Croatian and Serbian: 1,728 words that are the same
Among the two thousand words each language uses most, these are written identically and carry the same meaning in both. If you have one of the two, this is the part you do not have to learn.
Croatian Serbian
A shared word is not proof of a shared root. Two languages can land on the same spelling by borrowing from a third — that is all tren and bomba are — and a word that looks the same can still be said quite differently. What this list is good for is the head start.
| Word | In English | Croatian | Serbian |
|---|---|---|---|
| je | of her | #1 | #2 |
| da | that | #2 | #1 |
| ne | not | #3 | #3 |
| se | myself | #4 | #4 |
| i | and | #5 | #5 |
| u | in, at | #6 | #6 |
| to | that, the aforementioned | #7 | #7 |
| sam | to be, to exist | #8 | #8 |
| što | why | #9 | #16 |
| na | on, at, in | #10 | #9 |
| ti | you | #11 | #10 |
| za | for | #12 | #12 |
| mi | we | #13 | #11 |
| si | to myself | #14 | #13 |
| li | question-forming interrogative particle | #15 | #14 |
| ja | I | #16 | #17 |
| su | third-person plural present of bȉti | #17 | #20 |
| ali | but | #18 | #18 |
| nije | to be, to exist | #19 | #21 |
| s | with, together with, along with | #20 | #47 |
| samo | just, only, only just, merely, solely | #21 | #23 |
| ga | of him | #22 | #28 |
| me | of me | #23 | #24 |
| od | from, since | #24 | #26 |
| a | but, and | #25 | #27 |
| bi | to be, to exist | #26 | #29 |
| ovo | this, this one | #27 | #22 |
| kako | how | #28 | #30 |
| te | of you | #29 | #25 |
| će | third-person singular/plural present of htȅti/htjȅti | #30 | #37 |
| o | on, against | #31 | #31 |
| dobro | well | #32 | #32 |
| ako | if | #33 | #33 |
| smo | to be, to exist | #34 | #35 |
| sa | alternative form of s; used instead of s when the following… | #35 | #19 |
| sve | Intensity amplifier, used exclusively in phrases | #36 | #34 |
| kao | as, like | #37 | #36 |
| ću | first-person singular present of htȅti/htjȅti | #38 | #57 |
| biti | to be, to exist | #39 | #53 |
| tako | so, like that, in such a way | #40 | #38 |
| znam | first-person singular present of znȁti | #41 | #39 |
| ste | second-person plural present of bȉti | #42 | #42 |
| nisam | to be, to exist | #43 | #40 |
| ovdje | here, over here | #44 | #163 |
| bio | to be, to exist | #45 | #45 |
| mogu | can, to be able to | #46 | #41 |
| pa | then | #47 | #44 |
| zašto | why, what for | #48 | #46 |
| on | he | #49 | #48 |
| još | more, another | #50 | #49 |
| redu | row | #51 | #52 |
| bilo | generalization particle used before another word to express… | #52 | #51 |
| nešto | something | #53 | #50 |
| kad | when | #54 | #55 |
| koji | which, what | #55 | #54 |
| vas | of you | #56 | #56 |
| mislim | to think | #57 | #60 |
| hvala | praise | #58 | #58 |
| iz | from, out of | #59 | #59 |
| ili | or | #60 | #62 |
| možda | perhaps, maybe | #61 | #64 |
| ih | of them | #62 | #65 |
| gdje | where | #63 | #221 |
| ima | he has, she has | #64 | #61 |
| vam | you | #65 | #69 |
| više | over, above | #66 | #66 |
| znaš | second-person singular present of znȁti | #67 | #63 |
| rekao | to say | #68 | #77 |
| sada | genitive singular of sȃd | #69 | #68 |
| moj | my, mine | #70 | #75 |
| onda | then | #71 | #67 |
| bih | first-person singular aorist of bȉti | #72 | #73 |
| tko | who | #73 | #271 |
| mu | to him | #74 | #76 |
| ćemo | first-person plural present of htȅti/htjȅti | #75 | #112 |
| do | only, except | #76 | #72 |
| nema | mute, dumb | #77 | #81 |
| bila | to be, to exist | #78 | #78 |
| ništa | nothing | #79 | #82 |
| zar | used in tag questions, to ask for an affirmation to a polar… | #80 | #70 |
| nas | of us | #81 | #83 |
| ona | she | #82 | #86 |
| želim | first-person singular present of žèljeti | #83 | #99 |
| malo | little, few, some | #84 | #79 |
| mene | of me, long form | #85 | #84 |
| može | can, to be able to | #86 | #93 |
| vi | you | #87 | #97 |
| molim | to ask, request, beg | #88 | #88 |
| kada | bathtub | #89 | #80 |
| reći | to say | #90 | #142 |
| šta | what | #91 | #15 |
| jer | because, for | #92 | #104 |
| prije | before, earlier | #93 | #304 |
| tebe | of you | #94 | #87 |
| hej | hi | #95 | #101 |
| imam | to have, possess, own | #96 | #95 |
