Banka je levo od trga, a pekara desno.

The bank is to the left of the square, and the bakery is to the right.

Breakdown of Banka je levo od trga, a pekara desno.

• biti: to be
• a: and
• banka: bank
• levo: to the left

Questions & Answers about Banka je levo od trga, a pekara desno.

Why is it Banka je levo od trga and not something like Banka je leva?

Because levo here is an adverb meaning to the left / on the left, not an adjective.

• leva is the feminine adjective left
• levo is the adverb leftward / on the left

So:

• Banka je leva would sound like The bank is left in the sense of describing the bank with an adjective, which is not what you want.
• Banka je levo od trga means The bank is to the left of the square.

This is similar to English using left in a location expression rather than as a descriptive adjective.

Why do we use od trga?

Because od means from / of, and in expressions of relative location Serbian often uses:

• levo od ... = to the left of ...
• desno od ... = to the right of ...

After od, the following noun goes into the genitive case.

So:

• trg = square
• od trga = of/from the square (genitive)

That is why it is trga, not trg.

What case is trga, and how do I know?