видети / чути + како / да + Clause
Perception Complements
Verbs of sensory perception like видети (to see) and чути (to hear) take two distinct subordinate clauses. Use како when you physically observe an event unfolding in real time ('I saw him running'). Use да when you deduce a fact, notice a result, or hear about something secondhand ('I noticed that he left' / 'I heard that he got married').
How It Works
In Serbian, perception verbs govern complement clauses headed by either како or да, fundamentally changing the perspective of the sentence:
1. Direct Sensory Perception with како:
When using како, you indicate that you personally observed the scene unfolding via your physical senses. Pay attention to the following key features:
- Ongoing Actions (Imperfective Present): To show that an action was in progress while you watched or listened, use the imperfective aspect in the present tense, even if the main perception verb is in the past (e.g., Видео сам како одлази = 'I saw him leaving').
- Completed Actions (Past Tenses): Unlike an ongoing action, a directly witnessed completed event is expressed with a perfective verb in the перфекат (or occasionally narrative аорист): Видео сам како је пао ('I saw him fall / how he fell'); Чуо сам како су залупили врата ('I heard them slam the door'). A perfective present (*како падне) is ungrammatical here.
- Word Order and Prolepsis: The observed subject can either stay inside the subordinate clause (e.g., Видим како деца трче) or be raised into the main clause as a direct object clitic (prolepsis: Видим их како трче). Standard Serbian does not use bare infinitives in this context (*Видим их трчати).
2. Propositional and Cognitive Complements with да:
Introducing a clause with да shifts the meaning from direct sensory witness to cognitive processing, inference, or hearsay:
- With видети: means 'to notice, deduce, or realize that' based on evidence (e.g., Видим да си уморан = 'I see that you are tired').
- With чути: means 'to hear as a rumor / to be informed that' (e.g., Чуо сам да су се венчали = 'I heard [someone told me] that they got married').
- Tense & Aspect: Because clauses with да express facts or propositions, they freely combine with any tense (past, present, future) and both aspects.
Important Semantic Contrast: Only involuntary perception verbs (видети, чути) shift to mental deduction or hearsay with да. Intentional sensory verbs such as гледати ('to look/watch') and слушати ('to listen') describe deliberate acts and do not mean 'to deduce' with да (*Гледам да си уморан does not exist; гледати да + презент means 'to try to / see to it that').
Colloquial Note: In conversational Serbian, где is frequently heard instead of како for direct perception (e.g., Видим га где прелази улицу), but како remains the standard literary form.
Examples (5)
- Кроз прозор је гледао како се деца играју у дворишту.
Through the window, he watched the children playing in the yard.
Word by Word: Through window he-was watching how self children play in yard.
Direct visual observation of an ongoing process uses 'како' with an imperfective present verb ('играју се').
- Јасно сам чуо како неко откључава врата.
I distinctly heard someone unlocking the door.
Word by Word: Distinctly I-did hear how someone unlocks door.
The speaker heard the acoustic sound of the key in real time, so 'чути + како' is required.
- Чуо сам да су променили браву на вратима.
I heard that they changed the lock on the door.
Word by Word: I-did hear that they-did change lock on door.
The speaker was told this piece of information (hearsay/rumor), so 'чути + да' is used with the past tense.
- По његовом изразу лица видела је да се нешто лоше десило.
From his facial expression, she could see that something bad had happened.
Word by Word: By his expression of-face she-did see that self something bad happened.
The verb 'видети + да' indicates cognitive deduction from clues, not the visual witnessing of the bad event itself.
- Видели смо га како улази у зграду.
We saw him entering the building.
Word by Word: We-did see him how he-enters into building.
Shows direct perception with prolepsis: the perceived individual appears as an accusative clitic ('га') followed by 'како' and an imperfective present verb.
Common Mistakes
Using a perfective present verb instead of an imperfective present or a past tense after perceptual 'како'.
Видео сам како падне на улици.Видео сам како пада на улици.A perfective present form (*како падне) cannot express direct sensory perception. To convey an ongoing action unfolding cotemporally with your observation, use the imperfective present (како пада). If you want to describe a completed, directly witnessed event as a whole, use the perfective past instead (како је пао).
Using 'чути да' instead of 'чути како' to describe acoustic perception.
Чуо сам да беба плаче у соби, па сам одмах устао.Чуо сам како беба плаче у соби, па сам одмах устао.'Чуо сам да беба плаче' implies hearsay or that someone informed you. To say you physically heard the sound with your own ears, you must use 'чуо сам како'.
Using an infinitive complement after a sensory perception verb.
Видим га трчати кроз парк.Видим га како трчи кроз парк.Unlike English ('I see him run') or older literary constructions, modern standard Serbian expresses direct perception with a finite subordinate clause introduced by 'како' rather than an accusative + infinitive construction.
How It Connects
Learn This First
To understand perception complements with 'видети' and 'чути', learners must already be comfortable with basic clausal complements using 'да' and understand verb aspect, as 'како' clauses specifically highlight the ongoing, unfolding process of an action as it is being perceived.
- мислити да / мислити оSaying What You Think
Provides the foundational structure of using content clauses introduced by 'да' following a main verb.
Level 2 - Activities and Repeated Events
Understanding imperfective aspect is essential for distinguishing the unfolding, observed progression of an action with 'како' versus merely acknowledging the factual occurrence of an event.
Level 3
Related Patterns
- Verb Aspect
Understanding aspect is essential because 'како' complements require imperfective verbs for unfolding events, while 'да' complements permit both aspects.
Level 2 - Infinitives and Da Complements
Contrasts the finite clause system of Serbian with typical infinitive complement structures found in other European languages.
Level 5 - Reporting What Someone Said
'Чути да' functions syntactically as reported speech or hearsay, reporting claims rather than physical sensations.
Level 4 - Relative Time Across Clauses
Explains how the present tense inside a 'како' clause establishes relative simultaneity with a past perception verb.
Level 6
Words in This Pattern
Practice видети / чути + како / да + Clause in Bubblegum
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