Serbian packages English get up into the aspect pair устајати / устати. Imperfective устајати presents getting up as a routine, repeated event, or process; perfective устати presents one transition from sitting or lying to being up. To use the pair naturally, learn its two present stems—устајем and устанем—together with the source phrases and the fact that neither verb is ordinarily reflexive.
Principal forms
| Form | устајати (imperfective) | устати (perfective) |
|---|---|---|
| present | устајем, устајеш, устаје, устајемо, устајете, устају | устанем, устанеш, устане, устанемо, устанете, устану |
| l-participle | устајао, устајала, устајало; устајали, устајале, устајала | устао, устала, устало; устали, устале, устала |
| imperative | устај, устајмо, устајте | устани, устанимо, устаните |
| future, 1st singular | устајаћу | устаћу |
The forms are not predictable from the infinitives alone. Memorize the chain устајати — устајем — устајао — устај and устати — устанем — устао — устани. In particular, the perfective present stem contains -н-, while its masculine l-participle is устао, not a form built mechanically from устан-.
Радним данима устајем у пола седам, а викендом спавам дуже.
On weekdays I get up at half past six, but at weekends I sleep longer.
Јутрос сам устао пре будилника јер нисам могао да спавам.
This morning I got up before the alarm because I couldn't sleep. (male speaker)
Routine, process, and one completed transition
Use устајати when the internal course or repetition matters. It is the neutral choice for a regular waking routine and for someone physically being in the process of rising. Use устати when the event reaches its boundary: the person is no longer sitting or lying.
Док је бака устајала са столице, пружио сам јој руку.
While Grandma was getting up from the chair, I offered her my hand.
Кад устанеш, отвори прозор да уђе свеж ваздух.
When you get up, open the window to let in some fresh air.
Perfective verbs do not normally describe an action unfolding right now. Present устанем therefore usually points to a bounded future or a repeated sequence, not to an event currently in progress. Serbian commonly uses a perfective present in a time clause whose English translation has a simple present: кад устанеш “when you get up.”
Perfective устати can also appear in a repeated script when each completed transition is relevant:
Чим устанем, попијем чашу воде и отворим ролетне.
As soon as I get up, I drink a glass of water and open the blinds.
This does not contradict the habitual value of устајати. Сваког дана устајем у седам views the whole routine as recurring; чим устанем selects the completed first step that triggers what follows. The habitual and repeated action guide develops that choice further.
Where from and when
Both verbs are intransitive: the person getting up is the nominative subject. A source is expressed with a prepositional phrase, not as a direct object.
| Frame | Typical meaning |
|---|---|
| устати из + genitive | get out of an enclosure or containing space: из кревета |
| устати са + genitive | rise from a supporting surface: са столице, са клупе |
| устати од + genitive | leave a position by something: од стола |
| устати у + accusative time | get up at a clock time: у шест |
Устала је из кревета, обукла огртач и отишла у кухињу.
She got out of bed, put on a dressing gown, and went to the kitchen.
После десерта смо устали од стола и изашли на терасу.
After dessert we got up from the table and went out onto the terrace.
With times, Serbian says устати у шест, устати пре зоре, устајати рано, and устајати касно. English at does not map to a special case ending: clock time uses у + accusative.
Getting up is not waking up or standing
Пробудити се means “wake up”; устати means “get up.” A person can wake up and remain in bed. Стајати means “be standing,” the resulting posture rather than the transition into it.
Пробудила сам се у шест, али сам устала тек у пола седам.
I woke up at six, but I didn't get up until half past six. (female speaker)
Кад сам ушао, сви су већ стајали, па сам и ја устао.
When I came in, everyone was already standing, so I stood up too. (male speaker)
Дићи се / подићи се can also mean “rise” or “get up,” but those are separate lexical verbs with additional meanings. They are not forms that replace the pair устајати / устати in its paradigm.
No ordinary reflexive се
Unlike English raise oneself, neutral Serbian устајати / устати is already intransitive: устајем, устао сам, устани. Do not add се to create устајати се or устати се.
There is, however, a different impersonal construction не устаје ми се “I don't feel like getting up.” Here ми is a dative experiencer and се belongs to the impersonal construction; it does not turn устајати into an ordinary reflexive verb. The verb remains third-person singular regardless of who has the feeling.
Напољу пада киша и уопште ми се не устаје из кревета.
It's raining outside, and I really don't feel like getting out of bed.
Деци се јутрос није устајало, па смо једва стигли на време.
The children didn't feel like getting up this morning, so we barely arrived on time.
In the past impersonal construction, neuter singular није устајало is fixed; it does not agree with dative деци. See the reflexive-verb guide for the difference between lexical, grammatical, and impersonal се.
