Exceptive and restrictive clauses
In short
| Form | Followed by | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| osim + gen. | osim njega, osim direktora | except X |
| osim što | clause: osim što je voz kasnio | except that |
| samo što | clause after a positive statement | it's just that |
| umesto da | da + present (even in past stories) | instead of doing |
| jedino da | da + present | the only thing is that |
| samo / jedino | right before the word limited | only |
Fact after osim → što, never da. Different subject after umesto da → name it: umesto da on kuva.
B2 · Lesson 27 · Izuzimanje i ograničavanje: osim što, umesto da, samo što
The full explanation, from the lesson that teaches this rule
Real complaints are rarely total. A hotel was great except that the heating did not work; a flat is lovely, it's just that it is far from the centre; your colleague scrolled through his phone instead of helping. In each case you first say something about the whole situation and then carve a piece out of it. Serbian has a small set of words for exactly this, and this lesson puts them side by side.
In lesson 46 of B1 you met nego and već, which correct a negative statement: Nije došao Marko, nego Ana. The words below do a similar job, but the exception or the replacement sits in a separate clause or phrase that hangs off the main statement.
The six tools at a glance
| Serbian | What follows it | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| osim + genitive | a noun or pronoun in the genitive | except X, apart from X | Svi su došli osim direktora. |
| osim što | a full clause with its own verb | except that | Sve je bilo u redu, osim što je voz kasnio. |
| samo što | a full clause, after a positive statement | only, it's just that | Stan je lep, samo što je daleko. |
| umesto da | da + present tense | instead of doing | Umesto da se žali, nađe rešenje. |
| jedino da | da + present tense | the only thing (wanted, left) is that | Ne tražim ništa, jedino da mi kažeš istinu. |
| samo / jedino alone | goes right before the word it limits | only | Jedino Marija zna šifru. |
osim: a phrase or a whole clause
You already know the preposition osim with the genitive (A2): svi osim Marka — everyone except Marko. When the exception is not a person or a thing but a whole event, add što and follow it with an ordinary clause, with its own subject and its own tense: osim što je voz kasnio — except that the train was late.
- osim njega — except him (one word, genitive)
- osim što je on zakasnio — except that he was late (a clause with a verb)
Do not write osim da for 'except that'. With a fact that happened (or happens), the word is always što. Also keep osim ako (unless, B2 lesson 25) apart: osim ako introduces a condition, osim što states a fact.
osim što can also mean 'besides the fact that' when the main clause adds something rather than complains: Osim što je jeftin, hotel je i blizu plaže (Besides being cheap, the hotel is also close to the beach). The little i ('also') in the main clause gives this reading away. In this lesson we practise the 'except that' meaning.
samo što: the polite 'but'
samo što follows a positive statement and adds the one thing that spoils it: Novi komšija je ljubazan, samo što pušta glasnu muziku. It is softer than ali — it says 'everything is fine, it's just that…'. A comma always stands before it.
samo što has a second, completely different meaning: time. Samo što sam stigao means 'I have only just arrived', and Samo što nije pala kiša means 'it was about to rain'. You can tell them apart easily: the restrictive samo što comes AFTER a statement it qualifies, after a comma; the time samo što opens its own sentence and says nothing is wrong. We only drill the restrictive one here.
umesto da: instead of doing
English says 'instead of + -ing'. Serbian has no -ing, so it uses umesto da + the present tense — the same da + present you know from hoću da idem. The verb after da agrees with whoever does that action.
| Who does the replaced action? | What you write | Example |
|---|---|---|
| the same person as in the main clause | da + present in that person's form, no new subject | Umesto da razgovaraš sa nama, gledaš u telefon. |
| a different person | da + present, and name the new subject | Umesto da on kuva, opet sam ja kuvala. |
The verb after umesto da stays in the PRESENT even when the story is in the past: Umesto da se izvini, konobar je počeo da se svađa. Do not put the past tense after da. And if you only need a noun, use umesto + genitive, which you know from A2: umesto njega — instead of him.
jedino da: the only thing that is left
jedino da + present names the single thing that remains possible or wanted, usually after a negative or after a verb like ostati (to be left): Ne želim nikakve poklone, jedino da budemo zajedno (I don't want any presents, only for us to be together); Ostaje nam jedino da čekamo (All we can do is wait).
samo and jedino on their own
Used alone, samo and jedino both mean 'only'. They stand directly in front of the word they limit, and moving them changes the meaning:
- Samo Ana pije kafu. — Only Ana drinks coffee (nobody else).
- Ana pije samo kafu. — Ana drinks only coffee (nothing else).
jedino is a little stronger — 'the one and only': Jedino ti možeš da ga ubediš. In everyday speech both are correct in these sentences; samo is the more common.
Check what you read
6 of the 14 questions this lesson asks in the app. Type the form or pick the answer.
Sve je bilo odlično, ___ je kiša padala celog dana.
Osim ___ je lift bio pokvaren, hotel je bio dobar.
Svi su došli ___ Petra.
U sobi nije bilo nikoga osim(on).
Svi su se složili osim(direktor).
Umesto da(pomoći) bratu, Marko je otišao u grad.
Examples from the course
The marked word is where the rule applies. Press play to hear the sentence.
Ostaje nam jedino da čekamo.
All we can do is wait.
Jedino Marija zna šifru od sefa.
Only Marija knows the code to the safe.
Samo ti možeš da ga ubediš.
Only you can persuade him.
Parking je isključivo za goste hotela.
The car park is exclusively for hotel guests.
U kancelariji nije bilo nikoga osim čistačice.
There was nobody in the office except the cleaning lady.
Svi su došli na sastanak osim direktora.
Everyone came to the meeting except the director.
Umesto da trpiš buku, napiši pritužbu stanodavcu.
Instead of putting up with the noise, write a complaint to the landlord.
Umesto da se žali, on uvek nađe rešenje.
Instead of complaining, he always finds a solution.
Osim nedostatka parkinga, kraj je savršen za život.
Apart from the lack of parking, the neighbourhood is perfect to live in.
Umesto da on kuva, opet sam ja kuvala.
Instead of him cooking, I cooked again.
Sentences in the course that use this rule: 30
Try it yourself
Translate a sentence that uses this rule. The check marks the word that went wrong and names the rule behind it, as in the app.
Sentences
Write it in Serbian
Everyone came to the meeting except the director.