Stanovanje
Lesson goals
Vocabulary
- Name stan, soba, kirija, and namještaj for a rental visit.
- Use može and moraš as present permission and obligation chunks.
- Ask Koliko je kirija? And talk about a monthly stay.
Grammar
- Use Može? And Može. As quick permission lines.
- Say moraš with rent and contract nouns in the present.
- Describe a flat with ima and soba phrases.
Culture
- Picture apartment hunting in Zenica near schools and tram lines.
- Treat a hallway tour as polite present-tense practice.
- Notice how returnees and young families compete for the same flats.
Watch the companion video
Watch when you can, then come back for words, dialogue, and practice on this page.
Learn Bosnian house vocabulary (YouTube). Room and house words support flat visits.
Flat hunting in Zenica
In Zenica many newcomers hunt flats through word of mouth, online ads, and quick visits after work. Ana and Emir climb a staircase in a block near the steelworks and imagine a longer stay beyond the guest room above the café. The landlord opens a bright kitchen and points to a corner where a sofa already waits. Kirija is discussed in marks per month on a handwritten note taped to the door. Young families and returnees often compete for the same two-room flats near schools and tram lines. A polite visit with molim and clear questions about rent can turn a hallway tour into a serious conversation about keys.
Lesson vocabulary
Tap a word to hear it. Use Loop and slower speed when you want to shadow.
Grammar
Može permission chunks
Može? Asks if something is allowed. Može. Answers yes in one calm word. Ne može. Refuses without a tense chart. Pair the chunk with ulazite or sjedite when you visit a flat.
- Može? Mogu pogledati stan?: May I? Can I look at the apartment?
- Može. Ulazite.: Yes. Come in.
- Ne može. Nema ključa.: Not allowed. There is no key.
Moraš obligation lines
Moraš tells one person what they must do now. Add platiti kiriju or imati ugovor right after the chunk. Stay in the present so the landlord talk stays practical.
- Moraš platiti kiriju.: You must pay the rent.
- Moraš imati ugovor.: You must have a contract.
- Moraš biti tačan.: You must be on time.
Rent question shape
Ask Koliko je kirija? When you stand in the hallway. Answer Kirija je mjesečno. Add a number later. The question shape matters more than every case ending today.
- Koliko je kirija?: How much is the rent?
- Kirija je mjesečno.: The rent is monthly.
- Kirija je tri stotine.: The rent is three hundred.
Say again
Warm up with four lines you already know.
- Moja soba je mala.: My room is small.
- Stan je iznad kafića.: The apartment is above the café.
- Koliko košta?: How much does it cost?
- Hvala, molim.: Thank you, please.
Lesson A. Permission and rent questions
Start with stan, soba, and kirija so the hallway has real nouns before you step inside. Practice Može? Mogu pogledati stan? Until the permission chunk sounds natural at a closed door. Ask Koliko je kirija? While you still wear your shoes in the corridor. Add kuhinja and kupatilo as you walk through each room. Ana repeats mjesečno with the landlord while Emir counts windows and checks the light. Keep može and moraš as spoken lines rather than a modal verb table. Point at namještaj in the corner and say ima mali sto. Reuse molim when you enter and hvala when you leave each room. Say each rent question twice, then thank the landlord with hvala before you step back into the stairwell.
- Keep Može? And the follow-up question in one breath.
- Pair kirija with mjesečno when you talk about monthly pay.
- Stay in the present even when you plan a longer stay.
Match housing words
Match each Bosnian housing word with its English meaning.
Lesson B. Almost signing the lease
Move from the tour to the table where an ugovor waits beside a pen. Say Moraš platiti kiriju when the landlord explains house rules in plain language. Describe namještaj with ima and lijep when you point at the sofa corner. Amira asks about ključ and Ana says Želim iznajmiti stan for three months. Emir checks that kuhinja i kupatilo su čisti before he nods toward the balcony. Reuse molim and hvala with the landlord so the scene stays polite end to end. Try saying the whole visit as one chain out loud. Ask permission, ask about rent, name a room, hear the obligation, say thanks, and give a calm goodbye at the door. Repeat it until signing feels possible, even if you still want one more night to decide.