Commands: устај and устани
Aspect adds a practical difference to commands. Perfective устани asks for the bounded change of posture. Imperfective устај often urges someone to begin or continue getting up and is frequent when waking somebody; intonation determines whether it sounds encouraging or sharp.
Устаните полако ако вам се врти у глави.
Stand up slowly if you feel dizzy. (plural or polite)
Устај, закаснићеш на први час!
Get up—you'll be late for the first class! (informal)
The imperfective imperative is not automatically polite or imperfective in the English sense of an unfinished command. Here it can be an immediate (informal) prompt to launch the process. Serbian polite address uses plural устаните / устајте, while tone and words such as молим вас further soften the request.
Figurative extensions
The same physical image supports several conventional public or elevated expressions. Устати против + genitive means “rise against” or openly oppose; устати у одбрану + genitive means “stand up in defense of.” These are common in news and public argument and are relatively (formal) compared with everyday getting up.
Неколико стручњака устало је у одбрану колеге који је неправедно оптужен.
Several experts spoke up in defense of a colleague who had been unfairly accused. (formal)
Мештани су устали против плана да се парк претвори у паркинг.
Local residents rose up against the plan to turn the park into a car park. (formal)
Устати на ноге normally foregrounds the literal act of rising to one’s feet. The established figurative expression for recovery or restored viability is стати на ноге (or поново стати на ноге).
После тешке године, мала радионица је поново стала на ноге.
After a difficult year, the small workshop got back on its feet.
The recovery expression therefore uses perfective стати, while устати remains the ordinary bounded member of устајати / устати. Similar English wording does not guarantee an identical Serbian verb.
Micro-dialogue
„Кад обично устајеш?“ — „Око седам, али сам данас устао у пет.“ — „Како то?“ — „Морао сам да одвезем сестру на аеродром.“
‘When do you usually get up?’ — ‘Around seven, but today I got up at five.’ — ‘How come?’ — ‘I had to drive my sister to the airport.’
The question uses imperfective устајеш for a routine; the answer switches to perfective устао for one completed event today.
Practice Tasks
Task 1: Choose the aspect
Complete a short morning account with устајати or устати in the right form: a usual time, one unusually early morning, the process interrupted by dizziness, and a completed action that triggers making coffee. Explain what viewpoint each choice creates.
Task 2: Build the full frame
Translate: She got up from the chair; We get up at six; I don't feel like getting out of bed; Please stand up slowly. Use са + genitive, у + clock time, impersonal dative ми се, and the polite imperative.
Common Mistakes
❌ Сутра устаним у шест да стигнем на први воз.
Incorrect — the perfective present stem has first-person singular устанем, not устаним.
✅ Сутра ћу устати у шест да стигнем на први воз.
Tomorrow I'll get up at six to catch the first train.
❌ Сваког јутра се устајем пре осталих.
Incorrect — ordinary устајати is intransitive and does not take reflexive се.
✅ Сваког јутра устајем пре осталих.
Every morning I get up before everyone else.
❌ Устала је из кревету чим је чула телефон.
Incorrect — из governs genitive кревета, not locative кревету.
✅ Устала је из кревета чим је чула телефон.
She got out of bed as soon as she heard the phone.
❌ Пробудио сам се у седам, али сам остао да спавам до осам.
Incorrect for the intended meaning ‘I fell asleep again’ — остао сам да спавам describes continuing to sleep, while поново сам заспао names a new transition back to sleep.
✅ Пробудио сам се у седам, али сам поново заспао и устао тек у осам.
I woke up at seven, but I fell asleep again and didn't get up until eight. (male speaker)
❌ Ја се не устајем данас рано.
Incorrect — ‘not feel like getting up’ requires impersonal third-person singular with a dative experiencer.
✅ Данас ми се не устаје рано.
I don't feel like getting up early today.
Key Takeaways
- Learn устајати — устајем with perfective устати — устанем, not either infinitive in isolation.
- Imperfective устајати profiles a routine or process; perfective устати profiles one completed transition.
- Use из кревета, са столице, од стола, and у шест; the governing preposition determines the case.
- Ordinary устајати / устати has no се. Impersonal не устаје ми се is a separate dative-experiencer construction.
- Keep пробудити се “wake up,” устати “get up,” and стајати “be standing” distinct.
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Start learning Serbian →Related Topics
- Verbal Aspect: The Big PictureA2 — Why nearly every verb comes in an imperfective/perfective pair.
- Habituality, Iteration, and AspectB1 — A focused guide to habituality, iteration, and aspect in Serbian.
- Present Tense: -a- VerbsA1 — The largest, most regular present conjugation.
- Reflexive Verbs (se-verbs)A2 — The many functions of the clitic se on verbs.
- Motion Prepositions: kroz, niz, uz, prema, kA2 — Direction and path prepositions.