Prvo ću proveriti da li imam pasoš i karticu.

First I will check whether I have my passport and card.

Breakdown of Prvo ću proveriti da li imam pasoš i karticu.

• imati: to have
• i: and
• hteti: will
• da li: whether

Questions & Answers about Prvo ću proveriti da li imam pasoš i karticu.

What does prvo mean here?

Prvo means first or first of all. It is an adverb, and it tells you this is the first action in a sequence.

So the sentence suggests something like:

• first, I’ll check...
• before anything else, I’ll check...

It often appears at the beginning of a sentence, but Serbian word order is flexible, so you may also hear it elsewhere for emphasis.

Why is it ću proveriti instead of proveriću?

Both are related to the future tense, but the word order matters.

In Serbian, ću is a short auxiliary form (an enclitic), and it usually goes in the second position in the clause.

So in:

Prvo ću proveriti...

• Prvo is in first position
• ću goes next
• proveriti stays separate

If the verb comes first, Serbian often writes the future as one word:

• Proveriću da li imam pasoš i karticu.

So these are both natural:

• Prvo ću proveriti...
• Proveriću...

But standard Serbian does not normally use proveriti ću.

Why is proveriti used here, not proveravati?

This is about aspect, which is very important in Serbian.