Moja smena počinje rano.

Moja means my.

It changes form to agree with the noun it belongs to. Since smena is a feminine singular noun, the possessive must also be feminine singular:

• moj = my (masculine singular)
• moja = my (feminine singular)
• moje = my (neuter singular)

So:

• moj posao = my job
• moja smena = my shift
• moje mesto = my place

Smena is in the nominative singular.

You can tell because it is the subject of the sentence — it is the thing that starts. In Moja smena počinje rano, the shift is doing the action of starting.

So the basic structure is:

• Moja smena = the subject
• počinje = the verb
• rano = an adverb describing when/how it starts

Here, smena means shift, especially a work shift.

Depending on context, smena can also refer more generally to a changeover or смена/change, but in a sentence like this, the normal meaning is a work shift.

So Moja smena počinje rano is naturally understood as My shift starts early.

Počinje is 3rd person singular present tense.

It agrees with smena, which is singular:

• ja počinjem = I start
• ti počinješ = you start
• on/ona/ono počinje = he/she/it starts

Since smena is grammatically treated like she/it in English-style grammar labels, the verb takes the 3rd person singular form: počinje.

Rano here means early, and it is an adverb.

It describes the verb počinje — in other words, it tells us how/when the shift starts.

Compare:

• rana smena = an early shift
  
  • here rana is an adjective describing smena
• smena počinje rano = the shift starts early
  
  • here rano is an adverb describing počinje

That distinction is very useful in Serbian.

Because Serbian does not use articles like English a/an/the.

So smena can mean:

• a shift
• the shift
• just shift

The exact meaning comes from context. In this sentence, because of moja, English naturally becomes my shift, and no article is needed in Serbian.

Not completely. Serbian word order is more flexible than English word order.

Moja smena počinje rano is the most neutral, straightforward version.

But other orders are possible for emphasis, for example:

• Rano počinje moja smena. = emphasis on early
• Počinje moja smena rano. = possible, but less neutral

A learner should usually start with the neutral pattern:

subject + verb + adverb

So Moja smena počinje rano is a very good standard sentence.

This is about aspect, which is an important part of Serbian verbs.

Very simply:

• počinje is the normal form used for a present-time fact or schedule like starts
• počne is a perfective form and is usually not the default choice in a plain present statement like this

So for a sentence meaning My shift starts early, počinje is the natural choice.

A learner-friendly way to think about it is:

• počinje = starts / is starting / begins
• počne = more like starts once / does start in a bounded, complete-event sense, often used in other structures

For example:

• Moja smena počinje u šest. = My shift starts at six.
• Kad smena počne, javi mi. = When the shift starts, let me know.

The tricky parts are:

• č = like ch in church
• nj = like ny in canyon or Spanish ñ
• j = like English y

So počinje is roughly:

po-CHIN-ye

And the whole sentence can be approximated as:

MO-ya SME-na po-CHIN-ye RA-no

That is only an approximation, but it is good enough for a beginner.

To make it negative, add ne before the verb:

• Moja smena ne počinje rano. = My shift doesn’t start early.

To make it a yes/no question, a common standard way is with da li:

• Da li moja smena počinje rano? = Does my shift start early?

In conversation, Serbian also often uses just intonation:

• Moja smena počinje rano?

But da li is a very safe form for learners.