Umesto da isečem kobasice, iseći ću paprike.

Instead of cutting the sausages, I will cut the peppers.

Breakdown of Umesto da isečem kobasice, iseći ću paprike.

• hteti: will
• umesto da: instead of doing
• paprika: a bell pepper; pepper
• kobasica: a sausage

Questions & Answers about Umesto da isečem kobasice, iseći ću paprike.

What does umesto da mean, and how is it used here?

Umesto da means instead of when it is followed by a verb clause.

So:

• umesto = instead of
• da + verb = a clause like that I do / do

In this sentence, umesto da isečem kobasice literally means something like instead of that I cut the sausages, but in natural English we say instead of cutting the sausages.

Serbian often uses da + a finite verb where English would use instead of + -ing.

Why is it da isečem, not just an infinitive like iseći?

Because after umesto da, Serbian normally uses da + present-tense form of the verb, not the infinitive.

So:

• correct: umesto da isečem
• not natural here: umesto iseći

This is a very common Serbian pattern. English often uses an infinitive or -ing form, but Serbian frequently prefers da + present.

What form is isečem exactly?

Isečem is the 1st person singular present tense form of iseći.

So it means literally I cut, but after da it does not function like a normal English present tense. In this construction, it is part of the clause after .