Questions & Answers about Da li ste juče otvorili prozor i vrata?
What does da li do in this sentence?
Da li is a very common way to introduce a yes/no question in Serbian.
So here it signals that the sentence is asking something like Did you... ?
It does not have a separate lexical meaning like if or whether in this sentence; it mainly marks the sentence as a question.
A very common alternative is: Jeste li juče otvorili prozor i vrata?
That means the same thing.
Why is ste there?
Ste is the 2nd person plural form of the auxiliary verb biti (to be) in the present tense.
In Serbian, the past tense is usually made with:
- an auxiliary form of biti
- plus a past participle
So:
- ste = auxiliary
- otvorili = past participle
Together, ste otvorili means you opened / you have opened.
Also, ste can refer to:
- you all
- or you in a formal/polite singular sense
Why is the verb form otvorili?
Otvorili is the past participle of otvoriti (to open).