I'm returning the shoes in Serbian
A shoe store, a customer returns a pair in Serbian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Добар дан. Хтео бих да вратим ципеле, није ми одговарао број.» — Good afternoon. I'd like to return the shoes; the size didn't fit me.; «Наравно. Имате ли рачун и оригинално паковање?» — Of course. Do you have the receipt and the original packaging? 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 shoe store, a customer returns a pair. 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. Хтео бих да вратим ципеле, није ми одговарао број.Dobar dan. Hteo bih da vratim cipele, nije mi odgovarao broj.Good afternoon. I'd like to return the shoes; the size didn't fit me.
- Наравно. Имате ли рачун и оригинално паковање?Naravno. Imate li račun i originalno pakovanje?Of course. Do you have the receipt and the original packaging?
- Имам, сачувао сам рачун. Могу ли да заменим за други број?Imam, sačuvao sam račun. Mogu li da zamenim za drugi broj?I do; I kept the receipt. Can I exchange them for a different size?
- Тај модел је на стању само у црној боји. Одговара ли вам то?Taj model je na stanju samo u crnoj boji. Odgovara li vam to?This model is in stock only in black. Would that work for you?
- Може, али питам још нешто: да ли је ово права кожа?Može, ali pitam još nešto: da li je ovo prava koža?It would, but let me ask one more thing: is this real leather?
- Природна кожа, пише на језичку. Ово није фалсификат, гарантујем.Prirodna koža, piše na jezičku. Ovo nije falsifikat, garantujem.Natural leather; it's written on the tongue. It's not a fake, I guarantee.
- Онда узимам. Скупље је него што сам мислио, али је квалитетније.Onda uzimam. Skuplje je nego što sam mislio, ali je kvalitetnije.Then I'll take them. More expensive than I thought, but better quality.
- Разлику доплаћујете на каси. Чувајте рачун због гаранције.Razliku doplaćujete na kasi. Čuvajte račun zbog garancije.You pay the difference at the register. Keep the receipt for the warranty.
Lines one by one
| Serbian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Добар дан. Хтео бих да вратим ципеле, није ми одговарао број. | Dobar dan. Hteo bih da vratim cipele, nije mi odgovarao broj. | Good afternoon. I'd like to return the shoes; the size didn't fit me. |
| Наравно. Имате ли рачун и оригинално паковање? | Naravno. Imate li račun i originalno pakovanje? | Of course. Do you have the receipt and the original packaging? |
| Имам, сачувао сам рачун. Могу ли да заменим за други број? | Imam, sačuvao sam račun. Mogu li da zamenim za drugi broj? | I do; I kept the receipt. Can I exchange them for a different size? |
| Тај модел је на стању само у црној боји. Одговара ли вам то? | Taj model je na stanju samo u crnoj boji. Odgovara li vam to? | This model is in stock only in black. Would that work for you? |
| Може, али питам још нешто: да ли је ово права кожа? | Može, ali pitam još nešto: da li je ovo prava koža? | It would, but let me ask one more thing: is this real leather? |
| Природна кожа, пише на језичку. Ово није фалсификат, гарантујем. | Prirodna koža, piše na jezičku. Ovo nije falsifikat, garantujem. | Natural leather; it's written on the tongue. It's not a fake, I guarantee. |
| Онда узимам. Скупље је него што сам мислио, али је квалитетније. | Onda uzimam. Skuplje je nego što sam mislio, ali je kvalitetnije. | Then I'll take them. More expensive than I thought, but better quality. |
| Разлику доплаћујете на каси. Чувајте рачун због гаранције. | Razliku doplaćujete na kasi. Čuvajte račun zbog garancije. | You pay the difference at the register. Keep the receipt for the warranty. |
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. Хтео бих да вратим ципеле, није ми одговарао број.” (Dobar dan. Hteo bih da vratim cipele, nije mi odgovarao broj.) — Good afternoon. I'd like to return the shoes; the size didn't fit me.. 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.