Roditelji čekaju ispred škole.

Roditelji means parents.

Its singular form is roditelj, which means parent.

So:

• roditelj = parent
• roditelji = parents

This is a masculine noun in form, but it can refer to a parent of either sex in a general sense.

Because it is a plural noun.

Many masculine nouns in Serbian form the nominative plural with -i:

• učenik → učenici = student → students
• profesor → profesori = professor → professors
• roditelj → roditelji = parent → parents

So here roditelji is the subject of the sentence in the nominative plural.

Čekaju is the 3rd person plural present tense of čekati, meaning to wait.

It matches roditelji because parents is plural:

• ja čekam = I wait / am waiting
• ti čekaš = you wait
• on/ona čeka = he/she waits
• mi čekamo = we wait
• vi čekate = you (plural/formal) wait
• oni/one/ona čekaju = they wait

So Roditelji čekaju literally means Parents wait / are waiting.

In Serbian, the present tense often covers both:

• they wait
• they are waiting

So čekaju can mean either, depending on context.

Serbian does not usually need a separate form like English be + -ing. The simple present often does that job.

Because the preposition ispred requires the genitive case.

The noun škola means school, and its genitive singular form is škole.

So:

• škola = school (nominative)
• škole = of the school / school’s (genitive)

After ispred, you use the genitive:

• ispred škole = in front of the school

This is something learners need to memorize with prepositions: many Serbian prepositions require a specific case.

Ispred means in front of.

It is a preposition of location. With the genitive case, it tells you where something is:

• ispred kuće = in front of the house
• ispred zgrade = in front of the building
• ispred škole = in front of the school

Yes. Serbian has no articles like English a/an/the.

So škole can mean:

• a school
• the school

The exact meaning comes from context.

In this sentence, English would naturally say the school, but Serbian simply says škole without any article.

Yes. Serbian word order is more flexible than English because the endings help show grammatical roles.

The neutral order here is:

• Roditelji čekaju ispred škole.

But you could also say:

• Ispred škole čekaju roditelji.
• Čekaju roditelji ispred škole.

These all mean roughly the same thing, but the focus changes slightly:

• starting with Roditelji focuses on who
• starting with Ispred škole focuses on where

English is usually more rigid, but Serbian allows more movement for emphasis.

No, usually not.

Serbian verb endings already show the subject clearly. Čekaju already tells you the subject is they.

So:

• Roditelji čekaju = Parents are waiting
• Oni čekaju = They are waiting

You would only add oni if you want extra emphasis or contrast:

• Oni čekaju, a mi ulazimo. = They are waiting, and we are going in.

A rough pronunciation guide is:

ROH-dee-teh-lyee CHEH-kah-yoo EES-pred SHKOH-leh

A few useful sound notes:

• č sounds like ch in church
• j sounds like English y in yes
• lj is a soft sound, somewhat like lli in million for many English speakers
• š sounds like sh in shoe

So:

• roditelji ≈ roh-dee-TEH-lyee
• čekaju ≈ CHEH-kah-yoo
• škole ≈ SHKOH-leh

Both can often be translated as in front of the school, but they are built differently and can feel slightly different.

• ispred škole
  
  • uses ispred + genitive
  • very directly means in front of
• pred školom
  
  • uses pred + instrumental
  • can also mean in front of / before the school

In many everyday situations, they are very close in meaning. However, ispred is often the clearer and more literal choice for in front of.

So this sentence could also be:

• Roditelji čekaju pred školom.

That would still sound natural.

In Serbian, čekati usually takes a direct object in the accusative when you say who someone is waiting for.

So:

• Roditelji čekaju decu ispred škole. = The parents are waiting for the children in front of the school.

Here:

• deca = children
• decu = children in the accusative

This is different from English, which uses wait for. Serbian usually just uses čekati + object.

Čekati is imperfective.

That matters because the present tense of an imperfective verb is used for:

• actions happening now
• repeated actions
• general situations

So čekaju works naturally for are waiting.

A perfective verb usually would not be used this way for an action in progress. For basic learners, the important point is:

• čekati = the normal verb for to wait
• čekaju = they are waiting / they wait