hladan
When you're just starting out with Serbian, one of the first words you'll want to learn for describing temperatures is hladan. This adjective means "cold" and is very useful in everyday conversations. You'll use it to talk about the weather, drinks, or even people's personalities if they're not very friendly. Remember, Serbian adjectives change their endings, so hladan will look a bit different depending on what you're describing.
§ Don't confuse 'hladan' with 'hladno'
Many learners mix up 'hladan' (adjective) and 'hladno' (adverb or impersonal expression). This is a very common mistake. Remember that 'hladan' describes a noun, while 'hladno' describes the state of being cold.
- DEFINITION
- Hladan is an adjective, meaning 'cold'. It changes endings based on the gender and number of the noun it describes. For example, hladan čaj (cold tea - masculine), hladna voda (cold water - feminine), hladno vreme (cold weather - neuter).
Ovo je hladan dan. (This is a cold day.)
Voda je hladna. (The water is cold.)
- DEFINITION
- Hladno is an adverb, meaning 'coldly', or it's used in the impersonal expression Hladno mi je (I am cold). It does not change endings.
Danas je hladno. (It is cold today.)
Hladno mi je. (I am cold.)
§ Forgetting gender agreement
Serbian adjectives, including 'hladan', must agree in gender, number, and case with the noun they describe. For beginners, the main focus should be on gender agreement (masculine, feminine, neuter) in the nominative case. Forgetting this is a frequent source of errors.
Masculine: hladan (e.g., hladan vetar - cold wind)
Feminine: hladna (e.g., hladna kafa - cold coffee)
Neuter: hladno (e.g., hladno pivo - cold beer)
Ne volim hladan čaj. (I don't like cold tea. 'Čaj' is masculine.)
Ona pije hladnu vodu. (She drinks cold water. 'Voda' is feminine.)
To je hladno vreme za maj. (It is cold weather for May. 'Vreme' is neuter.)
§ Using 'hladan' for people's feelings
In English, we say 'I am cold.' In Serbian, you generally don't use 'Ja sam hladan/hladna.' That would imply you are a cold person (emotionally distant), not that you feel cold. The correct way to express feeling cold is with the impersonal expression 'Hladno mi je'.
Nije mi dobro, hladno mi je. (I'm not well, I am cold.)
On je veoma hladan čovek. (He is a very cold man. - referring to personality)
§ Overlooking 'hladiti' (to cool) or 'rashladiti' (to chill)
While 'hladan' is an adjective, don't forget there are verbs related to cooling things down. If you want to talk about the action of making something cold, you'll need a verb.
- DEFINITION
- Hladiti (imperfective) / Rashladiti (perfective): To cool, to chill.
Moramo rashladiti piće. (We need to chill the drinks.)
Ventilator hladi sobu. (The fan cools the room.)
