засад не. Отварам вам боловање на пет дана, па дођите на контролу. | Zasad ne. Otvaram vam bolovanje na pet dana, pa dođite na kontrolu. | Not yet. I'm giving you five days of sick leave; then come in for an examination. |
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?
“Добар дан, докторе. Боли ме грло и имам високу температуру.” (Dobar dan, doktore. Boli me grlo i imam visoku temperaturu.) — Good afternoon, doctor. I have a sore throat and a high fever.. 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.