јести
Cyrillic, imperfective
The Serbian verb for 'eat' is јести (or jesti in Latin script).
Meaning: eat a meal (verb)
Ways to say it
| Serbian | Note |
|---|---|
| јести | Cyrillic, imperfective |
| jesti | Latin, imperfective |
The verb is used to describe the act of eating a meal.
Which one should you use?
The form јести is imperfective, which focuses on the ongoing process of eating. In contrast, the perfective form појести is used when the speaker focuses on completing the act of eating a specific amount or an entire meal.
How does it change in a sentence?
In the present tense, the third-person singular form is једе (eats/is eating). For the past tense, use јео when referring to a masculine singular subject and јела when referring to a feminine singular subject.
Did you know?
- The Serbian phrase јести се (to eat oneself) can be used colloquially to describe someone who is consuming themselves with guilt or anxiety.
- The word јести is a distant relative of the English word 'eat', as both originate from the Proto-Indo-European root *h₁édti.
- The root of јести is also found in the word for 'food' in several other Slavic languages, demonstrating how central the concept is to the linguistic branch.
Examples in context
- Ona jede supu.She is eating soup.
- Oni jedu meso.They are eating meat.
- Idemo klopati pizzu.Let's go eat pizza.
- Желим да јем.I want to eat.
- Када ћемо јести ручак?When will we eat lunch?
Example conversation
Marko and Jelena are deciding what to do for lunch.
- MarkoЈелена, да ли желиш јести сада?Jelena, do you want to eat now?
- JelenaДа, ја сам веома гладна.Yes, I am very hungry.
- MarkoХајде да јести у ресторану.Let's eat at a restaurant.
- JelenaТо је одлична идеја, Марко.That is a great idea, Marko.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “eat” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries јести, CC BY-SA 4.0.
