Otkad je prodavnica zatvorena?

Otkad means since when or from when. In a sentence like this, it asks about the starting point of a state.

So the sentence is not asking when did the shop close? as a one-time event only, but rather since when has the shop been in the state of being closed?

That is why otkad is very natural here.

Yes. Otkad and od kada are both used, and they mean the same thing here.

• otkad = a single-word form
• od kada = the two-word form

In everyday speech, otkad is very common. Od kada may sound a little more neutral or slightly more explicit, but there is no major difference in meaning in this sentence.

Je is the present-tense form of biti (to be), for he/she/it is.

This sentence describes a current state: the shop is closed, and the speaker is asking when that state began. Serbian often uses the present of biti plus an adjective/participle to express this kind of idea.

So the structure is basically:

• prodavnica je zatvorena = the shop is closed

Then otkad asks for the starting point of that state.

Because prodavnica is a feminine singular noun.

In Serbian, adjectives and adjective-like forms must agree with the noun in:

• gender
• number
• case

So here:

• prodavnica = feminine singular
• therefore zatvorena = feminine singular

Compare:

• grad je zatvoren = the city is closed/open-shut in the masculine form
• vrata su zatvorena = the door(s) are closed / the doors are closed, neuter plural-looking form used with vrata

It behaves like an adjective here, but historically it comes from a verb.

It is the passive participle of zatvoriti (to close), and in sentences like this it describes a resulting state:

• prodavnica je zatvorena = the shop is closed

So for a learner, it is very helpful to think of it as an adjective-like form meaning closed, because it agrees with the noun just like an adjective does.

Prodavnica is in the nominative singular, because it is the subject of the sentence.

The basic structure is:

• prodavnica = subject
• je zatvorena = predicate

There is no case triggered by otkad here, because otkad introduces the question about time and is followed by a whole clause, not by a noun phrase.

No. Serbian does not have articles like English a/an/the.

So prodavnica can mean:

• a shop
• the shop

Which one is meant depends on context. In this sentence, context usually makes it clear that a specific shop is being discussed.

This word order is very natural and standard, but Serbian word order is more flexible than English word order.

The given sentence is the most neutral version:

• Otkad je prodavnica zatvorena?

You may also hear variants with slightly different emphasis, but the original version is the safest and most natural for learners.

For example, moving words around can shift focus, but it is better to learn the neutral order first.

By itself, it does not specify that.

Zatvorena simply means closed. The sentence asks when that state began. Whether the shop is:

• temporarily closed,
• closed for the day,
• or permanently shut down

depends entirely on context.

If you want to make the idea more specific, Serbian would usually add extra words.

A simple learner-friendly pronunciation is:

• ot-kad

Every letter is pronounced clearly. Roughly:

• o like o in off (shorter and cleaner)
• t as a clear t
• kad with a like a in father

Also remember that Serbian spelling is quite phonetic, so words are usually pronounced much the way they are written.

Sometimes that translation works in context, but it is not the most exact match.

Otkad je prodavnica zatvorena? focuses on the starting point of the state of being closed.

A more event-focused question, asking about the single act of closing, would more directly be:

• Kada je prodavnica zatvorena? in some contexts, though this can sound less natural depending on what exactly you mean
• or other rephrasings that clearly ask about the closing event

So the sentence you have is best understood as asking since when has the shop been closed?, not just when did it close?