Subordinating Conjunctions in Romanian

Overview

Subordinating conjunctions are the grammatical glue that joins a main clause to a dependent clause, expressing relationships like cause, condition, purpose, time, and concession. In Romanian, these conjunctions are essential for moving beyond simple sentences into the complex structures that characterize fluent speech and writing.

At the B1 level, learners need to actively produce sentences with subordinating conjunctions to express reasons, conditions, purposes, and temporal relationships. These structures are the backbone of argumentation, narration, and explanation in Romanian.

Many Romanian subordinating conjunctions are compound forms built from prepositions and the particles ca or sa, reflecting the language's Balkan tendency to favor analytical (multi-word) constructions. Understanding how these compounds are built helps learners predict and remember new conjunctions.

How It Works

Core Subordinating Conjunctions

Conjunction	English	Mood Required	Category
ca	that	Indicative	Declarative
daca	if / whether	Indicative	Conditional
desi	although	Indicative	Concessive
pentru ca	because	Indicative	Causal
ca sa	in order to	Subjunctive	Purpose
inainte sa	before	Subjunctive	Temporal
dupa ce	after	Indicative	Temporal
de cand	since (time)	Indicative	Temporal
pana (cand)	until	Indicative	Temporal
in timp ce	while	Indicative	Temporal
cu toate ca	although/even though	Indicative	Concessive
fara sa	without	Subjunctive	Manner
in loc sa	instead of	Subjunctive	Substitutive

Conjunctions Requiring the Subjunctive

Several conjunctions require the verb in the subordinate clause to be in the subjunctive mood (formed with sa):

Conjunction	Example	Translation
ca sa	Am venit ca sa te ajut.	I came in order to help you.
inainte sa	Spala-te inainte sa mananci.	Wash up before you eat.
fara sa	A plecat fara sa spuna.	He left without saying.
in loc sa	In loc sa invete, se joaca.	Instead of studying, he plays.
pana sa	Pana sa vii tu, termin eu.	Before you come, I'll finish.

Conjunctions Requiring the Indicative

Most subordinating conjunctions take the indicative mood:

Conjunction	Example	Translation
ca	Stiu ca vine.	I know that he's coming.
daca	Daca ploua, stau acasa.	If it rains, I stay home.
pentru ca	Plec pentru ca e tarziu.	I'm leaving because it's late.
desi	Desi e obosit, lucreaza.	Although he's tired, he works.
dupa ce	Dupa ce am mancat, am plecat.	After we ate, we left.
in timp ce	In timp ce citeam, a sunat.	While I was reading, he called.

Word Order

The subordinate clause can come before or after the main clause. When it comes first, a comma typically separates the two:

• Daca ploua, stau acasa. (If it rains, I stay home.)
• Stau acasa daca ploua. (I stay home if it rains.)

Examples in Context

Romanian	English	Note
Stiu ca vine maine.	I know that he's coming tomorrow.	Declarative with "ca"
Daca ploua, stau acasa.	If it rains, I stay home.	Conditional with "daca"
Desi e obosit, lucreaza mult.	Although he's tired, he works a lot.	Concessive with "desi"
Am venit ca sa te ajut.	I came to help you.	Purpose with "ca sa"
Plec pentru ca e tarziu.	I'm leaving because it's late.	Causal with "pentru ca"
Inainte sa pleci, suna-ma.	Before you leave, call me.	Temporal + subjunctive
Dupa ce am terminat, am iesit.	After we finished, we went out.	Temporal + indicative
In timp ce gateam, a venit Ion.	While I was cooking, Ion came.	Simultaneous actions
Fara sa stie nimeni, a disparut.	Without anyone knowing, he disappeared.	Manner + subjunctive
Cu toate ca l-am rugat, n-a venit.	Even though I asked him, he didn't come.	Emphatic concessive
In loc sa doarma, citeste.	Instead of sleeping, he reads.	Substitutive + subjunctive
De cand a plecat, n-am mai vorbit.	Since he left, we haven't spoken.	Temporal origin
Pana sa ajungi tu, rezolv eu.	Before you arrive, I'll solve it.	Temporal + subjunctive
Am asteptat pana a venit.	I waited until he came.	Temporal endpoint

Common Mistakes

Wrong: Am venit ca te ajut. Right: Am venit ca sa te ajut. Why: Purpose clauses require ca sa + subjunctive, not ca alone. The particle sa is essential for expressing purpose.

Wrong: Desi ca e obosit... Right: Desi e obosit... Why: Do not combine desi with ca. Desi alone introduces the concessive clause.

Wrong: Inainte ca plec... Right: Inainte sa plec... Why: Inainte requires sa + subjunctive, not ca + indicative. The temporal conjunction inainte sa is a fixed compound.

Wrong: Pentru ca sa invat... Right: Pentru ca invat... (because I study) OR Ca sa invat... (in order to study) Why: Pentru ca (because) takes the indicative and expresses cause. Ca sa (in order to) takes the subjunctive and expresses purpose. Do not merge the two.

Wrong: Dupa ce sa termin... Right: Dupa ce termin... Why: Dupa ce takes the indicative mood, not the subjunctive. The subordinate clause uses a regular indicative verb form.

Usage Notes

Romanian subordinating conjunctions are used consistently across all dialects and registers. In formal writing, the full compound forms are preferred (pentru ca, cu toate ca, in ciuda faptului ca), while spoken Romanian sometimes shortens or simplifies them.

The distinction between conjunctions requiring the subjunctive and those requiring the indicative is grammatically strict. Mixing moods after these conjunctions is a clear error. As a rule of thumb, conjunctions expressing purpose, "before," "without," and "instead of" take the subjunctive; most others take the indicative.

Ca versus ca sa is a frequent source of confusion. Ca (that) introduces declarative clauses with the indicative: Stiu ca vine (I know that he comes). Ca sa (in order to) introduces purpose clauses with the subjunctive: Am venit ca sa te vad (I came to see you). The presence or absence of sa changes both meaning and mood.

Practice Tips

• Create a personal reference table grouping conjunctions by the mood they require (subjunctive vs. indicative). Review it regularly until the association becomes automatic.
• Practice combining pairs of simple sentences into complex ones using different conjunctions. For example, take "It rains" and "I stay home" and connect them with daca, pentru ca, desi, and in timp ce to see how the meaning changes.
• When writing, consciously vary your conjunctions. If you find yourself defaulting to ca and daca for everything, challenge yourself to use desi, in timp ce, or cu toate ca to add variety.

Related Concepts

• Parent: Basic Word Order -- subordinating conjunctions expand the basic sentence structure by introducing dependent clauses with specific word order rules.