novac
Latin, masculine
In Serbian, the word for money is novac. Wiktionary also lists паре (pare) and pare.
Meaning: currency (noun)
Ways to say it
| Serbian | Romanization (Wiktionary) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| novac | Latin, masculine | |
| паре | pare | Cyrillic, feminine, plural |
| pare | Latin, feminine, plural | |
| новац | Cyrillic, masculine | |
| пјенез | Cyrillic, archaic, masculine | |
| pjenez | Latin, archaic, masculine |
The term novac refers generally to money, while Keš is used specifically to refer to cash. If you want to speak about a specific currency, you can use Valuta. A very common idiomatic expression is nema pare, which literally translates to "there is no money" and is used to say that someone is broke or has no money.
Which one should you use?
The standard term is the masculine singular novac. However, the colloquial form pare is a feminine plural noun that is used much more frequently in spoken language than the standard form.
How does it change in a sentence?
The colloquial form pare is a feminine plural noun. The standard form novac is a masculine singular noun.
Did you know?
- The common word for money, pare, actually traces its roots back to Persian, having entered Serbian via Ottoman Turkish.
- While novac is the standard term, using pare in a formal setting might make you sound much more casual or even slightly uneducated.
- Even though pare is a plural noun, it is often used in singular contexts in certain regional slang to refer to a specific amount of money.
Examples in context
- Daj mi sve pare.Give me all your money.This sentence demonstrates the use of the colloquial form pare.Tatoeba #4261703 by Lebad, translation #3151530 by CK
- Samo mi daj novac.Just give me my money.This sentence demonstrates the use of the standard form novac.Tatoeba #4251386 by Lebad, translation #3151358 by CK
- То су и моје паре.It's my money, too.This sentence demonstrates the use of the colloquial form паре.Tatoeba #6982521 by dzoja, translation #5886897 by OsoHombre
- Da li mogu da platim novcem?Can I pay with money?
- Hoćeš li mi pozajmiti malo para?Can you lend me some money?
- Kako stojite sa novcem?How are you managing with money?
- On je baš bogat. Ima mnogo para.He is really rich. He has a lot of money.
- Baciti pare na neštoThrowing money at something
- 95 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Stefan and Milica are planning a trip.
- StefanImamo li dovoljno novca za putovanje?Do we have enough money for the trip?
- MilicaMislim da imamo, proveri svoj račun.I think we do, check your account.
- StefanGde si držala taj novac?Where did you keep that money?
- MilicaSve je u banci, Stefane.Everything is in the bank, Stefan.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “money” translations and entries паре, pare, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries pare, новац, паре, пјенез, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
