Questions & Answers about Većina želi da ide.
Why is the verb želi singular and not plural žele?
Because većina is grammatically a singular noun. It means the majority, so even though it refers to many people semantically, it takes singular agreement in standard Serbian:
- Većina želi da ide.
- Većina ljudi želi da ide.
So Serbian is following the grammar of većina, not the real-world number of people.
What exactly is većina grammatically?
Većina is a feminine singular noun meaning majority or most of.
In this sentence it is in the nominative case because it is the subject.
You can also use it with another noun or pronoun:
- Većina ljudi želi da ide. = Most people want to go.
- Većina nas želi da ide. = Most of us want to go.
So on its own, većina can stand as the subject, but it can also be expanded.
Why does Serbian say da ide instead of using an infinitive?
This is one of the most important patterns in Serbian.
After verbs like želeti (to want), Serbian very often uses:
da + present tense
So:
- želi da ide = wants to go
Even though English uses an infinitive (to go), Serbian usually prefers this da construction.