| možeš | can, to be able to | #97 | #94 |
| sad | now | #98 | #89 |
| tu | here | #99 | #100 |
| ćeš | second-person singular present of htȅti/htjȅti | #100 | #118 |
| zbog | because of, due to, owing to | #101 | #96 |
| ni | even, either | #102 | #90 |
| nam | to us | #103 | #98 |
| tamo | there | #104 | #92 |
| jesi | second-person singular present of bȉti | #105 | #103 |
| ljudi | people, men | #106 | #109 |
| svi | everyone | #107 | #105 |
| moram | to have to; must | #108 | #110 |
| uvijek | always | #109 | #345 |
| treba | girl, chick | #110 | #74 |
| stvarno | really, truly | #111 | #102 |
| hajde | let's go | #112 | #91 |
| po | half | #113 | #106 |
| jedan | one | #114 | #115 |
| koliko | how much, how many | #115 | #111 |
| već | already | #116 | #114 |
| idemo | to go, walk | #117 | #116 |
| misliš | to think | #118 | #113 |
| zato | so, therefore, for that/this reason, ergo | #119 | #107 |
| baš | at all, truly, really, exactly | #120 | #108 |
| nego | than | #121 | #119 |
| neće | to wish, want, desire | #122 | #122 |
| bez | without, excluding, not counting | #123 | #124 |
| vrijeme | time | #124 | #378 |
| možemo | can, to be able to | #125 | #131 |
| dok | while, as long as | #126 | #121 |
| koje | which, what | #127 | #120 |
| ono | it | #128 | #127 |
| joj | to her | #129 | #130 |
| oni | they | #130 | #134 |
| želiš | to wish, desire | #131 | #158 |
| toga | that, the aforementioned | #132 | #126 |
| ovaj | this, this one | #133 | #132 |
| žao | sorry | #134 | #145 |
| imaš | to have, possess, own | #135 | #128 |
| taj | that, the aforementioned | #136 | #136 |
| naravno | of course | #137 | #125 |
| mogao | can, to be able to | #138 | #150 |
| posao | job | #139 | #143 |
| koja | which, what | #140 | #139 |
| imamo | to have, possess, own | #141 | #149 |
| dana | day | #142 | #137 |
| nikad | never | #143 | #144 |
| tvoj | your, yours | #144 | #140 |
| dan | day | #145 | #154 |
| bili | to be, to exist | #146 | #161 |
| rekla | to say | #147 | #146 |
| put | to, toward | #148 | #151 |
| radi | for, because of, for the sake of | #149 | #156 |
| godina | year | #150 | #148 |
| bolje | comparative degree of dòbro: in a better or superior manner | #151 | #147 |
| svoje | one's own | #152 | #176 |
| nemoj | don't | #153 | #159 |
| puno | much, a lot, lots | #154 | #226 |
| neću | to wish, want, desire | #155 | #157 |
| netko | someone, somebody | #156 | #526 |
| meni | to me | #157 | #165 |
| možete | can, to be able to | #158 | #188 |
| kod | by, at, near, besides | #159 | #138 |
| reci | river | #160 | #175 |
| vidjeti | to see | #161 | #528 |
| jeste | emphatic yes | #162 | #152 |
| mama | mom | #163 | #167 |
| dobar | good | #164 | #168 |
| dva | two | #165 | #177 |
| mora | sea | #166 | #155 |
| njega | of him | #167 | #178 |
| imao | to have, possess, own | #168 | #182 |
| stvar | thing | #169 | #179 |
| nisu | to be, to exist | #170 | #180 |
| život | life | #171 | #173 |
| im | to them | #172 | #172 |
| tata | dad, daddy | #173 | #169 |
| vremena | time | #174 | #181 |
| radiš | to work | #175 | #164 |
| vidio | to see | #176 | #540 |
| volim | to love | #177 | #171 |
| jako | very, very much, really | #178 | #233 |
| pomoći | help | #179 | #261 |
| ići | to go, walk | #180 | #347 |
| vidim | first-person singular present of videti and vidjeti | #181 | #153 |
| kući | home, at home | #182 | #174 |
| nikada | never | #183 | #185 |
| danas | today | #184 | #184 |
| zna | to know | #185 | #186 |
| trebao | to be needed, to be required | #186 | #284 |
| neka | let, may | #187 | #190 |
| opet | again | #188 | #206 |
| vrlo | very, extremely | #189 | #255 |
| upravo | exactly, precisely | #190 | #207 |
| svoj | one's own | #191 | #208 |
| učiniti | to do, make | #192 | #492 |
| nakon | after | #193 | #294 |
| odmah | right now, immediately | #194 | #187 |
| ime | name | #195 | #198 |
| sigurno | certainly | #196 | #213 |
| svoju | feminine accusative singular of svȏj | #197 | #204 |
| tri | three | #198 | #194 |
| idem | to go, walk | #199 | #166 |
| želi | to wish, desire | #200 | #229 |
Showing the 200 commonest of 1,728. Download all 1,728
The overlap is the easy part.
The rest comes from using it with someone who speaks it.