- Reuse Imam from earlier lessons when you claim a favorite room.
- Say namještaj slowly. It is a long but useful word.
- End with hvala even if you need time to decide.
Pogled stana u Zenici
Ana, Emir, and Amira visit a Zenica flat with the landlord before a possible longer stay.
Play the full scene once. Then tap a line to hear it. On some lines you can record yourself for a short Speak Check.
Speak Check listens to your recording and sends back short tips.
Speak Check listens to your recording and sends back short tips.
Practice
Your keyboard may not have č ć š ž đ. Tap the accent buttons under each box to insert them.
Write the Bosnian for May I look at the apartment?
Hint: Begin with Može?
Write the Bosnian for How much is the rent?
Hint: Use kirija.
Write the Bosnian for You must pay the rent.
Hint: Begin with Moraš.
Write the Bosnian for The kitchen is clean.
Hint: Use kuhinja and čista.
Write the Bosnian word for furniture.
Hint: It begins with nam.
Write the Bosnian for I want to rent the apartment.
Hint: Use Želim iznajmiti stan.
Write the Bosnian for Yes. Come in.
Hint: Use Može and ulazite.
Fun facts
Zenica mixes industry and student life
Zenica sits in central Bosnia and Herzegovina with factories, university students, and tram lines that shape daily housing hunts. Flats near campus and the steelworks turn over quickly. Visiting a block staircase like this gives you real city vocabulary instead of just café small talk.
Kirija is often monthly
Rent talk in Bosnia and Herzegovina usually centers on a monthly kirija figure. Landlords may write the number on a note or say it in the hallway. Learning Koliko je kirija? Prepares you for that first practical question.
Može is a door opener
Može? At a doorway is faster than a long grammar explanation. The answer Može. Invites you inside with one calm word. Present permission chunks keep housing visits friendly.
Namještaj can be light
Some flats come with basic namještaj while others are empty. A sofa corner and kitchen table are enough to describe a place today. Point and name rather than memorizing a furniture catalog.
Čuj Bosnu with house and room words
A short lesson models room vocabulary you can reuse when you tour a flat.
Speaker · Learn Bosnian with Elma · Home and room language · focus ~45-90 seconds
Watch & listen
Learn Bosnian with Elma on YouTube (YouTube Terms of Service (embed))
Listen for a room word you could point to during a flat visit.
Press play on the video above. After you have listened, show the gist question.
Bosnia today
Returnees in Republika Srpska still face hostile local pressure
Minority return to Republika Srpska remains unfinished three decades after the war. Bosniak returnees often face segregated schooling, job barriers, and political rhetoric that treats them as outsiders in their own towns. International monitors continue to document property disputes and intimidation around returnee communities. Having the legal right to reclaim a house is not the same as feeling safe enough to stay in it.
Wikipedia article on return of refugees and IDPs in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Practice game
True or false at the flat
Decide whether each sentence matches the lesson.
Može. Ulazite. Means yes, come in.
Moraš platiti kiriju means you must pay the rent.
Kupatilo means kitchen.
Koliko je kirija? Asks about rent.
Quick review
A few words from this lesson, plus ones you missed before. Flip the card, then mark how it went.
Card 1 / 5
More resources
- Learn Bosnian house vocabulary (YouTube). Room and house words support flat visits.
- Next lesson. Lesson 27 follows Emir at work and Ana at school.
- How to speak Bosnian channel. Browse more speaker models after you finish the lesson.
Lesson quiz
Or open the full-page quiz: Lesson 26 quiz
Lesson 26 section quiz
1. What does kirija mean?
2. Which line asks permission to enter?
3. What does moraš platiti kiriju mean?
4. Which room word means bathroom?
5. Where does the culture scene take place?
6. Who speaks as the landlord in the dialogue?
7. What civic pressure does this housing lesson highlight?
8. Which word means furniture?
9. What does Ana want to do for three months?
