као да
As if
The conjunction као да means as if or as though. It introduces subordinate clauses describing hypothetical scenarios, sensory impressions, or counterfactual comparisons.
How It Works
The compound conjunction као да (literally 'as that') functions across multiple everyday and literary contexts in standard Serbian:
1. Counterfactual Comparisons:
It compares reality to an imagined or unreal situation. Unlike English (which often uses subjunctive 'as if he were') or Romance languages, standard Serbian overwhelmingly uses the present indicative for simultaneous unreal states.
Example: Троши новац као да је милионер. (He spends money as if he were a millionaire.)
2. Epistemic Appearance / Sensory Impressions:
With verbs like изгледати (to look/seem) or чинити се (to seem), као да introduces an impression that might actually turn out to be true, rather than an impossibility.
Example: Изгледа као да ће пасти киша. (It looks as though it is going to rain.)
3. Sarcastic / Rhetorical Exclamations:
When starting an independent exclamation, као да signals scornful rejection or disbelief ('As if...!').
Example: Као да је то важно! (As if that matters!)
4. Clitic Placement:
Because као да serves as the first syntactic constituent introducing the clause, it obligatorily hosts enclitics in second position (Wackernagel's position) immediately following the conjunction cluster (e.g., Као да му је жао; Као да га је Петар видео).
Examples (5)
- Он троши новац као да је милионер.
He spends money as if he were a millionaire.
Word by Word: He spends money as that is millionaire.
Here, 'као да' sets up a counterfactual comparison in the present indicative ('је'), describing an ongoing hypothetical state.
- Изгледа као да ће сваког тренутка пасти снег.
It looks as though it is going to snow any minute.
Word by Word: Looks as that will every moment to-fall snow.
With 'изгледати', 'као да' expresses a plausible sensory impression using the future tense ('ће пасти').
- Зашто ме гледаш као да сам рекао нешто страшно?
Why are you looking at me as if I said something terrible?
Word by Word: Why me look as that am said something terrible?
The past indicative ('сам рекао') marks an anterior hypothetical action relative to the main verb.
- Понаша се као да нас уопште не познаје.
She acts as if she does not know us at all.
Word by Word: Behaves self as that us at-all not knows.
Shows clitic placement: the short accusative pronoun 'нас' follows right after the conjunction 'као да'.
- Као да ја не знам шта се десило!
As if I don't know what happened!
Word by Word: As that I not know what self happened!
A standalone rhetorical sentence used emphatically to convey dismissiveness or indignation.
Common Mistakes
Using the conditional mood ('потенцијал') instead of the present indicative for simultaneous counterfactual statements.
Он се понаша као да би био директор.Он се понаша као да је директор.Learners influenced by English ('as if he were') often try to insert conditional forms ('би био'). In standard Serbian, simultaneous hypothetical comparisons normally take the present indicative ('је').
Confusing 'као да' (unreal/hypothetical comparison) with 'као што' (factual comparison).
Урадио сам задатак као да си рекао.Урадио сам задатак као што си рекао.'Као што' introduces a factual comparison ('just as you told me'). Using 'као да' means 'I did the task as if you had told me to [even though you didn't]'.
Placing pronominal clitics in late or unnatural positions after 'као да'.
Гледа ме као да не познаје ме.Гледа ме као да ме не познаје.In subordinate clauses, clitic pronouns such as 'ме' occupy the second syntactic position directly following 'као да' (before negated finite verbs).
How It Connects
Learn This First
The conjunction 'као да' ('as if' / 'as though') introduces comparative subordinate clauses whose verbs can be in the present, past (перфекат), or conditional mood (потенцијал) depending on whether the comparison reflects a real impression or an unreal/hypothetical situation.
- бих / би / бисмо / бистеConditional and Polite Wishes
Clauses introduced by 'као да' frequently use the conditional (потенцијал) to convey unreal, counterfactual, or hypothetical comparisons.
Level 3 - бити + Active ParticipleOrdinary Past Tense
Clauses with 'као да' often describe past hypothetical or seeming events using the past tense (перфекат).
Level 2
Related Patterns
- ако / даReal and Unreal Conditions
Both constructions deal with unreal or hypothetical circumstances, though 'ако' and 'да' introduce conditional premises rather than comparative clauses.
Level 3 - Short Pronouns and Clitic Order
Clauses introduced by 'као да' require strict application of second-position clitic ordering rules immediately after the conjunction.
Level 2 - кад бих / када биImagined Situations with Kad
Explores counterfactual and imagined scenarios using the conditional, contrasting with the indicative preference found after 'као да'.
Level 4 - наводно / тобоже / изгледаReporting and Distancing a Claim
Shares the semantic field of epistemic distance, appearances, and distancing oneself from a claim.
Level 5
Words in This Pattern
Practice као да in Bubblegum
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