ruxehoxi qeneboju xedo suzo

In Serbian, the past tense is formed using a combination of the past participle of the main verb and the appropriate form of the auxiliary verb "biti" (to be) in the present tense. The past participle agrees in gender and number with the subject of the sentence.

Formation of the Past Participle

The past participle is formed by adding specific endings to the verb stem. The endings vary depending on the verb conjugation group:

1. First Conjugation (verbs ending in -ti):

   • Masculine singular: -o (e.g., "pisati" -> "pisao")
   • Feminine singular: -la (e.g., "pisati" -> "pisala")
   • Neuter singular: -lo (e.g., "pisati" -> "pisalo")
   • Plural: -li (masculine), -le (feminine), -la (neuter) (e.g., "pisati" -> "pisali", "pisale", "pisala")

2. Second Conjugation (verbs ending in -eti, -iti):

   • Masculine singular: -o (e.g., "voleti" -> "voleo")
   • Feminine singular: -la (e.g., "voleti" -> "volela")
   • Neuter singular: -lo (e.g., "voleti" -> "volelo")
   • Plural: -li (masculine), -le (feminine), -la (neuter) (e.g., "voleti" -> "voleli", "volele", "volela")

3. Third Conjugation (verbs ending in -ovati, -ivati):

   • Masculine singular: -o (e.g., "govoriti" -> "govorio")
   • Feminine singular: -la (e.g., "govoriti" -> "govorila")
   • Neuter singular: -lo (e.g., "govoriti" -> "govorilo")
   • Plural: -li (masculine), -le (feminine), -la (neuter) (e.g., "govoriti" -> "govorili", "govorile", "govorila")

Auxiliary Verb "Biti"

The auxiliary verb "biti" is conjugated in the present tense and agrees with the subject in person and number:

• Singular:

  • 1st person: sam (I am)
  • 2nd person: si (you are)
  • 3rd person: je (he/she/it is)

• Plural:

  • 1st person: smo (we are)
  • 2nd person: ste (you are)
  • 3rd person: su (they are)

Constructing the Past Tense

To form the past tense, combine the appropriate form of "biti" with the past participle:

• Ja sam pisao/pisala (I wrote)
• Ti si pisao/pisala (You wrote)
• On je pisao / Ona je pisala / Ono je pisalo (He/She/It wrote)
• Mi smo pisali/pisale (We wrote)
• Vi ste pisali/pisale (You wrote)
• Oni su pisali / One su pisale / Ona su pisala (They wrote)

Examples

• Ja sam voleo/volela (I loved)
• Ti si govorio/govorila (You spoke)
• Ona je učila (She studied)
• Mi smo radili/radile (We worked)
• Vi ste putovali/putovale (You traveled)
• Oni su igrali / One su igrale (They played)