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Learn Hardcore Serbian: Banka je jutros bila otvorena. - The bank was open this morning.

Hardcore Serbian
/Replacing a lost bank card
/Banka je jutros bila otvorena.

Banka je jutros bila otvorena.

Word

Banka je jutros bila otvorena.

Meaning

The bank was open this morning.

Part of speech

sentence

Pronunciation

Course

Hardcore Serbian

Lesson

Replacing a lost bank card

Breakdown of Banka je jutros bila otvorena.

Questions & Answers about Banka je jutros bila otvorena.

Why is banka in that form?

Banka is nominative singular, because it is the subject of the sentence.

banka = bank
nominative is the basic dictionary form
singular, feminine noun

So the sentence is talking about the bank as the thing that was open.

Why is there no word for the before banka?

Serbian does not have articles like English a/an and the.

So banka can mean:

a bank
the bank

Which one is meant depends on context. In this sentence, English usually translates it as the bank was open this morning, but Serbian does not need a separate word for the.

What exactly does jutros mean?

Jutros means this morning.

It usually refers to the morning of today or of the relevant day in context.

For example:

Jutros sam radio. = I worked this morning.
Banka je jutros bila otvorena. = The bank was open this morning.

A useful contrast:

jutros =

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this morning

ujutro = in the morning / mornings in general, depending on context

So jutros is a specific time expression, not a general habit.

Why are there two forms that look like to be: je and bila?

Because Serbian is using its normal past tense construction here.

je = auxiliary verb
bila = past participle of biti (to be)

So je bila is the past-tense form corresponding to English was / has been, depending on context.

In this sentence:

je bila otvorena literally works like has been open
but natural English translation is usually was open

This is very common in Serbian: the past tense often uses an auxiliary plus a participle.

Why is it bila and not bio or bilo?

Because bila agrees with banka, which is a feminine singular noun.

The participle changes for gender and number:

masculine singular: bio
feminine singular: bila
neuter singular: bilo
masculine plural: bili
feminine plural: bile

Since banka is feminine singular, the correct form is bila.

Why is otvorena also feminine?

Because otvorena agrees with banka too.

Here otvorena means open, and it is in the feminine singular form because the subject is banka.

Compare:

Banka je bila otvorena. = feminine singular
Hotel je bio otvoren. = masculine singular
Pismo je bilo otvoreno. = neuter singular
Banke su bile otvorene. = feminine plural

So both bila and otvorena match banka.

Is otvorena an adjective or a participle?

In this sentence, it functions like an adjective meaning open.

Historically, it is related to a participle, but for a learner the most useful way to understand it here is:

otvoren / otvorena / otvoreno = open

So bila otvorena describes a state:

the bank was in an open state

That is different from focusing on the action of opening.

Does this sentence mean the bank was open or the bank was opened?

In this sentence, the most natural meaning is the bank was open.

That is because bila otvorena strongly suggests a state or condition, not the event of someone opening it.

So:

Banka je jutros bila otvorena. = The bank was open this morning.

If you wanted to focus on the event was opened, Serbian would usually use a different context or wording.

So this sentence is best understood as describing the bank’s status, not an action performed on it.

Can the word order change?

Yes. Serbian word order is fairly flexible.

You can move jutros around depending on emphasis, for example:

Banka je jutros bila otvorena.
Jutros je banka bila otvorena.
Banka je bila otvorena jutros.

All are possible, though they may sound slightly different in focus.

One important point: je is a clitic, so it tends to appear near the beginning of the sentence, often in second position.

That is why forms like Jutros je banka... sound very natural.

How would I make this sentence negative?

You would say:

Banka jutros nije bila otvorena.

or

Banka nije bila otvorena jutros.

Here:

nije = negative form used instead of je
bila otvorena stays the same

So:

je bila = was
nije bila = was not

Could I say Banka je otvorena instead?

Yes, but that changes the tense.

Banka je otvorena. = The bank is open.
Banka je jutros bila otvorena. = The bank was open this morning.

So adding bila moves the meaning into the past.

That is an important difference:

je otvorena = present state
je bila otvorena = past state

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