хвала / молим / извините

Polite Everyday Phrases

Level 1Sounds Like hvala; molim; izvinite

Use хвала for 'thank you', молим for 'please' and 'you're welcome', and извините for 'excuse me' or 'sorry'.

How It Works

Getting comfortable with these three words allows you to handle nearly every routine social interaction in Serbian.

1. Хвала (Thank you)
• Grammatically, хвала is a feminine noun meaning 'praise' or 'thanks'.
• Because it expresses offering thanks, the recipient of gratitude is placed in the dative case: хвала ти (informal, addressed to one friend or peer) or хвала вам (formal or plural), literally meaning '[thanks be] to you'.
• In standard Serbian, formal intensifiers include много хвала or хвала лепо ('thank you very much' / 'thank you kindly'), while хвала пуно is very common in casual daily speech.

2. Молим (Please / You're welcome / Yes?)
Grammatically, молим is the 1st person present of the verb молити ('I ask / I beg'). It is versatile and serves several distinct purposes:
• Making requests ('Please'): Often accompanied by the accusative pronoun: молим те (informal) or молим вас (formal). For example: Једну кафу, молим вас ('A coffee, please').
• Responding to thanks ('You're welcome'): The standard answer when someone says хвала. Alternatively, you can say нема на чему ('don't mention it').
• Asking for repetition ('Pardon? / Come again?'): Spoken with rising pitch (Молим?) when you did not hear or understand.
• Answering the phone or acknowledging your name ('Speaking? / Yes?'): A polite way to respond when called.

3. Извините (Excuse me / Sorry)
• This is the polite plural/formal imperative of the transitive verb извинити ('to excuse / pardon'), addressing strangers, elders, or groups (the учтиво ви register). It literally means 'excuse [me]'. Do not add се here: saying Извините се! is a command meaning 'Apologize!'
• The informal counterpart addressed to friends or children is извини.
• If you want to say 'I apologize', you can use the reflexive present expression извињавам се, or use the alternative polite imperative опростите ('forgive [me]').
• Use извините preemptively to attract attention (e.g., asking for directions or navigating a crowd) or retroactively for minor social mistakes (bumping into someone).

Examples (5)

  1. Једну кафу, молим вас.

    One coffee, please.

    Word by Word: one coffee please you(formal/plural)

    Shows 'молим вас' used as a polite request marker in a cafe or store.

  2. Хвала вам пуно на помоћи!

    Thank you very much for your help!

    Word by Word: thanks to-you(formal/plural) much on help

    Shows 'хвала' with a dative clitic 'вам' and the intensifier 'пуно'.

  3. — Хвала! — Молим, нема на чему.

    — Thanks! — You're welcome, don't mention it.

    Word by Word: thanks I-beg not-have on what

    Shows 'молим' functioning as the natural reply to an expression of gratitude.

  4. Извините, да ли знате где је апотека?

    Excuse me, do you know where the pharmacy is?

    Word by Word: excuse whether you-know where is pharmacy

    Shows 'извините' used politely to attract a stranger's attention on the street.

  5. Извини, молим те!

    Excuse me, please! / I am sorry, please!

    Word by Word: excuse(informal) I-beg you(informal)

    Shows the informal equivalents ('извини' and 'молим те') combined when speaking to a peer.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the wrong pronoun case with 'хвала' and 'молим'.

    Хвала вас за све, молим вам.
    Хвала вам за све, молим вас.

    'Хвала' governs the dative case ('хвала вам' / 'хвала ти'), whereas 'молим' takes an accusative direct object ('молим вас' / 'молим те'). Do not confuse the two cases.

  • Saying 'молим' when handing something over to a clerk or customer.

    Молим, ево новца.
    Изволите, ево новца.

    'Молим' means 'please' (when asking) or 'you're welcome' (after receiving thanks). When offering or handing an item or money to someone, the proper expression is 'изволите' ('here you go').

  • Mixing formal and informal forms across the same polite phrase.

    Извините, можеш ли да ми помогнеш?
    Извините, можете ли да ми помогнете?

    If you address someone politely with the formal imperative 'извините', maintain the polite 'Ви' agreement across the entire sentence.

Words in This Pattern

хвалаизвините