Ways to say it
| Serbian | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| добродошли | dobrodòšli | /dobrodǒʃli/ | Cyrillic |
| dobrodošli | /dobrodǒʃli/ | Latin |
Добродошли is the standard and most common way to say 'welcome' in Serbian. It is used as a greeting upon someone's arrival, either to a single person or to a group. You can use it as a standalone greeting, such as Добродошли! (Welcome!).
What does it mean word for word?
The word is a compound of dobro, meaning 'good' and došao, meaning 'arrived' or 'come', literally translating to 'well-come'.
Which one should you use?
While dobrodošli is the standard greeting for a group, it is also the polite or formal form used when addressing a single person in the formal 'Vi' sense. For everyday conversations, you may also see the variations dobro došao for a male and dobro došla for a female.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase can change based on the gender and number of the people being addressed. While dobrodošli serves as the plural and formal singular, the variations dobro došao (masculine) and dobro došla (feminine) are used in everyday speech to match the subject.
How do you pronounce it?
dobrodòšli (IPA: /dobrodǒʃli/)
Did you know?
- While dobrodošli is used for greetings, the Serbian language uses a completely different word, molim, to say 'you are welcome' after someone says 'thank you'.
- In Serbian culture, welcoming a guest is taken so seriously that there is a traditional proverb stating that 'a guest brings God with them' (Gost donosi Boga sa sobom).
- In traditional rural Serbian hospitality, saying dobrodošli is often accompanied by offering a glass of rakija (fruit brandy) immediately upon entering the home.
Examples in context
- Он се осетио добродошлим.He felt welcome.This sentence shows how the form добродошли is used to describe feeling welcome.Tatoeba #13589255 by principeazul, translation #8479040 by CH
- Хајдемо, Томе. Нисмо добродошли овде.Let's go, Tom. We're not welcome here.This sentence uses добродошли to express that people are not welcome in a specific place.Tatoeba #12395248 by Lebad, translation #12367109 by ddnktr
- Hajde da poželimo dobrodošlicu našim gostima.Let's welcome our guests.This sentence uses the Latin form dobrodošli to suggest welcoming guests.Tatoeba #4784491 by Lebad, translation #4780289 by LinguisticFusion
- Dobrodošli u naš domWelcome to our home
- Dobrodošao/dobrodošla na događajWelcome to the event
- 2 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Marko greets Jelena at the door of his home.
- MarkoЗдраво Јелена, добродошли!Hello Jelena, welcome!
- JelenaХвала пуно, Марко.Thank you very much, Marko.
- MarkoУђи у кућу, молим те.Please, come into the house.
- JelenaЛепо је што сам овде.It is nice to be here.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “welcome” translations and entries добродошли, dobrodošli, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
