зао
“зао” (zao) — mean in Serbian. Adjective, level A2, topic — people and family. Two syllables: za-o. Feminine zla, neuter zlo. In a live sentence: “Он није зао, само је уморан” — He is not mean, just tired. You can hear how it sounds right here. Written with the characters з, а, о. One of 143 words in the set “people and family” in the Serbian course.
In short
| Written in Serbian | зао |
| Read in Latin letters | zao |
| Translation | mean |
| Part of speech | adjective |
| Level | A2 |
- заоzaomean
How to pronounce it
Two syllables: za-o. Feminine zla, neuter zlo.
Why it looks that way
Do not cross it with zao mi je — "I am sorry" — that one has a zh in the middle.
A word with a story stays in memory longer than one learned as a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
In a live sentence
A single word almost never appears alone in conversation. A sentence shows where it fits and what stands next to it.
- Он није зао, само је уморанOn nije zao, samo je umoranHe is not mean, just tired
Nearby words: people and family
Mum, friend, child, neighbour. The first thing people ask you about, and the first thing you tell about yourself.
- пријатељprijateljfriendA strong word in Serbian — this is a true friend, not an acquaintance. Acquaintances get other words.
- породицаporodicafamilyBuilt on the root of "kin": the people you are born and married into.
- мајкаmajkamotherOne letter off the English "motor" of a boat — do not let the look mislead you; this is mom. A T-shirt is majica, one letter longer.
- отацotacfatherThe fleeting a drops in the cases: otac — oca — ocu. Within the family people say tata.
- детеdetechildThe plural is a surprise: deca — and it is feminine singular in form. One child, but the plural word runs the show.
- продавацprodavacvendorThe fleeting a survives only in this form: prodavac, but prodavca, prodavcu.
- купацkupaccustomerFrom kupiti, "to buy". The grand old word for a merchant shares the root, but here it is simply the buyer.
- комшијаkomšijaneighborMasculine despite the -a ending, and it declines like a feminine noun. The neighbor woman is komšinica.
- газда станаgazda stanalandlordGazda — the owner, the boss; stan — the apartment. You address him as gospodine, "sir".
- лекарlekardoctorFrom lek. People say doktor too, but the papers always read lekar.
Test yourself
Five questions from the same set — “people and family”. Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than knowing a familiar word on sight, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “mean” in Serbian?
Do not cross it with zao mi je — "I am sorry" — that one has a zh in the middle.
- How do you say “customer” in Serbian?
From kupiti, "to buy". The grand old word for a merchant shares the root, but here it is simply the buyer.
- How do you say “mother” in Serbian?
One letter off the English "motor" of a boat — do not let the look mislead you; this is mom. A T-shirt is majica, one letter longer.
- How do you say “doctor” in Serbian?
From lek. People say doktor too, but the papers always read lekar.
- How do you say “vendor” in Serbian?
From prodavati, "to sell". The woman behind the stall is prodavačica.
How not to forget this word
Reading a word and remembering it are different jobs. A day later, little survives of a single reading — and that is not bad memory, that is how memory works.
- This has been tested on foreign words too. The difference shows up most when you test yourself a few days later rather than straight away.checked many timesKim & Webb, 2022, Language Learning 72(2) · 48 experiments, 3,411 participants, 98 comparisons.
- Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many timesAdesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · 188 experiments, 272 comparisons. g = 0.61; against plain re-reading 0.51, against passive review 0.93.
- An answer you worked out yourself sticks better than one handed to you.checked many timesBertsch et al., 2007, Memory & Cognition 35(2) · 86 studies, 445 comparisons, d = 0.40.
Frequently asked
How do you say “mean” in Serbian?
«зао», read “zao”. Two syllables: za-o. Feminine zla, neuter zlo. In a live sentence: “Он није зао, само је уморан” — He is not mean, just tired. You can hear how it sounds right on this page. Adjective, level A2, from the set “people and family”; written with the characters з, а, о.
How is “зао” written in Latin letters?
zao. This is a practical spelling — you need it to read aloud and be understood, not to meet an academic standard.
Why does this word look the way it does?
Do not cross it with zao mi je — "I am sorry" — that one has a zh in the middle. A word with a story stays in memory longer than a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
Can I hear how it sounds?
Yes, right on this page: click the word and it will play. The sound works on any phone, and nothing needs to be installed.