како си / добро сум

Asking How Someone Is

Level 1Sounds Like kako si; dobro sum

Како си? means How are you? to a friend. Како сте? is the polite form, and it also asks a group. Answer with Добро сум (I am fine).

How It Works

1. Asking

  • Како си? – to a friend, a family member or a child.
  • Како сте? – to one person you address politely with Вие, or to a group.
  • Како е Ана? – How is Ana? Use е when you ask about someone else.

2. Answering

  • Добро сум. – I am fine. Add благодарам to thank the person for asking.
  • Одлично! or Супер! – Great!
  • Не многу добро. – Not very well.

The word is добро, not добар. Добар describes what a person or thing is like (a good man), while добро describes how things are going.

3. Asking back
Macedonian turns the question around with а (and, and what about): А ти? to a friend, А Вие? to someone you speak to politely, А вие? to a group.

4. A casual variant
Friends also say Што правиш? (literally What are you doing?). It often works like How is it going?

Examples (6)

  1. Здраво, Марко! Како си?

    Hi, Marko! How are you?

    Word by Word: Hello, Marko! How are-you?

    Марко is a friend, so the speaker uses си.

  2. Добро сум, благодарам. А ти?

    I'm fine, thanks. And you?

    Word by Word: Fine I-am, I-thank. And you?

    Добро сум answers the question, and А ти? sends it back.

  3. Добар ден, госпоѓо Николовска. Како сте?

    Hello, Mrs. Nikolovska. How are you?

    Word by Word: Good day, Mrs. Nikolovska. How are-you?

    A polite question to one person uses сте.

  4. Одлично, благодарам! А Вие?

    Great, thank you! And you?

    Word by Word: Excellent, I-thank! And you?

    The polite way to ask back.

  5. Здраво, деца! Како сте?

    Hi, kids! How are you all?

    Word by Word: Hello, children! How are-you?

    Сте also asks a whole group.

  6. Како е Ана? Добро е.

    How is Ana? She is fine.

    Word by Word: How is Ana? Fine is.

    Asking about someone else uses е, and the answer can leave out таа.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the singular verb си with the polite Вие.

    Како си Вие?
    Како сте Вие?

    Polite Вие always takes the plural verb form сте, even when you speak to one person.

  • Answering with добар instead of добро.

    Добар сум, благодарам.
    Добро сум, благодарам.

    Добар сум says that you are a good person. To say that you are fine, use добро.

  • Using the Serbian form сам for I am.

    Добро сам.
    Добро сум.

    In Macedonian, I am is сум. Сам is Serbian and does not belong in a Macedonian sentence.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

како си / добро сумLevel 1Asking How Someone Is

Learn This First

This small dialogue builds on greetings.

Words in This Pattern

како сиаа