Ćumur je pored roštilja.

to be

Breakdown of Ćumur je pored roštilja.

• pored: beside
• roštilj: a barbecue; grill
• ćumur: charcoal

Questions & Answers about Ćumur je pored roštilja.

Why is je used here?

Je is the 3rd person singular present tense of biti (to be).

So:

• ja sam = I am
• ti si = you are
• on / ona / ono je = he / she / it is

In Ćumur je pored roštilja, je means is.

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Why is it roštilja and not roštilj?

Because the preposition pored requires the genitive case.

So the base form is:

• roštilj = grill / barbecue

But after pored (beside / next to / by), it changes to the genitive:

• pored roštilja = beside the grill

This is a very common thing in Serbian: many prepositions require a specific case.

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What case is ćumur in?

Ćumur is in the nominative case because it is the subject of the sentence — the thing being talked about.

So in this sentence:

• Ćumur = the subject
• je = is
• pored roštilja = beside the grill

A simple way to think of it is: What is beside the grill?Answer: .