Pečem kobasice na roštilju.

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Breakdown of Pečem kobasice na roštilju.

• roštilj: a barbecue; grill
• kobasica: a sausage
• peći: to bake; roast; grill

Questions & Answers about Pečem kobasice na roštilju.

Why is pečem used here? What does it mean exactly?

Pečem is the 1st person singular present tense of the verb peći, which means to bake, roast, grill, or cook by dry heat.

So Pečem kobasice na roštilju. means I am grilling sausages / I grill sausages, depending on context.

A useful thing to know is that Serbian present tense can often translate as either:

• I grill sausages
• I am grilling sausages

English makes a stronger distinction between simple present and present continuous than Serbian usually does.

Why is there no word for I in the sentence?

In Serbian, the subject pronoun is often left out because the verb ending already shows who is doing the action.

Here, pečem clearly means I cook/grill.

Compare:

• pečem = I grill
• pečeš = you grill
• peče = he/she/it grills

So Ja pečem kobasice na roštilju is possible, but ja is usually only added for emphasis, contrast, or clarity.

Why is it kobasice? What case is that?

Kobasice is the accusative plural of kobasica (sausage).