uzimati / uzeti (to take) | Serbian Grammar

Узимати — узети is the central Serbian pair for taking, picking up, choosing, ordering, or consuming something. It behaves like one aspect pair but gives learners several stems to memorize: узимам for the imperfective present, узмем for the perfective present, and узео/узела in the perfect. Its usable frame also includes the accusative thing taken, an optional source, and frequent dative and accusative clitics.

Principal forms

Form	узимати (imperfective)	узети (perfective)
present	узимам, узимаш, узима, узимамо, узимате, узимају	узмем, узмеш, узме, узмемо, узмете, узму
l-participle	узимао / узимала	узео / узела
imperative	узимај, узимајмо, узимајте	узми, узмимо, узмите
future, 1st singular	узимаћу	узећу

There is no safe way to derive every high-value form just from узети. Memorize the chain узети — узмем — узму — узео/узела — узми — узећу. The future loses infinitival -ти before -ћу, yielding узећу, not узетићу.

Узимам овај лек после доручка и после вечере.

I take this medicine after breakfast and after dinner.

Узела сам последњи примерак са полице и однела га на касу.

I took the last copy from the shelf and carried it to the checkout. (female speaker)

Aspect: repeated process versus one acquisition

Imperfective узимати presents taking as repeated, ongoing, customary, or unbounded. Perfective узети treats one act as reaching its boundary: the object comes into someone’s possession or control.

Док смо паковали стан, он је узимао књиге са стола и слагао их у кутије.

While we were packing the flat, he was taking books from the table and arranging them in boxes.

Узми кишобран пре него што изађеш; поново пада киша.

Take an umbrella before you go out; it's raining again.

Perfective present узмем commonly appears after a modal, in a да-clause, or in a future-oriented condition or time clause.

Ако узмемо ранији воз, стићи ћемо пре почетка представе.

If we take the earlier train, we'll arrive before the performance begins.

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For each actual context, ask whether Serbian is describing a pattern/process (узимати) or counting one successful taking (узети). English take leaves that viewpoint unstated.

The pair is traditionally learned as suppletive or suppletive-like because its most useful forms cannot be produced by attaching one transparent prefix to a shared learner-visible stem. The broader suppletive-pair guide puts it beside other nontransparent pairs.

The thing or person taken is accusative

The core direct object is accusative: узети кључ, торбу, лек, такси, слободан дан. Masculine animate nouns show the animate accusative.

За нови пројекат узели су искусног преводиоца из Новог Сада.

They brought in an experienced translator from Novi Sad for the new project.

Могу ли да узмем твој пуњач на пола сата?

Can I borrow your charger for half an hour?

In the second example, context supplies the temporary “borrow” reading. If the distinction matters, позајмити makes borrowing explicit.

Naming the source

Serbian chooses a source preposition according to the physical or social relation:

Frame	Typical meaning
из + genitive	out of an interior: из фиоке, из торбе
са + genitive	off a surface: са стола, са полице
од + genitive	from a person or source: од колеге, од лекара

Узела је потврду од секретарице, а затим пасош из фиоке.

She took the certificate from the secretary and then the passport out of the drawer.

English often uses one general from where Serbian preserves this spatial contrast. The source phrase does not replace the accusative direct object.

Dative: whose sphere is affected?

A dative pronoun can identify the person from whose possession or personal sphere something is taken. This is often more natural than a possessive phrase.

Неко ми је у аутобусу узео новчаник из ранца.

Someone took my wallet out of my backpack on the bus.

Here ми is the affected possessor, while новчаник is the accusative object. With both objects replaced by clitics, dative precedes accusative, and the perfect auxiliary comes after them:

Нисам могао да нађем кључ; Лука ми га је узео са стола.

I couldn't find the key; Luka had taken it from my desk.

The cluster ми га је means “from me / my sphere + it + has.” It is not freely reorderable.

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Learn узети нешто некоме as a construction: accusative names what changes hands; dative names the affected person.

Ordering, choosing, and consuming

At a café or counter, узећу… is a neutral way to choose or order an item. With medicines and food, imperfective often describes a regimen or repeated consumption.

