Romanian Grammar

Personal subject pronouns: eu, tu, el/ea, noi, voi, ei/ele. Often omitted because verb endings indicate person.

Three genders: masculine, feminine, and neuter (neuter acts masculine in singular, feminine in plural). Gender affects articles and adjective agreement.

Definite articles attached to the end of nouns: -ul/-le (m), -a (f), -ul/-le (n sg), -le/-urile (n pl). A distinctive feature of Romanian among Romance languages.

Indefinite articles: un (m/n sg), o (f sg), niște (plural for all genders). Placed before the noun.

Present tense conjugation of 'a fi' (to be): sunt, ești, este/e, suntem, sunteți, sunt. Essential for identity, descriptions, and location.

Present tense conjugation of 'a avea' (to have): am, ai, are, avem, aveți, au. Used for possession and as auxiliary.

Four conjugation groups based on infinitive endings: -a (a cânta, Group I), -ea (a vedea, Group II), -e (a merge, Group III), -i/-î (a dormi/a hotărî, Group IV).

Adjectives agree in gender and number with the nouns they modify. Four forms: m sg, f sg, m pl, f pl.

Cardinal numbers with special gender-agreeing forms for 'one' (un/o) and 'two' (doi/două). Numbers from 11-19 use -sprezece.

Common prepositions: în (in), la (at/to), pe (on), cu (with), de (of/from), pentru (for), din (from/out of), spre (towards).

Basic SVO word order in Romanian. Adjectives usually follow nouns. Flexible word order for emphasis due to case system.

Negation with 'nu' placed before the verb. Double negation is standard: 'nu...nimic' (not...nothing), 'nu...niciodată' (not...never).

Questions formed by intonation or with question words: ce (what), cine (who), unde (where), când (when), cum (how), de ce (why).

Essential greetings: bună ziua (good day), bună (hi), la revedere (goodbye), mulțumesc (thanks), te rog (please), scuze (sorry).

Telling time (cât e ceasul?), days of the week (luni, marți...), months (ianuarie, februarie...), and seasons.

Expressing ability, desire, obligation: a putea (can), a vrea (want), a trebui (must). 'Trebuie' is impersonal, followed by 'să' + subjunctive.

High-frequency irregular verbs: a face (to do/make), a merge (to go), a veni (to come), a ști (to know), a da (to give), a lua (to take).

Expressing existence with 'este/sunt' (there is/are), 'există' (exists). Questions with 'este/sunt...?'.

Basic color adjectives and their agreement with noun gender: roșu/roșie (red), albastru/albastră (blue), verde (green), galben/galbenă (yellow).

Essential food and drink vocabulary with 'a mânca' (to eat), 'a bea' (to drink), ordering phrases, and common items.

Family vocabulary: mamă (mother), tată (father), frate (brother), soră (sister), bunic/bunică (grandfather/grandmother), soț/soție (husband/wife).

Common locations: magazin (shop), bancă (bank), școală (school), spital (hospital), gară (train station), parc (park), restaurant.

Common professions with masculine/feminine forms: profesor/profesoară, doctor/doctoriță, student/studentă, inginer, avocat.

Using 'a plăcea' (to like/please) with dative pronouns: îmi place (I like), îți place (you like). Subject is the thing liked, similar to Italian 'piacere'.

Body parts with their genders: cap (head, n), mână (hand, f), picior (leg, n), ochi (eye, m), gură (mouth, f). Used with 'mă doare' (it hurts me).

First conjugation verbs ending in -a: a lucra (to work), a cânta (to sing), a mânca (to eat). Regular pattern: lucrez, lucrezi, lucrează, lucrăm, lucrați, lucrează.

Rooms and furniture: cameră (room), bucătărie (kitchen), baie (bathroom), pat (bed), masă (table), scaun (chair). With prepositions of location.

Weather expressions using impersonal constructions: e cald (it's warm), e frig (it's cold), plouă (it rains), ninge (it snows), e soare (it's sunny).

Common clothing items with gender: pantaloni (pants, m pl), rochie (dress, f), cămașă (shirt, f), pantofi (shoes, m pl). With 'a purta' (to wear).

Means of transport: autobuz (bus), tren (train), avion (plane), mașină (car). With 'cu' for 'by' and verbs of motion.

Complex plural patterns with vowel changes and various endings: -i (m), -e (f), -uri (n). Many irregular forms with internal vowel alternation.

Subject and direct object forms. Identical for most nouns. Personal 'pe' marks animate direct objects.

Possession and indirect object forms (identical in Romanian). Formed with special article forms: -lui (m/n), -i (f).

Unstressed object pronouns: mă/m- (me), te (you), îl/l-/o (him/her), ne (us), vă (you), îi/le (them). Placed before or after verb.

Main past tense using auxiliary 'a avea' + past participle. Most common past tense in spoken Romanian.

Commands with affirmative and negative forms. Negative imperative uses 'nu' + infinitive (2nd sg) or 'nu' + subjunctive.

Verbs with reflexive pronouns (se, mă, te): a se spăla (wash oneself), a se trezi (wake up), a se îmbrăca (get dressed).

This/that with gender and case agreement: acest/această (this), acel/aceea (that), aceștia/acestea, aceia/acelea (plural).

