Ovo je važan korak.

Ovo means this.

In Ovo je važan korak, it points to something near the speaker, either physically or in the conversation:

• Ovo = this
• je = is
• važan korak = an important step

A useful thing to know is that ovo is the neuter form of the demonstrative, but in sentences like this it often works like English this in a general way: This is...

Examples:

• Ovo je problem. = This is a problem.
• Ovo je dobra ideja. = This is a good idea.

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

So:

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

Since ovo is being treated as it/this, Serbian uses je:

• Ovo je... = This is...

Because korak is a masculine singular noun, the adjective has to agree with it.

In Serbian, adjectives change to match the noun in:

• gender
• number
• case

Here:

• korak = masculine singular
• so važan must also be masculine singular

Compare:

• važan korak = an important step (masculine)
• važna odluka = an important decision (feminine)
• važno pitanje = an important question (neuter)

So the adjective agrees with korak, not with ovo.

Good question. In Serbian, adjectives can appear in different forms depending on grammar and style.

In this sentence, važan is the normal masculine singular nominative form used with an indefinite noun:

• važan korak = an important step

Many learners first notice dictionary-like forms such as:

• dobar
• važan
• velik

These are the basic masculine singular forms.

You may also see forms like važni, but that is not the form used here. For this sentence, važan is exactly the correct form.

Serbian normally does not use articles like English a, an, and the.

So:

• važan korak can mean an important step
• depending on context, it could also sometimes be understood as the important step

Serbian usually shows definiteness through:

• context
• word order
• demonstratives like ovaj, taj, onaj
• stress or emphasis

So English needs an important step, but Serbian simply says važan korak.

Korak is in the nominative singular, because it is the noun used after to be in a sentence like This is an important step.

The basic dictionary form is:

• korak = step

In this sentence, both words stay in nominative:

• važan = nominative masculine singular
• korak = nominative masculine singular

If the sentence changed, the form of korak might change too. For example:

• Vidim važan korak would not be correct; it would need a different case
• Vidim važan korak actually becomes Vidim važan korak only in limited contexts? No—in standard Serbian, after vidim the noun should be in the accusative, and for masculine inanimate nouns like korak, accusative looks the same as nominative:
  • Vidim važan korak. = I see an important step.

So in this particular noun, nominative and accusative happen to look identical.

Yes. Ovo je važan korak is the most neutral and natural order:
This is an important step.

Serbian word order is fairly flexible, but changing it usually changes emphasis.

For example:

• Ovo je važan korak. = neutral
• Važan korak je ovo. = marked, poetic, or strongly emphatic
• Korak je važan. = The step is important, which is a different structure and emphasis

So the original sentence is the best everyday version.

A simple pronunciation guide:

• ovo ≈ OH-voh
• je ≈ yeh
• važan ≈ VAH-zhan
• korak ≈ KOH-rak

A few details:

• ž sounds like the s in measure
• j sounds like English y
• Serbian pronunciation is usually quite phonetic, so words are pronounced close to how they are written

So the whole sentence is roughly:

OH-voh yeh VAH-zhan KOH-rak

Not always, but this is the most common translation.

A very useful contrast is:

• ovo = this
• to = that / it / that thing

Examples:

• Ovo je važno. = This is important.
• To je važno. = That is important. or sometimes That’s important.

In real conversation, to je... is also extremely common when referring back to something already mentioned.

So in your sentence, ovo suggests something being presented as this.

Yes, you can.

• Ovo je važan korak. = This is an important step.
• Ovo je jedan važan korak. = This is one important step or This is an important step, with a slight sense of one or extra emphasis

The word jedan literally means one, but it can sometimes feel a bit like a/an in certain contexts. Still, Serbian does not need it in a basic sentence like this.

So the most natural default version is:

Ovo je važan korak.

Yes. Serbian officially uses both Latin and Cyrillic scripts.

So:

• Latin: Ovo je važan korak.
• Cyrillic: Ово је важан корак.

Both are correct Serbian. The pronunciation and meaning stay the same.