Ја ћу узети чај од нане, а ти наручи шта желиш.

I'll have mint tea, and you order whatever you want.

Не узимај антибиотике без савета лекара.

Don't take antibiotics without a doctor's advice.

Узети такси is conventional for hiring a taxi. Neutral regular travel by bus, train, or tram is more naturally expressed with ићи + instrumental: идем аутобусом, not a mechanical calque узимам аутобус.

Пошто је последњи аутобус већ отишао, узели смо такси до хотела.

Since the last bus had already left, we took a taxi to the hotel.

English take is broader than Serbian узети

English builds many light-verb expressions with take. Serbian often selects a separate verb or fixed collocation:

English idea	Natural Serbian
take a photo	фотографисати / снимити фотографију
take a shower	истуширати се
make/take a decision	донети одлуку
take into account	узети у обзир

Пре коначне одлуке морамо узети у обзир трошкове одржавања.

Before the final decision, we must take the maintenance costs into account.

The fixed phrase узети у обзир genuinely uses узети. The other English phrases do not license it automatically.

Prefixes build new lexical verbs

Forms such as преузети “take over / collect,” одузети “take away / confiscate; subtract,” and заузети “occupy” are related but are not interchangeable perfectives of узимати.

Документ можете преузети на шалтеру после два.

You can collect the document at the counter after two o'clock.

Their corresponding imperfectives—преузимати, одузимати, заузимати—preserve the new lexical meaning. A prefix changes more than the event boundary here.

Reflexivity and commands

Ordinary “take something” is not reflexive. Себи can be a genuine dative recipient—узети себи дан одмора—but that does not turn the verb into an automatic се-verb.

Perfective узми/узмите requests one acquisition; imperfective не узимај commonly prohibits a habit or repeated behavior.

Узмите број на улазу и сачекајте да вас позову.

Take a number at the entrance and wait until they call you. (plural or polite)

Micro-dialogue

„Ко је узео резервни кључ?“ — „Ја сам га узела од Милене. Треба ли ти?“ — „Не, само га врати у фиоку кад завршиш.“

‘Who took the spare key?’ — ‘I took it from Milena. Do you need it?’ — ‘No, just put it back in the drawer when you're finished.’

The feminine узела agrees with the speaker; га replaces masculine кључ, and од Милене identifies the human source.

Practice Tasks

Task 1: Build the irregular chain

Give the first-person singular and third-person plural present, masculine and feminine l-participles, singular imperative, and first-person future of узети. Use three of those forms in a parcel-pickup scenario.

Task 2: Build the complete frame

Translate “Luka took my document from the desk and gave it to Ana.” Use affected-possessor dative, accusative object, са + genitive, and then replace the document with a clitic.

Common Mistakes

❌ Сутра узем слободан дан.

Incorrect — the first-person present of perfective узети is узмем.

✅ Сутра ћу узети слободан дан.

Tomorrow I'll take a day off.

❌ Јуче сам узимао један кишобран и одмах изашао.

Wrong viewpoint for one completed acquisition — use perfective узео.

✅ Јуче сам узео кишобран и одмах изашао.

Yesterday I took an umbrella and left immediately. (male speaker)

❌ Узела је књигу са торбе.

Incorrect source preposition — an item comes out of a bag with из + genitive.

✅ Узела је књигу из торбе.

She took the book out of the bag.

❌ Сваког јутра узимам аутобусом до центра.

Incorrect case and unnatural English-based framing — regular travel uses ићи plus instrumental.

✅ Сваког јутра идем аутобусом до центра.

Every morning I take the bus downtown.

❌ Узео је ми га без питања.

Incorrect clitic placement — ми га је forms a second-position cluster after the participle.

✅ Узео ми га је без питања.

He took it from me without asking.

Key Takeaways

Memorize узети — узмем — узму — узео/узела — узми — узећу alongside узимати — узимам.
The thing taken is accusative; its source may be из, са, or од + genitive.
A dative can mark the affected possessor: узео ми је кључ / узео ми га је.
Узети такси is conventional, but ordinary travel is usually ићи аутобусом/возом.
Do not copy every English light-verb expression with take into Serbian узети.

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