Possessives with article agreement: al meu/a mea/ai mei/ale mele. Short forms: meu, tău, său. Agree with possessed noun, not possessor.

Comparative with 'mai' (more) and superlative with 'cel mai' (the most). Irregular: bun→mai bun→cel mai bun.

Future with 'voi' auxiliary (formal) or colloquial 'o să' + subjunctive. 'Voi' form: voi/vei/va/vom/veți/vor + infinitive.

Subjunctive formed with 'să' + special verb forms. Used for wishes, necessity, purpose, after impersonal verbs, and instead of infinitive.

Conditional with auxiliary 'aș/ai/ar/am/ați/ar' + infinitive. Used for wishes, polite requests, hypothetical situations.

Past continuous/habitual actions with -am/-ai/-a/-am/-ați/-au endings. Used for background descriptions, habits, and ongoing past actions.

Direct address forms with special endings: -e (m names), -o (f names), -ule (m common nouns), -lor (plural). Unique among Romance languages.

Repeating object pronoun alongside full noun. Required for definite direct objects with 'pe' and for indirect objects.

Passive with 'a fi' + past participle or reflexive passive with 'se'. Agent introduced with 'de (către)'.

Relative pronouns: care (who/which), ce (what/which), pe care (whom), căruia/căreia (to whom). 'Care' declines for case.

Adverbs often identical to neuter singular adjective form. Some specific adverb forms: bine (well), rău (badly), repede (quickly).

Subordinating conjunctions: că (that), dacă (if), deși (although), pentru că (because), ca să (in order to), înainte să (before).

The preposition 'pe' marks animate/specific direct objects. Required for proper nouns, pronouns, and definite animate nouns. A key feature of Romanian.

Linking words for coherent text: în primul rând (firstly), de asemenea (also), în concluzie (in conclusion), cu toate acestea (nevertheless), pe de altă parte (on the other hand).

Simple pluperfect without auxiliary, formed with special endings (-sem/-seși/-se/-serăm/-serăți/-seră). Unique among Romance languages.

Expressing probability or supposition: 'o fi' + past participle, 'vor fi' + past participle. Unique Romanian verbal mood.

Verbal form ending in -ând (Group I) or -ind (Groups II-IV) for ongoing/simultaneous actions. Less common than in English.

Verbal noun formed with 'de' + past participle. Used for purpose, ability, and as noun. A feature inherited from Latin, rare in other Romance languages.

Adjectives with definite article when placed before the noun. Article attaches to the adjective instead of the noun.

Indefinite pronouns and adjectives: cineva (someone), ceva (something), nimeni (nobody), nimic (nothing), oricine (anyone), fiecare (each).

Coordination and subordination with various conjunctions: deși (although), dacă (if), pentru că (because), astfel încât (so that).

Indirect discourse with appropriate tense and pronoun shifts. Uses 'că' (that), 'dacă' (if/whether), 'să' (to) after reporting verbs.

Real conditions (dacă + present), unreal present (dacă + imperfect/conditional), unreal past (dacă + pluperfect, conditional perfect).

Past participles used as adjectives with full gender/number agreement: deschis/deschisă (open), închis/închisă (closed), scris/scrisă (written), pierdut/pierdută (lost).

Literary/regional past tense (common in Oltenia region). Simple forms without auxiliary, similar to French passé simple.

Archaic and literary forms: viitorul anterior (future perfect), condiționalul perfect, and formal subjunctive past.

Moldovan, Transylvanian, and Oltenian dialectal features. Vocabulary, pronunciation, and morphological differences across Romanian regions.

Flexible word order for emphasis, topic, and focus. Fronting and dislocation with clitic resumption.

Multiple modifiers with correct article and case agreement. Complex genitival chains and pre/post-nominal adjective placement.

Rules for combining multiple clitic pronouns: dative before accusative, reflexive position, and auxiliary verb interactions.

Subjunctive replacing infinitive (unique in Romance), subjunctive in relative clauses, and conditional subjunctive patterns.

Productive derivational suffixes: -ție/-țiune (action nouns), -tor/-toare (agent nouns), -bil/-bilă (possibility adjectives), -ism/-ist (ideologies/practitioners).

Formal and academic language patterns: complex subordination, nominal style, Latin-influenced vocabulary.

Adapting foreign words to Romanian morphology: adding articles, case endings, plural forms, and verb conjugation to loanwords.

Colloquial, standard, formal, and literary style distinctions. Code-switching between registers and awareness of archaic/literary forms.

Legal and administrative Romanian: formal constructions, archaic vocabulary, complex subordination, nominal style.

Romanian idioms and fixed expressions: a da din casă (to gossip), a trage pe sfoară (to cheat), a bate câmpii (to talk nonsense).

Discourse markers conveying attitude: deci (so), parcă (as if/seemingly), totuși (however), de altfel (moreover), oricum (anyway).

Understanding archaic forms from literary texts (dumnealui, precum, iarăși) alongside recent borrowings (a implementa, feedback, management) and their Romanian adaptations.

Manipulating word order for rhetorical, poetic, and emphatic effects. Fronting, cleft sentences, topicalization, and literary inversions.